Königssee is solar: Bavaria's largest photovoltaic carport!

Königssee is solar: Bavaria's largest photovoltaic carport!

Schönau, Deutschland - The parking lot on the Königssee has attracted great attention since last summer with the new photovoltaic carport system, which comprises 270 parking spaces and provides a roof area of ​​4700 square meters. This system is considered the largest photovoltaic carport system with a public charging infrastructure in Bavaria. The opening was celebrated by the municipality of Schönau and Watzmann Natur Energie GmbH (WNE). In April, the largest solar carport in Bavaria near Bad Wörishofen was also put into operation, which comes up with impressive 22,000 solar modules and 2160 parking spaces, such as Süddeutsche.de reported

The new facility on the Königssee has followed the attention and advantages of using solar energy. Although photovoltaic open-air facilities are less popular than wind turbines, there are concerns about the destruction of the landscape and the consumption of arable land, especially among young people. The carport facility in sensitive mountain landscapes already uses sealed soil and thus enjoys a more environmentally friendly footprint.

electricity production and e-charging stations

The solar panels of the new carport system have been producing electricity for several weeks, which is largely used for the charging infrastructure of electric cars. At the Königssee, 62 vehicles can currently be loaded at the same time, with the municipality already indicated plans for an expansion of the loading offer. In Bad Wörishofen, part of the electricity generated is even fed directly into the rides of an amusement park, while the larger part flows into the general power grid.

The demand for electric cars increases despite the announced reduction in government funding. These vehicles do without an internal combustion engine and do not produce harmful emissions when driving. As shown Klarsolar.de , 90 percent of the electric car owners are able to easily load their vehicles with electricity from a separate photovoltaic system. A 10 kWP PV system can, for example, charge a Tesla Model 3 for about 42 kilometers. Ideal are modern charging technologies such as "smart charging", which enable 90 percent of the loading time to cover with solar power.

renewable energies in Germany

The photovoltaic content in Bavaria is part of a more comprehensive trend in Germany, where renewable energies made 22.4 percent of gross intenders in 2024, which corresponds to an increase of 0.8 percentage points compared to the previous year, so Environmental Bundesamt.de . It should even be 41 percent by 2030. Photovoltaics has established itself as one of the most important renewable energy sources and in 2024 contributed 74.1 billion kWh to electricity generation, which means an impressive increase of 16 percent compared to the previous year.

The development of renewable energies has led to a significant decline in greenhouse gas emissions. In 2024, 256 million tons of CO₂ equivalents were avoided, with 80 percent saving from renewable sources. Despite these positive developments, landscape researchers such as Sören Schöbel emphasize the need to make open space PV appealing and to protect the valuable areas of nature. AGRI PV systems that enable agricultural use could be a promising solution for the use of land.