The Asuntomessut housing fair area will get its own solar power plant
In the 2022 Housing Fair area in Naantali, Finland, solar energy is utilized on a completely new scale. The electricity produced by the solar power plant is fed into the smart transformer and from there further into the electricity grid. During optimal heat, the electricity output of the solar panels in Naantali’s Asuntomessu area can be higher than the electricity consumption of the area’s residents.
One of the themes of the Housing Fair in Naantali 2022 is smart energy solutions. It inspired Naantali Energia to build a solar energy park on the shore of the fairgrounds. The promenade leading to the beach will be covered and the roofs will be made with solar panels. In addition to this, solar panels will be installed on the roof of the maintenance building coming to the beach. The combined power of these is about 100 kW. Annually, the solar power plant produces approximately 88,000 kWh of electricity. A two-person apartment household consumes about 2,500 kWh of electricity per year, which means that solar power can produce the electricity of about 35 apartment buildings for a year. After the fair, solar panels with a combined output of approximately 100 kW will be installed on the land located on the beach, which will double the electricity production of the solar power plant.
The solar panels on the beach canopy and the ground-based solar power plant that will be built after the fair are not the only collectors of solar radiation in the area. A large part of the houses built on the fair grounds also have solar panels. The excess electricity produced by both the solar power plant and the panels of private houses is fed to the smart transformer located at the fairgrounds and from there to the entire electricity grid. A battery is located in connection with the smart transformer, which is controlled by energy management software. In sunny weather, the battery is charged during the day and its charge is discharged during the night, for example, when residents of the area charge their electric cars. In winter, the battery is charged at night when the electricity is at its cheapest and discharged to the electricity grid during the more expensive electricity price.
The battery keeps enough capacity at all times that in the event of a power outage, the area’s street lights can be kept on. In the dark seasons, this creates security for the residents of the area.
“The importance of solar power is growing all the time, and the Naantali pilot project is an important part of the development of the utilization of solar energy. The housing fair area in Naantali’s Lounatuule will be the first residential areas in Finland where, in optimal weather conditions, the electricity production can be greater than the consumption of the area’s residents”
Naantali Energia’s network manager Jarno Ala-Kokko
“Asuntomessut is an excellent platform for various pilots that will produce even better construction and housing solutions for general use in the future. This year in Lohja, we are piloting cooperative construction. In Naantali, the idea of a solar power plant pilot was born already in the planning phase of the project and embodies well the Smart Energy Solutions theme selected for Naantali. “
Finnish Housing Fair’s operational director Heikki Vuorenpää
