Thieves steal 50 km of cable from 11 MW solar farm in Germany
Summary
Thieves stole 50 km of cable worth about €100,000 ($117,400) from an 11 MW solar project in southern Germany, with repair costs expected to exceed the material loss, according to police.
<p class="p1"><span class="s1">Thieves stole 50 km of cable worth about €100,000 ($117,400) from an 11 MW solar project in southern Germany, with repair costs expected to exceed the material loss, according to police.</span></p><p><strong>From <a href="https://www.pv-magazine.de/2025/09/24/diebe-klauen-50-kilometer-kabel-aus-solarpark-im-main-tauber-kreis/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">pv magazine Germany</a></strong></p>
<p>Unknown perpetrators stole 50 km of cable from a fenced solar farm in Ahorn-Berolzheim, Baden-Württemberg, in southern Germany, a theft involving a ton of material that could not be removed discreetly. Police estimated the value at about €100,000, with repair costs likely to be higher.</p>
<p>The thieves must have used one or more trucks. The theft occurred between 2 p.m. (CEST) on Sept. 17, and 7 a.m. on Sept. 18. The Lauda-Königshofen police station asked for information from anyone who observed suspicious activity near the site.</p>
<p>The solar farm in Ahorn-Berolzheim has a capacity of 11 MW. When commissioned in 2010, it was one of the largest ground-mounted systems in Germany.</p>
<p>German broadcaster Südwestrundfunk reported an increase in cable thefts in the region. In July, copper cables worth €200,000 were stolen from a major construction site in the Heilbronn district.</p>
<p>In Spain, police broke up a group this spring that specialized in stealing copper from photovoltaic systems in Andalusia and Extremadura. A total of <a href="https://www.pv-magazine.com/2025/04/08/spain-arrests-23-people-in-copper-theft-ring-targeting-solar-plants/">23 people were arrested</a>.</p>