The Company launches the first two photovoltaic power plants into the grid

Třinecké železárny together with its subsidiary Energetika Třinec will produce electricity from the sun in two photovoltaic power plants from December.

The first one covered an area equivalent to about half of the football field on the steelworks' premises. The second one is going into operation these days on the hall of a detached plant in Staré Město in the Uherské Hradiště region.

The Třinec power plant with an installed capacity of 350 kWp, which under ideal conditions corresponds to an annual production of over 330,000 kWh, will capture solar energy on 760 panels located on a roof measuring 3,333 sqm. The investment cost the company CZK 12 million, nearly CZK 3 million will be covered by a subsidy from the Ministry of Finance.

"Green energy from our solar panels should cover more than half of the electricity consumption in Třinec for hot water production for heating," says Energetika Třinec director Petr Matuszek. Energetika Třinec provides heating for about 9,000 households, schools, hospitals and other facilities. The heat is produced from combined heat and power generation, where part of the fuel comes from steel production.

Similarly, energy generated from the sun will be used at the site of the detached plant in Staré Město. Ideally, the hall would use the solar energy, with an estimated 230 000 kWh per year, to power auxiliary equipment. Surplus electricity generated can be sent to the grid.

At the steel mill, photovoltaic panels covered 2,500 sqm of the roof of the new production hall, where new downstream peeling and grinding technologies are located. The investment amounted to no more than CZK 6 million, with the subsidy covering the costs of CZK 2 million.

This is not the only source of green energy that the smelter uses to reduce its carbon footprint. As early as 2020, it has been purchasing energy from wind, hydro or solar power plants for lighting and air conditioning operation of all administrative buildings at Třinec Ironworks. Similarly, the chemical water treatment plant runs on green energy all year round. Both companies are also working on offsetting CO2 emissions in other areas, some of which are targeted at the energy sector. For example, Energetika Třinec has replaced part of its fuel with biomass for electricity production.

Petra Macková Jurásková
Press Secretary of the Třinecké železárny - Moravia Steel Group
phone: +420 558 535 841
mobile: +420 602 265 738
e-mail: Petra.Mackova@trz.cz