Energiequelle is a finalist in the prestigious ‘Großer Preis des Mittelstandes’ competition. The award is presented by the Oskar Patzelt Foundation and recognises companies that make a significant contribution to economic and social prosperity through innovative solutions and sustainable business models. Out of a total of 4,600 companies across Germany, 24 were honoured as finalists. The award ceremony took place on 21 September with almost 400 guests in Würzburg and represented the first part of the competition. The second part followed last Saturday in Düsseldorf. The nationwide special prizes and plaques of honour were awarded at the Oskar Patzelt Foundation's national ball in Düsseldorf.

Energiequelle not only impressed the jury with its commitment to employee training, intensive onboarding and cooperation with colleges and universities. Its close collaboration with local authorities and municipalities, its innovative strength in the energy self-sufficient village of Feldheim, its research work in the field of hydrogen and the renaturalisation of a raised bog also contributed to the nomination. Since 2016, Energiequelle and its foundation have also been committed to social causes and have supported more than 71 projects to date - including school project days and other measures to promote education.

Since 1994, the ‘Großer Preis des Mittelstandes’ has honoured companies that make a significant contribution to society. Energiequelle has been nominated for the fourth time since 2012. This year's nomination was made by the town of Zossen.

By being honoured as a finalist, Energiequelle GmbH, which has been active in the field of renewable energies since 1997, is included in the prestigious list of awards of the Oskar Patzelt Foundation and recognised for outstanding achievements in the SME sector.

Four Energiequelle GmbH wind farms have been awarded contracts in the latest onshore wind energy tender. With a total of 68.1 MW, the company was successful despite being slightly oversubscribed.

The wind farms are located in Bremen (Rekum, two turbines totalling 14 MW), Thuringia (Sömmerda, four turbines totalling 22 MW), Brandenburg (Danna, one turbine with 4.3 MW) and Hesse (Heringen, four turbines totalling 22 MW).

Gregor Weber, Managing Director of Project Management at Energiequelle, is delighted with the success: ‘We were able to get wind farms approved in four different federal states and have now successfully completed the tendering process. We are particularly pleased about the first award for two of our projects from our almost 300 MW portfolio in Thuringia and Hesse, which we developed together with Alterric. In the next step, we will do everything we can to prepare for the start of construction in order to connect the parks to the grid as quickly as possible.’

In total, the company has already built more than 800 plants with a total nominal output of 1,700 MW.

Last Friday, Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz visited the energy self-sufficient village of Feldheim. In Feldheim, Energiequelle GmbH has realised an innovative energy concept together with the town, the citizens and the agricultural cooperative. The village is completely self-sufficient with its own electricity and heating network, making it a pioneer in the municipal energy transition.

The small village in Treuenbrietzen, Brandenburg, receives around 5,000 visitors a year, including the German Chancellor. He was accompanied by MDB Sonja Eichwede (SPD) and Melanie Balzer, direct candidate for the SPD in the Potsdam Mittelmark constituency.

Energiequelle Managing Director Michael Raschemann welcomed Olaf Scholz and his companions to the Neue Energien Forum Feldheim, an information and exhibition centre for renewable energies. After a brief tour of the exhibition, a round table discussion took place with local stakeholders. Among those present were Michael Knape as mayor of the town of Treuenbrietzen, Petra Richter as head of Feldheim, Sebastian Herbst and Werner Schlunke as representatives of the agricultural co-operative and Brigitte Kappert as a resident of the first hour. Over coffee and cake, the development of Feldheim was reported on - from the first plant, the biogas plant, the storage facility and the wind farm, which now consists of 55 turbines. Knape emphasised the importance of the financial benefits for the municipal budget and Olaf Scholz saw his government's goal of involving the municipalities in the energy transition confirmed. However, the Chancellor was also informed that positive examples such as Feldheim are still the exception and that everyone must work together to better recognise and exploit the opportunities of the energy transition locally.

Things got exciting when the Managing Director of the agricultural cooperative, Sebastian Herbst, reported on the current situation of the biogas plant. Olaf Scholz emphasised the importance of biogas, as electricity and heat must also be produced at times when the wind and sun are unable to deliver. From the reality of the plant operators

Every three years, Energiequelle GmbH carries out a customer satisfaction survey in the area of operations management. The operations manager with regional offices throughout Germany once again scored top marks. On a scale of 1 to 6, the almost 18 questions were given an average score of 1.15. Almost 40 customers took part in the survey.

