Architecture

Thousands of solar panels to power Germany's first climate-neutral arena

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The MUCCC arena's exterior will feature an eye-catching exoskeleton that references the Bavarian state flag's lozenge pattern
Populous
The MUCCC arena's exterior will feature an eye-catching exoskeleton that references the Bavarian state flag's lozenge pattern
Populous
The MUCCC will host up to 20,000 spectators for concerts and TV events, as well as conventions
Populous
The MUCCC will get power from thousands of solar panels and will incorporate significant greenery, both on its exterior and in the area surrounding the building
Populous
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Stadium specialist Populous has been commissioned to design a new multipurpose events arena in Munich. Described as Germany's first "climate-neutral" (i.e. net zero) arena by the firm, the building will host significant greenery on its eye-catching exterior and will get all required power from thousands of solar panels.

The MUCCC (Multifunctional Concert and Congress Center) will be constructed near Munich's airport, next to a technology and innovation center. The building will reach a height of roughly 34 m (111 ft) and take the form of a classic circular arena, albeit with a twist: its support structure will be on the exterior of the building, rather like Zaha Hadid's Morpheus Hotel. The design of this striking exoskeleton is meant to reference the Bavarian state flag's lozenge pattern.

The project is also being designed with sustainability in mind, making use of sustainably sourced and recyclable materials and meeting all of its energy needs on site.

"In a first for Germany, the new event arena will be climate-neutral thanks to lifecycle-based planning to reduce the carbon footprint during construction and climate-positive management of the operating phase," explained Populous. "Several thousand solar panels on the roof of the arena and around the site, coupled with the potential for geothermal energy and district heating, will ensure that the energy for operating the arena can be generated and supplied on site. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals provide the framework for the arena's sustainability and climate strategy, and it will be certified according to an internationally recognized sustainability system, so that achievement of the targets can be objectively evaluated and transparently measured."

The MUCCC will host up to 20,000 spectators for concerts and TV events, as well as conventions
Populous

Inside, the arena's seating will be arranged in a horseshoe shape, and will host up to 20,000 spectators for concerts and TV events, as well as conventions. The building will also include extensive landscaping and a large number of trees specifically chosen for the area will be planted. Additionally, a hotel and car park will be constructed nearby and these will host significant numbers of trees too.

Local planning officials have already given the green light for it to go ahead in principle and, assuming all goes to plan, it's expected to be in operation by 2027. SWMMunich Real Estate is developing.

Sources: Populous, MUCCC

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5 comments
Trylon
One more step away from dependence on fossil fuels in general and Russian oil in particular. Bravo.
aksdad
How will those solar panels power it at night? Or are the PV panels just offsetting consumption from the grid at night by generating power during the day and selling it to the grid?
Daishi
I envy the lack of parking lots. In the US the building would be surrounded by 10s of thousands of parking spots all sitting in bumper to bumper traffic for hours to funnel in and funnel out of the event. Increasingly I believe we have the wrong approach to solving for climate change. We are trying to make cars more efficient but the answer is closer to building a walkable society not dependent on automobiles.
Pat Kelley
Solar power is probably the worst kind of renewable energy for Germany, with more cloudy days than clear. They irrationally began shutting down their nuclear power stations, saying that the Fukushima catastrophe was the stimulus, but I can't remember the last time Germany experienced a tsunami.
White Rabbit
Is it worth mentioning that there are very frequent articles about developments in BATTERY technology in this very E-zine? Batteries store electricity so it can be used by the lights at night.
Or that while Germany is very unlikely to experience a tsunami, it is only 1000 km. away from Chernobyl, where there was no tsunami, but there was nuclear catastrophe?