Energy from the field

“Ritzing pro nature” opposes PV park

If necessary, the panels can be positioned vertically and easily driven through with agricultural machinery(Bild: Wolfgang Spitzbart)

Hot discussions in the district of Oberpullendorf, where the construction of a state-of-the-art solar park is being considered - even before the first talks, a citizens' initiative is mobilizing against green energy from the fields.

On Tuesday from 6 pm in the Ritzing parish hall, a representative of Burgenland Energie will appear before the landowners, including the municipality, and try to make the idea of an ultra-modern photovoltaic park palatable to them. It is to be built on 34 hectares of agricultural land - the equivalent of 43 soccer pitches - and supply 3,000 households with green electricity.

"Electricity on roofs instead of fields"
The first explanation has not even been heard yet, and resistance is already stirring in parts of the population. The citizens' initiative "Ritzing pro Natur" has been launched. "We only have 418 households," they say, for example. By the day after the information evening at the latest, they want to have painted a banner and be photographed with it in the fields. The slogans "Electricity on roofs instead of fields" and "Electricity from your own roof instead of electricity from the countryside" are in pole position. The color red should not be an option for the letters.

We want to offer citizens green, cheaper electricity via energy communities and provide the resources for this.

Jochen Müllner, Bürgermeister von Ritzing

Bild: SPÖ Bez. OP

SPÖ Mayor Jochen Müllner will be attending the event. "I am of course in favor of building the PV park," says the mayor, who has been in office since 2022. "We will vote on the project in the municipal council on June 3. The priority remains whether or not the landowners can reach an agreement with Burgenland Energie."

Movable panels move with the sun
According to the electricity supplier, the panels in the Ritzinger Agri-PV-Park will not be fixed, as is the case with conventional systems, but will be movable via a dedicated tracker system and thus tracked by the sun. "With this innovation, ten percent more electricity can be produced on the same area compared to conventional fixed PV systems," it says. Furthermore, 75 percent of the area can still be cultivated - the panels can be positioned vertically if required and the machines can easily drive through them. The uprights are spaced eight meters apart. Organic farming is even possible between the rows of modules. New biodiversity areas are also created.

According to Mayor Müllner, another argument in favor of the construction: "We would make our municipality independent of prices and energy in the midst of the energy and climate crisis."