In the survey, Energiequelle wanted to find out from its customers how satisfied they were with the company's technical and commercial services and communication. Specific topics included customer service, reporting, the handling of payment transactions and the organisation of fault and repair processes.

The very good availability, the high level of expertise and the friendliness of the contact persons were again emphasised. Almost all customers would recommend Energiequelle GmbH's operations management to others.

Lars Schiller, Managing Director of Operations Management at Energiequelle, is very pleased with the result: ‘Despite increasing market demands on our services, the shortage of skilled labour common in the industry and the strong growth in projects, we were able to maintain our high quality standards and continue to satisfy our customers.’

Energiequelle currently manages almost 850 plants with almost 1,800 MW in the wind, PV, biogas and grid sectors.

Energiequelle has signed a cooperation agreement with the Austrian company Brandpower Windkraft GmbH & Co KG. Brandpower develops and operates power plants and is therefore a strategically important partner for Energiequelle for its entry into the Austrian market. The companies are pursuing the common goal of developing wind and solar projects and thus driving forward the expansion of renewable energies in Austria.

Austria has set itself ambitious targets to achieve climate neutrality. To date, more than 80 percent of electricity capacity already comes from renewable energy sources. The last coal-fired power plant was taken off the grid in 2020. The federal government’s goal is to switch 100% of all domestic electricity consumption to renewable energy sources by 2030 and to achieve climate neutrality in Austria by 2040.

Juan Hernan, Director International Project Management at Energiequelle, is therefore convinced of the country’s potential: “Austria has established clear political framework conditions to enable the expansion of wind and solar energy. With Brand-power, we also have a local partner at our side who knows the country and the laws and whose network and expertise we can benefit from when we enter the market.”

Josef Brandstetter, Managing Director of Brandpower, is also looking forward to the collaboration: “Energiequelle’s experience will provide us with expert support in Austria. Energiequelle’s strategy and its commitment to finding energy solutions together with local communities and people convinced us.”

Energiequelle already established contacts with partners last year to prepare for its market entry in Austria. The first milestone has now been reached with the cooperation agreement.

Austria is the sixth country in which Energiequelle is active worldwide. In addition to Germany, France and Finland, Energiequelle is also active in Poland, Greece and South Africa. With more than 600 employees, the company is on a sustained course of international growth.

Photo (from left above): Felix Brandstetter (Project Developer, Brandpower), Dr Wolfgang Viertler (Public Law, Brandpower), André Möckel (Director Business Development Department, Energiequelle), Christoph Hinze (Project Manager, Energiequelle), Juan Hernan (Director International Project Management, Energiequelle).
From left below: Josef Brandstetter (Managing Director, Brandpower), Michael Raschemann (Managing Director, Energiequelle).

Energiequelle GmbH has commissioned three Enercon turbines in Mittelherwigsdorf, Saxony. The wind farm is a repowering project in cooperation with Alterric, in which three of the eight old E-40, E-66 and E-70 wind turbines were dismantled and replaced with three E-138s. The turbines have a height of 160 m and an output of 4.2 MW per turbine. The repowering will increase electricity production six-fold at the three sites. This means that around 11,000 households can be supplied with renewable electricity.

Energiequelle was responsible for the development and approval as well as the coordination and monitoring of the construction process in the cooperation project. Two plants were built for Alterric Deutschland GmbH and one plant for Energiequelle GmbH. The company will also be responsible for the operational management of this plant in future.

Simon Frauendorf, site manager at Energiequelle, is delighted with the successful construction, which brought with it a number of challenges: “There was an unplanned construction site on the main road via which the large components were to be delivered. The route therefore had to be changed and some of the bends had to be widened. Wind and thunderstorms also delayed the assembly of the rotor blades, which ultimately took place at night.”

The turbines have been turning and feeding electricity into the grid for two weeks now. To date, Energiequelle has installed more than 850 turbines with a total output of around 1,700 MW.

Photo: Three Enercon E-138 turbines have gone into operation in Mittelherwigsdorf