The story
1875–1922: Construction of the first gas, water, and electricity plants
Around the middle of the 16th century, Hannover had a water distribution system consisting of wells and pipelines, which remained in operation for over 300 years through continuous expansions and maintenance. In 1875, the city's magistrate decided to construct a groundwater plant in Ricklingen. The population of Hanover, exceeding 100,000, necessitated this decision as the simple wells could no longer meet the city's water demands. In 1878, the new waterworks in Ricklingen commenced operation, followed by the construction of facilities in Laatzen-Grasdorf in 1899 and at the Fuhrberger Feld near Fuhrberg in 1911.
As early as 1825, a contract was concluded with the London-based Imperial Continental Gas Association (ICGA), assigning the British company the task of replacing the old street lamps, which were still operated with tallow, with new gas lamps, and maintaining them. In the same year as the contract was signed, the Glocksee gasworks was built, becoming Germany's first gas plant.
In 1883, following the Ricklingen waterworks and the Glocksee gasworks, a combined plant for generating electrical energy was established. Finally, in 1891, the first electricity plant in Osterstraße was connected to the grid.
Städtische Betriebswerke and Stadtwerke Hannover, conversion into a stock corporation
In 1922, the individual water, electricity, and gas works were merged into a single company: the Städtische Betriebswerke. During the Third Reich, the operational facilities were also brought under Nazi control. Additionally, during World War II, at least 123 forced labourers were employed.
The period following World War II was initially marked by energy supply problems. Through reconstruction efforts and the post–World War II economic expansion, the Städtische Betriebswerke also benefited. New facilities were established, and the expansion of networks into previously undeveloped areas was promoted. In 1952, the Städtische Betriebswerke were renamed Stadtwerke Hannover. The heating power plant Linden, which commenced operations in 1962, laid the foundation for the company's district heating network.
The economic upswing of the 1950s and 1960s brought double-digit growth rates to the Stadtwerke Hannover, prompting the City Council of Hanover to decide in November 1970 to transform the utility facilities into a joint-stock company. On December 21, 1970, the state capital of Hanover became the sole shareholder of Stadtwerke Hannover AG. The conversion of the Stadtwerke Hannover into a joint-stock company was necessary to consolidate Stadtwerke Hannover and Üstra under the holding company Versorgungs- und Verkehrsgesellschaft Hannover mbH (VVG). Among other things, this enabled the profits of Stadtwerke Hannover to be offset against Üstra's losses.
The natural gas business began in the early 1970s. In 1982, the first cavern storage facility in Empelde was put into operation, and in 1989, the Gemeinschaftskraftwerk Hannover (joint power plant Hannover) in Stöcken commenced operations. The first unit of the Stöcken coal-fired power plant is scheduled to be gradually shut down starting from late 2024 as part of the coal phase-out.
Since the 1990s: Energy transition
As a result of the increasing liberalization of energy markets, in 1996, the Stadtwerke Hannover became Enercity.
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Since the early 1990s, the company has been committed to the use of biomass for heat and power generation. The largest project in this regard is the acquisition of shares in Danpower GmbH in 2006.
With the decision to transition towards renewable energies, Enercity began shifting its focus from fossil fuels to renewables in the 2010s. From 2015 to 2023, Susanna Zapreva chaired the company; she played a significant role in implementing this change in direction. In 2019, Enercity acquired Gamesa Energie Deutschland GmbH, a project development company based in Oldenburg, from Siemens Gamesa, aiming to increase its investments in onshore wind power plants. Subsequently, among other ventures, Enercity purchased 166 wind turbines from the Norderland Group in East Frisia.
In 2022, the share of electricity from renewable energy sources was approximately 51%, while for heat generation it was around 21%. According to the company, the goal is to achieve a renewable energy share of 85% by 2030. The company's coal phase-out is scheduled to begin in 2024 and if possible be completed by 2026, but no later than 2030. Together with the city of Hanover, a plan has been developed to achieve climate neutrality in electricity and heat by 2035.
From Wikipedia’s article on Enercity, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.5