Excursion report Schwarze Pumpe and GICON high-altitude wind tower

_{Author: Prof. Clemens Felsmann}

20 engineering students (Renewable Energy Systems, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechatronics, Industrial Engineering and Management) set off on a lecture-free day at the end of May to visit the LEAG Schwarze Pumpe power plant and the GICON high-altitude wind tower near Schipkau as part of an excursion. At the power plant, Dr. Schneider and Ms. Perko gave us interesting insights into the ongoing transformation process from lignite to renewable energies. It became clear that the phase-out of lignite-fired power generation can also become the entry into future fields of the energy industry. Mr. Rösler's lecture on the changing landscape and the design and use of the post-mining landscape highlighted the serious interventions in nature associated with lignite mining and the human attempts to heal them. The lecture left the students with questions about the recultivation costs and their allocation. The subsequent tour of the power plant gave them a completely new perspective and perhaps also a sense of awe at the unfamiliar dimensions of the plant. The view from the visitors' terrace was impressive.

© Robert Mühlberg

In the second part of the excursion, there was an opportunity to visit the construction site of the GICON high-altitude wind tower. A very innovative wind energy plant is being built on a post-mining landscape near an existing wind farm, which will make the use of wind more effective with a planned total height of 365m. The yields are likely to be higher than with conventional turbines due to the more stable wind conditions at higher altitudes, and a high-altitude wind tower could also be integrated into existing wind farms as a superstructure. The guided tour of the construction site already gave an idea of the very impressive dimensions of the future structure, and the passion of the experts on site, the professionalism and technical accuracy of the construction processes were admirable. We wish the builders every success.

The excursion was only possible thanks to the financial support of the Förderverein Zukunftsingenieure. The association made it possible for us to travel by minibus from Dresden and back and subsidized the cost of lunch to an acceptable level for students. Thank you very much for this!