A joint venture between German utility Eon and property developer Fakt has proposed the building of a $1bn carbon-neutral town on the banks of the Danube in northwest Hungary.
The Hegyeshalom-Bezenye project will be a community of 1,000 homes, along with a restaurant, a hotel, a train station, shops, schools, market gardens and fish farms for bass, salmon and sea bream.
According to Fakt board member Nikolai Ulrich, the project will show "how a scrap of land and vision can create a green business and community venture of scale".
He added that the project would also include geothermal cooling and a sustainable water management policy that aimed to avoid lowering the water table.
The developers hope the town will become a template for other smart developments across Europe, particularly in regions dependent on coal for electricity.
Image: The Danube in winter (Public domain)
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