Enercon

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Enercon GmbH

logo
legal form GmbH
founding 1984
Seat Aurich , Germany
management Hans-Dieter Kettwig
Number of employees 13,000 (total number of employees in the entire group (UEE Holding) 2014)
sales 5.6 billion euros (consolidated sales of UEE Holding 2017)
Branch Renewable energy
Website www.enercon.de

Headquarters in Aurich

The Enercon GmbH is the largest German manufacturer of wind turbines (WEA). The largest production plant is also located at the headquarters in Aurich ( East Friesland ). In terms of sales, Enercon was the largest company based in East Frisia in 2013 and the eleventh largest in Lower Saxony. With more than 30,000 installed wind turbines with an installed capacity of over 52  gigawatts (GW) in over 45 countries, the company founded by Aloys Wobben in 1984 is one of the world's leading companies in the industry. Measured by the newly installed capacity of 3100  megawatts , Enercon was the fifth largest manufacturer of onshore wind turbines worldwide in 2017 after Vestas , Siemens Gamesa , Goldwind and GE Wind Energy . Almost half of the systems manufactured by Enercon were installed on the German home market.

In addition to sales offices in 22 countries and 160 service stations worldwide, the company operates production facilities in Germany ( Aurich , Emden , Haren , Magdeburg , Südbrookmerland ), Sweden ( Malmö ), Brazil ( Sorocaba , Parazinho , Pecém ), Portugal ( Viana do Castelo ), France ( Longueil-Sainte-Marie ), Canada ( Matane ), Turkey ( Izmir ) and Austria ( Zurndorf ). On October 1, 2012, the previous sole owner Aloys Wobben established a family foundation and retired from active business life for health reasons. The aim of the Aloys-Wobben-Foundation is to preserve Enercon's long-term independence.

Company profile

Enercon commercial building in Magdeburg

Enercon on a world scale

The Enercon group of companies with numerous subsidiaries employs over 14,000 people worldwide. The company owns over 45% of the world's patents in wind energy technology. Another special feature of Enercon is that the company is the only non-listed corporation among the seven leading wind turbine manufacturers (which have a cumulative market share of over 90%) . In 2015, Enercon ranked sixth among wind turbine manufacturers in terms of newly installed system output with approx. 3 GW. By December 2016, the company had installed more than 26,500 wind turbines with a cumulative output of more than 43,500 MW, 20,000 MW of which in Germany. In 2013, Enercon was the world's third largest manufacturer in terms of newly installed wind energy capacity with a market share of 9.8%. Enercon has been the market leader in Germany for several years, albeit with declining market shares . In 2015 the company had a market share of 37.3%, after 43% in 2014 and 49% in 2013. In 2017, UEE Holding generated sales of EUR 5.6 billion and pre-tax profit of EUR 423 million through the companies it has combined .

Company structure

In addition to ENERCON GmbH , which operates externally, more than 250 national and international individual companies are grouped under the umbrella of UEE Holding GmbH . This includes outsourced service areas such as IT and logistics, various power plant and wind farm investments as well as production plants. Other companies (including ENERCON Service) are subordinate to Dutch parent companies such as Windenergy Service BV , based in Amsterdam. (Status 2008/2010) According to research by Panorama 3, there are more than 30 subsidiaries and companies in Germany that work exclusively for Enercon.

Production facilities

Casting factory in Georgsheil
Enercon production facility in the port of Emden; in front the tower-building factory
Production halls in Aurich
Sales location in Soest

The company headquarters has been in the Aurich district of Extum since it was founded in 1984 ; the production facilities are now in the Sandhorst district . Enercon also has production sites in Emden , Südbrookmerland , Haren , Magdeburg , Turkey , Brazil , Malmö / Sweden and Viana do Castelo / Portugal . Enercon is the wind turbine manufacturer with the highest level of vertical integration in the world, ahead of Vestas and Siemens . Generators , nacelles, concrete and tubular steel towers, rotor blades , controls, power electronics and some of the cast components are manufactured in Enercon factories. A foundry (Gusszentrum Ostfriesland, GZO) was built between April and November 2010 in Georgsheil between Emden and Aurich; Cast iron components for the wind turbines are manufactured there. More than 200 people work in the foundry .

