The three striking cooling towers of the decommissioned Boxberg power plant in Upper Lusatia were blown up with a loud bang. The measure marks the beginning of a new chapter in energy supply, said State Secretary Barbara Meyer, who watched the demolition on site. "Among other things, a large battery storage facility is being built, which the Free State is supporting with around 30 million euros from the EU's Just Transition Fund." For Lusatia as an old and new energy region, this is money well spent.
A fund for change
The EU's Just Transition Fund is a funding instrument set up by the European Commission to support structural change in European regions. The fund complements national support measures and aims to cushion the social and economic impact of the transition in the affected regions.
In June, Saxony's Regional Development Minister Thomas Schmidt (CDU) and EU Commissioner Elisa Ferreira handed over funding decisions totaling around 58 million euros to the energy company Leag. The aim is to create a new "green base load" by combining battery storage and green technologies, which will make it possible to flexibly use electricity from the sun and wind depending on the weather and time of day.
Gigawatt targets for Lusatia
Leag is reportedly aiming to make seven gigawatts of renewable power generation available for base load by 2030 with a so-called gigawatt factory in combination with power storage and modern power plant technologies. By 2040, this figure should be up to 14 gigawatts.
Structural change is not only taking place in Saxony, but also in many other European regions.
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