Germany erects 365-metre wind turbine in Schipkau to harvest high-altitude winds

Telescoping tower reaches 365 metres

Engineering firm Gicon completed the assembly of the 365-metre wind turbine in Schipkau, located in the Lusatia region of Brandenburg, following five years of construction. The structure features a 300-metre hub height and reaches 365 metres at the tip of its rotor blades. Standing three metres shorter than the 368-metre Berlin Television Tower, the turbine is now the second-tallest structure in Germany. Construction workers mounted the turbine and rotor blades at a lower elevation before using a hydraulic cable system to hoist the internal mast to its full height, bypassing crane limitations. High wind gusts delayed the final extension before crews locked the inner column into position.

Gicon managing director Jochen Großmann addressed the weather delay during the installation phase.

Safety comes before speed.

Higher altitudes and stronger wind yields

The pilot installation tests whether harvesting winds at 300 metres above ground can increase inland renewable electricity generation. Standard onshore turbines generally reach hub heights between 150 and 200 metres, where terrain friction reduces airflow. Measurements gathered over a year from a dedicated 300-metre wind mast showed that wind speeds at 300 metres average 8.5 metres per second, which is 28% faster than at 150 metres. Gicon calculates that this airflow allows the turbine to generate twice the electricity of a conventional turbine with identical rotor dimensions. Stefan Emeis, a former researcher at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, stated that turbine downtime drops from over 12% to under 10% at this altitude.

Großmann noted that the sustained inland airflow creates operational conditions similar to coastal installations.

We achieve yields like those we see offshore.

Federal funding and regional transition

The German Federal Agency for Disruptive Innovations (SPRIND) financed the development with 20 million to 30 million euros. Gicon plans to equip future high-altitude models with turbines rated at 8 megawatts or more, yielding an estimated 30 to 33 gigawatt-hours annually to supply electricity for 7,500 four-person households. The prototype stands inside the Schipkau wind farm, which opened in 2000 with approximately 50 conventional turbines. The installation occupies a traditional lignite coal district where regional open-cast mining sites are scheduled to close by 2038 in line with national emissions legislation.

SPRIND innovation manager Martin Chaumet described the potential for expanding renewable capacity across the interior of the country.

We have the opportunity to distribute wind energy much more evenly across the country.

Technical testing and local reception

Engineers will spend several days finishing mechanical adjustments ahead of official commissioning scheduled for November 2026. The Schipkau turbine exceeds the previous tallest serial wind installation in Winnberg, Bavaria, which measures 199 metres at the hub and 285 metres in total height. Gicon intends to use operational data from the trial to evaluate two-tier wind farming, placing tall turbines directly above older units without claiming additional farmland. The installation has drawn opposition from local groups and the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which questioned visual impacts and biodiversity effects while disputing human-driven climate change.