One of the largest of five German locations is Magdeburg, which in 2014 employed a total of over 5000 people. Machine houses, generators, rotor blades and concrete towers are produced there. At the beginning of 2015, two further plant expansions were added at the site with a total of around 350 employees. In Euro harbor in Haren (Ems) , about ten kilometers north of Meppen, there is a rotor blade production since the summer of 2012 found. In July 2013 it had around 550 employees. From there, the rotor blades can be transported to their destinations by barge , rail or truck. In the meantime, the construction of the Haren plant was jeopardized by parallel plans for a coal-fired power plant in neighboring Dörpen ; after the investors in the power plant withdrew, construction work was resumed. Due to insufficiently qualified personnel, there were delays during the commissioning of the plant, so that numerous E-101s were initially erected without wings.

In East Frisia, Enercon is the second largest industrial company after the Volkswagen factory in Emden . Enercon is also one of the largest private companies in Magdeburg . In Zurndorf in Burgenland, the groundbreaking ceremony took place on March 9, 2012 for a tower that will produce around 200 towers per year for wind turbines in Austria and Eastern Europe. With up to 200 employees, WKF Austria GmbH will be one of the company's largest foreign plants in the field of concrete tower production. In March 2018 it was announced that production in Zurndorf would be discontinued on April 27, 2018.

After a test phase, the plant went into series production in January 2013 . Enercon is the market leader in Austria (approx. 50%) and built 385 plants with 747 MW there in 2012.

Research and Development

Research and product development at Enercon is carried out by the Wobben Research & Development department. In late summer 2013, the activities of this department are to be bundled in the Enercon innovation center, which is being built in the Aurich Nord industrial area at the time. The building complex with a total area of ​​around 30,000 m² includes an office building with space for 700 engineers and an attached test hall with a floor area of ​​13,000 m².

history

Beginnings

Aloys Wobben

The engineer Aloys Wobben , who was born in Rastdorf in the Emsland district , founded the company Enercon in 1984 in Aurich, East Frisia . At first the company consisted of only a few engineers. The company's first product development was the E-15/16 wind turbine, followed four years later by the E-17 and E-32. It took seven years before the small company was able to open its own production hall in the Aurich district of Extum. The central administration is still based there today. The breakthrough for the young company came in 1993: Enercon presented the wind energy system E-40 (500 kW series), the first gearless system generation. At the same time, the manufacture of rotor blades began in the specially founded company Aero. Enercon has maintained this principle during its expansion over the next two decades: New corporate divisions were almost always founded as new subsidiaries .

Two years after the start of production of the E-40, Enercon achieved a great economic success with the development of the E-66: The system type was sold more than 2000 times. The company had meanwhile relocated production to an industrial park in the Aurich district of Sandhorst , where sufficient space was available for the company's further expansion. However, it turned out to be disadvantageous that the products - especially the rotors - had to cross the Aurich city area by truck on their way to their installation location, which is why Enercon later pushed ahead with the reactivation of a railway line to transport the increasingly larger rotors.

The company's international expansion began with the purchase of a production facility in Sorocaba, Brazil (1996).

Industrial espionage

From the end of the 1990s, the media reported that the US National Security Agency (NSA) had wiretapped the German company Enercon with the help of Echelon in 1994 . The data obtained are the American competitors Kenetech Windpower Inc. were transmitted. This would have used the data to gain access to Enercon's core technologies and patent them in the USA. As a result, Enercon had been closed to the American market until 2010. The information is based on descriptions by the company and media reports.

Indeed , in August 1996 the US International Trade Commission in charge imposed an import ban on Enercon until February 1, 2010. The reason was that Enercon was claiming 131 of the US patent with the intended export of 280 wind turbines to the USA 5,083,039 would hurt. The patent was, three years before the alleged espionage action of the Californian company on 1 February 1991 US Windpower Inc. filed. In 1993, US Windpower in Kenetech Windpower Inc. renamed. Kenetech has filed for import ban proceedings against Enercon. In the process, Kenetech also submitted photos of components of an E-40 wind turbine. This material was obtained while inspecting an E-40 in March 1994, three years after the patent was granted; the visit took place with the permission of the owner of the facility. Enercon did not question the validity of the patent itself in the proceedings before the Commission. The patent was taken over by GE Wind Energy (after Kenetech went bankrupt in 1996) . The Enercon magazine "Windblatt", 2/2003, p. 11, explained the patent dispute from the point of view of Enercon and mentioned that since the incident it has started to protect its technologies with its own patents. The Enercon GmbH and the General Electric Company have settled their patent litigation 2004; Since 2004, the American market has thus no longer been closed to Enercon.

