Masts of Beidweiler longwave transmitter (2006)

The Beidweiler longwave transmitter is a high-power broadcasting transmission site owned by RTL Group and operated by RTL company Broadcasting Center Europe. It was used to transmit the French-speaking programme of RTL on longwave frequency 234 kHz until 1 January 2023. Based in Beidweiler, Luxembourg, the transmission site is situated at 49°43'58" N and 6°19'08" E and went into service in 1972 as replacement of the old Junglinster Longwave Transmitter. Junglinster remained in use as a backup site and for additional broadcast services.

Construction

The facility uses a directional antenna consisting of three 290-meter (950 ft) tall guyed masts, each equipped with a cage antenna. The output of this array is mostly directed toward Paris. When the site was inaugurated in 1972 it operated with a transmission power of 1400 kilowatts, which was pushed up to 2000 kW in 1974, making it one of the most powerful broadcasting stations in the world at the time.[1]

History

In 1994, the facility's transmitters were replaced with Thomson-Csf TRE 2175 units, which in turn were replaced by a new Transradio TRAM/P 1500 LS solid-state transmitter in 2011 that could support DRM digital radio broadcasting.[2] The maximum power of the site is 1500 kW (reduced to 1000 kW at night);[3] since 2020, the output power has been set to 750 kW daytime or 375 kW at night.[4]

In 2019, RTL Group and Luxembourgish energy company Enovos began work on an extensive solar generation facility at Beidweiler.[5] The first phase of the project, consisting of 16,100 photovoltaic solar panels, was connected to the national energy grid in 2020. A second group of panels went online in 2021. Together with a similar solar generation facility at Junglinster, the transmission sites make up the largest solar facility in Luxembourg, generating almost 10.5 gigawatt-hours of energy per year.[6]

In October 2022, RTL parent company Groupe M6 announced plans to cease broadcasting from the site, citing the need to reduce electricity consumption.[7] Transmissions from Beidweiler stopped on 2 January 2023, with listeners advised to switch to FM, DAB+, or streams delivered via digital TV and mobile apps.[8]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Engle, Steve. "Competing in the Ether — Building transmission sites". H-Europe.
  2. ↑ Zank, Harald (2011-07-27). "Transradio Delivers System to RTL". Radio World. Retrieved 2022-10-25.
  3. ↑ "RTL 234 kHz power, April 2018 / August 2020".
  4. ↑ "MWLIST quick and easy: Europe, Africa and Middle East - 234 kHz". Retrieved October 9, 2020.
  5. ↑ "Beidweiler et Junglinster: RTL Group et Enovos à l'initiative du plus grand parc photovoltaïque du pays" [Beidweiler and Junglinster: RTL Group and Enovos at the initiative of the largest photovoltaic park in the country]. RTL: 5 minutes (in French). 2019-07-16. Retrieved 2022-10-25.
  6. ↑ Du Murr, Irene (2022-02-24). "Focus on the country's large-scale photovoltaic installations". Spuerkeess. Retrieved 2022-10-25.
  7. ↑ Ross, T Carter (2022-10-25). "RTL Plans 234 kHz Exit for Year-End". Radio World. Retrieved 2023-01-02.
  8. ↑ "RTL France has stopped long wave broadcasting". 2023-01-02. Retrieved 2023-01-02.
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49°43′49″N 6°19′14″E / 49.73033°N 6.32058°E / 49.73033; 6.32058

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