MVV Energiedienstleistungen acquires biogas plant from EPURON
Plant in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern generates environmentally-friendly power for around 1,200 households
Hamburg/Mannheim, April 17, 2008:MVV Energiedienstleistungen GmbH in Mannheim, Germany is affirming its commitment to environmentally-friendly power and heat generation from renewable energies. Managing director Michael Lowak recently signed a contract for the purchase of a biogas plant in Karow near Schwerin (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany) from EPURON GmbH, a subsidiary of Conergy AG. The turnkey biogas plant will be handed over by the Hamburg company. Official commissioning will take place this summer. Further opportunities for collaboration between MVV Energiedienstleistungen and EPURON in the field of energy production from biogas plants are currently being looked into.
The MVV Energie group company entered the biogas business last October with the purchase of a plant in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. "As a responsible company, we naturally provide our services with not only economic, but also ecological considerations in mind," said Managing Director Michael Lowak at the contract signing. "By using efficient, environmentally-friendly technologies and by increasing our utilisation of renewable energy sources, we are making an important contribution to ecological sustainability. "
In the field of biogas, EPURON is concentrating on the development of selective, profitable projects for strategic and institutional investors. Energy supply companies in particular have shown great interest in projects of this kind due to the increasing cost of fossil fuels and the growing awareness of their customers of alternative energy solutions. "The demand made by large energy supply companies for solutions for environmentally-friendly energy production is increasing. With our turnkey biogas plants, we are offering these companies an attractive solution for the generation of energy from renewable sources," declared Nikolaus Krane from the management board of EPURON, a project developer and financier for large-scale projects in the field of renewable energy. "Our customers benefit from our business model and they do not need to worry about the planning or the installation of the biogas plant. And if required, although that isn't the case here, we would also gladly take charge of the financing and operation of the plant. This flexible business model allows us to meet the needs of each customer on an individual basis," adds Nikolaus Krane.
EPURON began construction of this plant, which has an output of 624 kilowatts, in August 2007. As of summer 2008, MVV Energiedienstleistungen will be generating biogas from around 9,700 tonnes of chopped maize plants and 5,000 tonnes of cow dung per year, brought in from a nearby Gut Karow farm. The operator will convert this biogas into electrical and thermal energy. In this way, the company will feed 5,000 megawatt hours of power into the public grid every year, which will be paid for in accordance with the German Renewable Energy Sources Act. This amount is sufficient to supply more than 1,200 households with CO2-neutral electrical energy. The waste heat that is produced when the power is generated will be used to supply heat to the neighbouring Hotel Schloss Karow. The fermented plant matter is used as fertiliser on the fields of the farm. "The combination of rearing cattle, growing animal feed, growing energy plants and returning the nutrients that we see here represents an ideal alliance between agriculture and ecological energy production," says Michael Lowak.
Download pictures of biogas plant Karow here .
About EPURON
EPURON GmbH is one of the world's leading project development and structured financing companies in the renewable energy sector. The company develops finances and implements solar and wind farms, solar thermal power stations as well as biogas and bioethanol plants. Since its foundation in 1998, EPURON has financed and implemented over 90 large-scale projects with an investment volume of about 735 million euros. Its clients include institutional and private investors around the globe. EPURON has branches in eleven countries on five continents. EPURON is a member of the listed company Conergy AG.
About MVV Energiedienstleistungen
With an annual turnover of 218 million euros and more than 750 employees, MVV Energiedienstleistungen is one of the largest German energy providers. As part of the MVV Energie group, the company specialises in contracting for local authorities, industry, real estate, hospitals and hotels, as well as handling industrial parks, consultancy projects and site developments.