Al-Wazir: University of Kassel provides important impetus for sustainable energy production

Al-Wazir visited the photovoltaic (PV) system installed on the roof of the university's Department of Electrical Engineering/Computer Science as part of his summer trip. It will soon go into operation and is the first in a series of systems that will be installed on the roofs of the University of Kassel in the coming years with the support of the cdw Stiftung gGmbH. The cdw Foundation is funding the project with a total of 1 million euros. The university will use the electricity itself; the savings in electricity costs will be invested by the university in further PV systems and other sustainability projects. When completed, all the systems together will produce around 600,000 kilowatt hours of electricity per year.
The system is thus an example of the "intracting" method, in which savings on energy costs finance new energy-saving measures. The University of Kassel is a nationwide pilot university in this area. The university is also investing savings in energy costs in other areas, such as lighting or building insulation, in further measures based on the intracting model. The university's Department of Technical Building Services is scientifically evaluating the process and identifying ways in which intracting can be transferred to other universities in Hesse and Germany.

"As a pilot university, the University of Kassel is providing important impetus for sustainable energy generation," explained Al-Wazir. He praised the solar roof system project, which should not only encourage universities to follow suit and thus advance the energy transition. "The use of solar energy is of central importance for the energy transition," emphasized Al-Wazir. "Solar systems are particularly attractive for self-supply of electricity. With the Hesse solar register, we are providing impetus for the private expansion of photovoltaics. I hope that flagship projects such as the one at the University of Kassel will have a stimulating effect on the construction of larger self-consumption systems," said the Minister. In 2017, 20 percent of electricity consumption in Hesse was covered by renewable energies for the first time.

The President of the University, Prof. Dr. Reiner Finkeldey, said: "Sustainability is one of the topics of the future that we are working on scientifically at the University of Kassel. Intracting combines research with the very practical operation of the university. In recent years, we have been able to significantly improve our sustainability balance in research, teaching and operations. Thanks to the cdw Foundation, we can make an additional tangible contribution to environmental protection."
For the Managing Director of cdw Stiftung gGmbH, Thomas Flügge, the commitment of the public sector is a prerequisite for North Hesse to remain at the forefront of the energy transition. "The expansion of renewable energies helps our region both ecologically and economically. Renewable energies generate 120 million euros of regional added value in North Hesse every year. Public institutions, municipalities and local authorities in particular must once again drive the stagnating expansion and be role models for the energy transition. We are happy to support them in this. The plant inaugurated today alone saves around 80 tons of CO2 emissions and 24,000 euros in electricity costs every year."

University President Finkeldey took today's opportunity to present the Minister with the university's recently published 2nd Sustainability Report, which provides information on the goals and results for improving the sustainability balance. According to the report, the university in North Hesse has significantly improved its balance sheet since 2014, for example in terms of energy savings and waste avoidance.

Contact:

Sebastian Mense
University of Kassel
Communications, Press and Public Relations
Phone: +49 561 804-1961
Email: presse[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
www.uni-kassel.de