Evonik to offtake 120 MWp of German solar under deal with Vattenfall

Swedish state-owned utility Vattenfall has signed power purchase agreements (PPAs) to supply electricity to German specialty chemicals company Evonik Industries AG (ETR:EVK) from two solar parks in Germany totaling 120 MWp.

The 10-year fixed-conditions contracts will see Evonik receive around 120 GWh of solar power per year for chemical production.

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The two solar parks will be located in Schleswig-Holstein in northern Germany and are scheduled to be completed and connected to the grid in 2025.

"Germany is the fastest growing market for renewable energies in Europe. We see a wide range of growth opportunities here for the development and marketing of our solar, onshore and offshore projects,” Martijn Hagens, Head of Business Area Markets at Vattenfall, said in a statement today, adding that electricity partnerships with industry play a decisive role.

Evonik cited a study by the German Energy Agency (Dena), indicating that the volume of PPAs in Germany could reach 192 TWh by 2030, accounting for a quarter of Germany's total electricity demand.

The company commented that while chemical production requires a steady power supply, the actual renewables generation often differs from forecasts. To address this, Evonik has a balancing group management system for its own chemical parks and sites, which allows it to harmonise electricity supplies and demand, contributing to grid stability.

“Around 35% of Evonik's externally sourced electricity worldwide already comes from renewable sources. Thanks to the new agreements with Vattenfall, this share clearly exceeds the 50% mark,” said Thomas Wessel, Executive Board member responsible for sustainability.

Evonik, meanwhile, last week launched a project with energy company Uniper in Gelsenkirchen, which will feed industrial waste heat from isophorone production into the district heating network. The initiative will supply around 1,000 homes in the Ruhr region by the end of 2024.