Exclusion zone should be an advantage
German company wants to build wind farm in Chernobyl
September 13, 2023, 2:28 a.m
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The area around the destroyed Chernobyl reactor is an exclusion zone. The Ukrainians have plans with a German company for a large wind farm in the area, which is said to be beneficial for this. There can be no conflicts with residents, for example.
The Potsdam energy company Notus wants to develop a wind farm in the exclusion zone of the Ukrainian city of Chernobyl. Notus announced that a corresponding declaration of intent was signed together with the state-owned Ukrainian electricity network operator Ukrenergo on the sidelines of Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock’s visit to Ukraine. Baerbock traveled to the country hit by Russia’s war of aggression on Monday.
According to Notus, the area has the potential to supply 800,000 households around Kiev with wind power. The estimated output is 1000 megawatts. “A wind farm of this size would make a substantial contribution to the expansion of renewable energies in Ukraine and strengthen the independence and decentralization of the Ukrainian energy supply,” said Hannes Helm, managing director of the Ukrainian project development company of the NOTUS Energy Group, according to the statement. “We want to make a contribution to the reconstruction and transformation of Ukraine’s energy supply.” The company says one advantage of building a wind farm in the exclusion zone around the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, which exploded in 1986, is that the area is low-conflict from a social and environmental perspective. According to the company, a zone that is currently unused could be used sustainably. The zone is located in the Kiev Oblast and is around 150 kilometers from the capital.
Notus is already active in Ukraine. In 2019, before the large-scale invasion by Russian troops, the company said it had already acquired the rights to build three wind farms with a total output of 270 megawatts.
During her visit to Ukraine, Baerbock was informed about the preparations for the energy supply in the winter. Ukraine’s infrastructure facilities are repeatedly attacked by Russia. Ukraine’s energy supply is considered fragile.