Solar Decathlon 2007

Technische Universität Darmstadt: Showcasing the Power of Solar

The winning house from the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon 2007—Made in Germany—has been rebuilt on the Technische Universität Darmstadt Solar Lichtwiese area of campus. It is being used as an architecture office, called Soap, for former members of the decathlon team.

Following the competition, the Darmstadt house was first reconstructed in Essen, Germany, for the Deubau Construction Trade Fair. It remained on display there through January 2008. The house then traveled to Stuttgart, Germany, where it was set up on the corporate campus of Robert Bosch GmbH, one of the team's main sponsors.

At the Solar Lichtwiese (light field ), the house is surrounded by 34,500 m2 (8.5 acres) of land that the university has dedicated to developing clean energy technology. In addition to monitoring the Made in Germany house over a three-year period, Technische Universität Darmstadt is retrofitting older buildings on campus as part of its Solar Lichtwiese initiative.

Germany has a solar feed-in tariff that provides a guaranteed price for any solar power that is contributed to the German power grid. Because the feed-in tariff is high enough to cover the cost of the Solar Lichtwiese installation over the long term, the university is selling shares to the public to finance these photovoltaic systems. This yields a return for investors as the revenue from selling the power is split among them.

The Technische Universität Darmstadt house demonstrates the essence of sustainability with its oak louvered shutters covered in photovoltaic panels. As an office space, a research project, an energy generator, and an investment opportunity, Team Germany's winning house has found many ways to achieve success beyond the Solar Decathlon competition.

Content Last Updated: October 6, 2010