Schleswig-Holstein is the first German federal state to develop a testing framework for anti-collision systems. The framework was presented at the Timmaspe wind farm on 8 August 2024 in the presence of Minister for Energy Transition, Climate Protection, Environment and Nature Tobias Goldschmidt, representatives of the State Office for Environmental Protection (LfU) and the partner companies BioConsult SH and ProTecBird.
The framework defines minimum requirements for the development, validation and testing of systems designed to protect birds from colliding with wind turbines. It provides clear guidance for manufacturers developing anti-collision systems and therefore helps to standardise and speed up approval procedures.
ProTecBird presented its successfully validated anti-collision system AVES Wind, which was co-developed by BioConsult SH, to the public at the Timmaspe wind farm.
“With its AVES Wind anti-collision system, ProTecBird has achieved a technological breakthrough that can be considered disruptive for the wind energy industry,” explains Thorsten Heinzen, managing director of ProTecBird. “We have created a smart, networked, AI-based system that uses the existing wind farm infrastructure and further improves the effectiveness and sustainability of wind energy generation.”
Minister Goldschmidt emphasised the importance of this development for environmental protection and the state's energy policy: “Schleswig-Holstein is a state of energy transition, but also of nature and species conservation. We want to promote both, because they are two sides of the same coin. Anti-collision systems contribute to reconcile the further development of wind energy use and the protection of large birds,” said Minister Goldschmidt.
The event at the Timmaspe wind farm illustrates the successful cooperation between science, industry and politics and marks a decisive step for the future of wind energy in Schleswig-Holstein and throughout Germany.
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