Litigation with Enercon India Ltd.

In February 2011, some media reported a legal dispute between Enercon GmbH and its own Indian subsidiary Enercon India Ltd. , which has existed since 1994 . (EIL) and which was decided in favor of Enercon in an Indian court. Enercon then withdrew completely from the Indian market.

There are allegations in the room that the managing director of the Indian subsidiary, the former textile entrepreneur Yogesh Mehra from Mumbai, has prevented control of his business activities, has not paid dividends to the German parent company since 2005, has not presented audited financial statements since 2006 and finally with illegal ones Means seized sole power of disposal over the subsidiary. EIL stole the patents available through Enercon as well as the brand names for its own exploitation. In addition, a former Enercon employee was convicted of industrial espionage for EIL at the Magdeburg plant and convicted with final and absolute judgment. EIL has sued the Indian patent court IPAB in Chennai for the release of the otherwise globally recognized patents on numerous Enercon core technologies. The Indian judges declared twelve important Enercon patents in India to be ineffective, on the grounds that the patents would not reach the necessary level of creation. These technologies are now freely available to everyone in India. The German shareholders were thus "de facto expropriated". Bribery allegations were made in the press.

On January 28, 2011, the events prompted a small question from the Bundestag member Garrelt Duin ( SPD , constituency Aurich - Emden ) to the federal government about what it intends to do to protect German companies in India. The parliamentary state secretary in the Federal Ministry of Justice , Max Stadler , then stated that the dispute had been brought to the Indian Ministry of Commerce and that the Ministry was not yet aware of any similar cases. One does not want to comment on the decisions of Indian courts, but the German government advises German companies "to pay special attention to the protection of their intellectual property rights in foreign markets".

Until the end of 2012, EIL used the name and logo Enercons on its homepage, advertised Enercon wind turbines from Indian production and reported on ongoing projects without explaining the relationship with Enercon GmbH in Germany. In the meantime (as of January 2013) EIL was incorporated into Wind World India Ltd. renamed ("Enercon India is now Wind World India."). Furthermore, wind turbines from our own Indian production are advertised. On February 20, 2018, Wind World India Ltd. initiated bankruptcy proceedings.

According to a ruling by the International Court of Arbitration, Enercon has been preparing to re-enter the Indian market since 2017.

Aloys Wobben Foundation

For health reasons, company founder Aloys Wobben withdrew from operational business in 2012 and transferred his company shares to the Aloys Wobben Foundation with effect from October 1, 2012. The foundation thus became the sole shareholder of the ENERCON Group. With this step, Wobben wanted to ensure the company's independence. Hans-Dieter Kettwig is the chairman of the foundation's board of directors and, alongside board member Simon-Hermann Wobben, one of the two managing directors of ENERCON GmbH . The former authorized signatory Nicole Fritsch-Nehring was appointed to the management of ENERCON GmbH when the foundation was established , but left the company in 2016 after a dispute over business strategy. Sales manager Stefan Lütkemeyer was appointed as the new authorized signatory in 2012. Aloys Wobben's successor as second managing director was his nephew Simon-Hermann Wobben in 2016. However, at the beginning of July 2019, he resigned all offices and left the company at his own request.

Lagerwey

In December 2017 Enercon bought shares in the wind turbine manufacturer Lagerwey , Lagerwey should remain as an independent company according to initial reports.

A few weeks later in January 2018, however, it became public that Enercon had taken over 100% of the company's shares.

Areas of activity

Enercon's main business area is the construction and sale of wind turbines. In addition, Enercon is also active in other sectors such as hydropower , and logistics companies for the transport of its own systems are also part of the group.

