First Sunmaxx PVT Module on the Roof of MAHLE Plant in Vaihingen-Enz

Sunmaxx Supplies MAHLE with 1,000 Hybrid Modules for Germany’s largest PVT System

Vaihingen-Enz, 20.01.2025: MAHLE is relying on a state-of-the-art photovoltaic-thermal (PVT) system to decarbonize its production site in Vaihingen-Enz (Baden-Württemberg). Sunmaxx, one of the leading PVT manufacturers, located in Saxony, Germany, supplies MAHLE with more than 1,000 PX-1 hybrid modules. MAHLE and Sunmaxx have a close partnership; the automotive supplier is a strategic investor and development partner of Sunmaxx. At the time of implementation, Germany’s largest photovoltaic-thermal hybrid system is being built with an overall PVT area of almost 2,000 m². The innovative PVT system will supply the MAHLE site in Vaihingen-Enz with green electricity and cover almost all of its heating requirements. In total, the PVT system generates more than 430 kilowatt peak (kWp) of electrical power and produces approx. 1.2 gigawatt hours (GWh) of thermal energy over the course of the year. This corresponds to the annual heating requirements of around 100 single-family homes. The first Sunmaxx modules will be installed from February 2025 and the system is scheduled to be operating in July 2025.

“Our joint project shows that the switch to regenerative solutions is worthwhile due to the increasing costs for energy and process heat. The decarbonization of the plant in Vaihingen-Enz serves as a reference project for other sites and makes an important contribution to achieving climate neutrality of our company by 2040″, states Jumana Al-Sibai, member of the MAHLE Group Management Board and responsible for the Thermal and Fluid Systems business unit. The MAHLE locations in Germany have been climate-neutral since 2021.

In contrast to conventional PV modules, hybrid modules produce electricity and heat at the same time. They can be used both as the sole heat source for brine heat pumps (monovalent use) and in combination with other heat sources such as ground collectors and geothermal probes (bivalent use). PVT modules are most effective when combined with heat storage.

In order to supply the MAHLE site near Stuttgart with sustainable and cost-effective heating, a geothermal borehole field was selected as a heat storage system. With its help, the thermal energy generated by PVT in summer can be transferred to the ground and stored there for heating in the winter months. Thanks to this so-called geothermal probe regeneration, made possible by Sunmaxx’ PVT technology, significantly fewer meters of drilling are required than for sole geothermal systems.

The switch to renewable heating using PVT and geothermal energy offers strategic advantages. Once the hybrid system is commissioned, MAHLE will benefit from very competitive electricity and heat prices. With the help of Sunmaxx’s PVT technology, the MAHLE plant located in Baden-Wurttemberg, will be almost completely independent from natural gas and will largely free its infrastructure from fossil fuels. Wilhelm Stein, CEO of Sunmaxx, explains: “Due to PVT, the energy costs can be scaled and thus planned. Unlike gas, for example, no increase is to be expected in the next thirty years. MAHLE is showing: Projects like this are an opportunity for industrial companies to keep their energy expenditures constant and represent a cost-effective solution to achieve their climate goals.”

 

About MAHLE

MAHLE is a leading international development partner and supplier to the automotive industry with customers in both passenger car and commercial vehicle sectors. Founded in 1920, the technology group is working on the climate-neutral mobility of tomorrow, with a focus on the strategic areas of electrification and thermal management as well as further technologies to reduce carbon emissions, such as fuel cells or highly efficient, clean combustion engines that also run on renewable fuels, such as hydrogen. Today, one in every two vehicles globally is equipped with MAHLE components.

MAHLE generated sales of almost EUR 13 billion in 2023. Employing more than 72,000 people at 148 production locations and 11 technology centers, the company is represented in 29 countries. (Last revised: 12/31/2023)

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About MAHLE New Ventures

MAHLE New Ventures GmbH was founded in 2022. It bundles all start-up activities and start-up teams at MAHLE under one roof and, in doing so, takes account of the growing importance of internal corporate start-ups and venture capital (VC) investments in external start-ups. MAHLE New Ventures has been a lead investor at Sunmaxx since 2022.

 

About Sunmaxx PVT

Sunmaxx is the world’s leading developer and manufacturer of PVT hybrid modules. Sunmaxx is the first company to succeed in transferring PVT modules to industrial mass production. As a result, Sunmaxx is able to offer its extraordinarily powerful PVT modules cost-effectively and to a high quality standard. With an annual production volume of 50 MW, Sunmaxx is one of the most important suppliers for decarbonization projects in Germany and Europe—from private single-family homes and municipal heat planning through to large industrial plants with process heat.

 

©  Featured Image: MAHLE GmbH

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