Opencast mining Nochten in the area of northern Oberlausitz

Coal extraction up to 18 Mio. tons of brown coal per year, area over all about 50 square kilometres.

Because of the thick surface layers seven cubic metre of overburden have to be moved to extracted one ton of coal.

In the history of the opencast mining Nochten several villages were devastated, the primeval forest of Weißwasser and the royal zoological garden were destroyed.

Main supplier of the powerplant Boxberg