Wind turbines

Selection of Enercon wind turbines based on their year of introduction ( Airbus A380 , Cologne Cathedral , Florian Tower , Brandenburg Gate and semitrailer for size comparison)

Technical concept

Enercon wind turbines have some technical features compared to turbines from most other wind turbine manufacturers . The gearless drive concept, which Enercon has been using as a pioneer of this technology since 1993, is characteristic. The E-40/500-kW series was the first generation of gearless systems. Earlier Enercon systems had a gear drive train. The hub with the rotor blades is directly connected to the rotor of the ring generator without a gear ( direct drive ). The rotor unit rotates around a fixed axis ( axle journal ) via a front and rear main bearing . The speed of the rotor is transmitted directly to the multi-pole synchronous generator, with the rotor rotating in the stator (internal rotor), unlike z. B. at Vensys . The rotation of the generator rotor in relation to the stationary generator stator results in a rotating magnetic field in the generator that induces electrical voltage through the Lorentz force . This electromagnetic induction ultimately converts kinetic energy into electrical energy. In most of the Enercon series, the generator is externally excited . Permanent magnets have also been used in some cases since 2019 . With the provision of the electrical excitation power, however, excitation losses are associated. Compared to gear systems, both the speed of the rotating components and the mechanical load changes over the service life are lower. The speed is variable and depends on the type of system and, depending on the wind speed, is between 18−45 / min for the E-33 and 5-11.7 / min for the E-126, while a generator speed of around 1500 / min for a gear system Nominal power is reached. The large Enercon generators in turn lead to high tower head masses, and constructive and logistical challenges.

The Enercon systems can be easily distinguished visually from systems from other manufacturers. The machine houses (gondolas) of the systems are egg-shaped from 1995/1996 onwards. The design of this striking gondola was developed by the British architect Norman Foster , who u. a. also designed the dome of the Berlin Reichstag . In Germany and in many other countries, the tower above the foundation has colored green rings that get lighter and lighter from bottom to top. On islands, the manufacturer alternatively offers a gradation in blue, as was implemented on the island of Borkum . The Natural Color System gradation is intended to better integrate the system towers into the horizon. The rotor blades were the only ones on the market to have blade tips similar to the winglets on aircraft, the technical term for which is tips .

Enercon only builds onshore plants and rejects offshore wind farms because of the technical complexity.

Important plant types

The most important types of wind power plants from Enercon are listed and briefly described below. Detailed information on the respective systems as well as the complete list of all wind turbines manufactured by Enercon can be found in the main article linked above or in the Enercon product range.

Enercon E-40/500 kW
E-40

With the E-40/500 kW, Enercon switched its production entirely to gearless wind turbines. The E-40 was developed in the early 1990s. Compared to the machines with gearboxes constructed at the time, the direct drive was extremely reliable. The collar-shaped protruding ring generator is visually striking. The egg-shaped shell in the Norman Foster design, which contributes to the recognition, was implemented later. Over 4400 E-40 systems have been installed worldwide.

E-82
Runner of an E-82 ring generator

The E-82 wind turbine, which has been in series production since 2006, is one of the most frequently installed wind turbines in Germany. It has a rotor diameter of 82 meters and originally had a generator with an output of 2  MW , which was designed for medium to weak wind conditions . In the meantime, the basic variant has been supplemented by several sub-variants. While the rotor diameter remained unchanged, further variants with 2.3 MW and 3 MW were added from 2009, which were designed for medium to strong wind conditions. In April 2014, the E-82 E5 presented a fifth sub-variant with 2.3 MW, which is now (2017) in series production. From this point in time there are three variants for medium-wind locations (each with 2 MW, 2.3 MW and 3 MW) and two variants with 2.3 MW and 3 MW for strong wind locations.

The E-82 is offered on various steel and hybrid towers with hub heights from 78 to 138 meters, whereby the tall towers are only used for medium-wind locations. The total height of the systems is up to 179 meters.

E-101
Rotor blade of an E-101. On the right is the blade tip similar to the winglets on airplanes. The position of the rotor blade shows that the system is not switched on.

The E-101, which has been in production since 2011, is an inland system of the 3 MW class, which was originally developed for medium-wind locations. Its concept corresponds to that of the E-82, with the increase in output to 3,050 kW increasing the generator. The rotor area has increased by 50%. As with the E-82 E3, the generator is water-cooled. The system is available with 99, 124, 135 or 149 meter high towers made of steel or concrete and steel and can optionally be equipped with rotor blade heating, which reduces yield losses due to ice formation in winter. A prototype of the E-101 was erected near Görmin in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania in mid-June 2011 . Two further prototypes, on which measurements to maintain the type approval took place until 2012, were made at Haren . In August 2011, the first E-101 with a hub height of 135 meters was completed near Kleingladenbach ; it was also the first customer system to be delivered. From 2015, the production of the E-101 increasingly shifted to the E-115, which is approved for the same wind conditions.

