Solar panels on Hamburg’s roofs: a community task? Photovoltaic expansion is a community task that can only succeed with our combined efforts.

This is possible through energy cooperatives, for example. Across Germany, 220,000 members in 877 energy cooperatives have invested more than EUR 3 billion in renewable energies, generating around 8 terawatt hours of clean electricity in 2022 alone. This avoided around 3 million tons of CO2 equivalents in the electricity sector (Source DGRV). There is clearly a huge north-south divide. In the north, the cooperative idea seems to be mainly established in house building and agriculture. Energy cooperatives in the south, however, report that new solar projects are oversubscribed within a few days with capital from regional stakeholders.

There are also enough projects that everyone can benefit from. For example, the BürgerEnergie Nord eG (BEN) energy cooperative in northern Germany plans to invest at least EUR 1.2 million in solar panels on the roofs of public buildings and apartment blocks in the coming months. These projects will save over 300 tons of CO2 per year in Hamburg. Over a period of 30 years, this is 9,000 tons. By comparison, 72,000 beech trees would have to be planted every year to offset the same amount of CO2. This not only makes an important contribution to climate protection in Hamburg, but also allows the city’s residents to profit from the energy transition.

“We believe that the cooperative principle, ‘what we cannot achieve alone, we can achieve together’, applies to the energy transition,” says Anna Leidreiter, Director of BürgerEnergie Nord eG. “So we give people the opportunity to invest and benefit from climate protection in their town.” BEN is currently developing over 10 PV projects with a total output of over 750 kWp in the Hamburg districts of Eidelstedt, Horn, Wilhelmsburg, Mitte and Wellingsbüttel – and this number is growing every week. Hamburg’s solar obligation is putting increased pressure on both the district authorities and the municipal subsidiary, Sprinkenhof GmbH, to not only consider PV in new builds and renovations, but also in their existing properties.

In Eimsbüttel, Alsterdorf and Wandsbek, BEN eG has already successfully implemented projects with public involvement. Partners are the respective district authorities, as well as homeowner and housing associations. Citizens have already invested a total of EUR 364,000 in solar systems that BEN eG is now using to supply a nursery school, cultural centre, welfare centre for the homeless and flats in apartment buildings.

Current regulatory developments are boosting business models like BEN eG, showing that the energy transition pot is big enough to share. So if we regard photovoltaic expansion as a community task, let’s jointly invest in our solar development in the world’s most beautiful city. Because the transformation of our energy system will be successful if people can have their say, make money and participate. This improves social cohesion, makes our democracy more resilient to crisis and generates income and revenue for citizens and councils.

About BEN: BürgerEnergie Nord eG was founded in Hamburg five years ago. It plans, finances, implements and operates tenant electricity projects throughout northern Germany. As a cooperative energy provider, BEN supplies electricity from their own roofs to people and organisations in new builds and existing properties and municipal institutions, as well as electricity from renewable energies to businesses in northern Germany.