A sub-variant for high-wind locations announced in April 2014, the E-101 E2 with 3500 kW, was not mass-produced for the German market.

Active sales of the E-101 ceased in 2019.

E-115

The E-115 is a system for medium wind conditions, which is intended to supplement or replace the E-101 from which it was developed at these locations. It is offered with hub heights of 92, 122, 135 and 149 meters and has a rotor diameter of 115.7 m. At a location with an average wind speed of 6.5 m / s, the E-115 should deliver around 9.3 million kWh of electrical energy per year with 3 MW, which corresponds to an additional yield of 14% compared to the E-101, which is certified for the same wind conditions. According to measured data from the prototype, the additional yield compared to the E-101 is even 18%. Series production started in 2014; the prototype was built in December 2013 in Lengerich , Lower Saxony . A special feature of the system is the two-part rotor blade, which, in addition to reducing costs in blade production, is also intended to provide logistical advantages in transport.

In November 2015, Enercon announced an increase in output to 3.2 MW. Both versions of the E-115 are designed for operation for 25 years. In 2016, 2017 and 2018 the E-115 was the most frequently commissioned type of turbine in Germany.

E-126

The E-126 was manufactured in small series and, after an increase in output to 7.58 MW in 2010, was the most powerful wind turbine in the world until the Vestas V164-8.0 was installed in January 2014. There are several copies each in the Ellern , Estinnes , Stoß , Werder / Kessin , Diepenau , Hamburg , Neuharlingersiel , Rysumer Nacken , Potzneusiedl and Aurich-Georgsfeld wind farms . In the Dutch wind farm Noordoostpolder , a total of 38 of these turbines had been commissioned by 2017.

The prototype was built in 2007 in the Rysumer Nacken wind farm near Emden , where an energy yield of around 20 GWh per year was expected. Originally the E-126 had an output of 6 MW and was certified for less turbulent, strong wind locations (IEC IC). After a revision in 2010, new E-126 wind turbines have an output of 7.6 MW and are also approved for IEC IA. A special feature of the E-126 is the fact that it has two-part rotor blades. This design became necessary because particularly long rotor blades are difficult to transport on land. The inner part of an E-126 rotor blade is made of sheet steel and is around 24 meters long, while the outer part, around 35 meters long, is made of glass fiber reinforced plastic , like most rotor blades . The E-126 was offered on a hybrid tower with a hub height of 135 meters, the total height is 198.5 meters.

EP3 platform

At the HUSUM Wind 2017, Enercon presented two types of turbines, the E-126 EP3 and E-138 EP3, which share a newly developed platform. The E-115 EP3 followed later. With this, the manufacturer reacted to tougher market and competitive conditions. With the aim of reducing the levelized costs of electricity , many countries are introducing a competitive method of determining the feed-in tariff . With changes to the Renewable Energy Sources Act , the German market , which is important for Enercon, has also made tenders mandatory. With the EP3 platform, the manufacturer is also aiming to reduce costs.

The EP3 platform therefore partly deviates from the established Enercon concept both optically and technically. A directly driven, separately excited synchronous generator is also used as the generator. This ring generator can still be divided due to its large diameter. In contrast to the hitherto built Enercon generators which are the pole pieces no longer copper - windings made, but consist of aluminum -Formspulen. The machine becomes lighter overall. The loss of efficiency caused by aluminum was compensated for by increasing the generator diameter to 9.26 m (E-115 in comparison: 6.8 m).

The nacelle dispenses with the established egg-shaped nacelle cladding and is optically based on the style of the E-40/500 kW. The ring generator protrudes from the machine house again. The machine house will be more compact overall and will no longer be made of aluminum, but instead will be clad with GRP material. The machine construction changed with the EP3 platform has a significant effect on the nacelle head mass. While the E-141 EP4 weighs around 490 t, the E-126 EP3 is significantly lighter at 256 t. This allows the dimensions of the tower and foundation to be reduced. The rotor blades are again made in one piece from GRP and are narrower overall. Aerodynamic disadvantages are to be compensated by vortex generators .

EP5 platform

In the run-up to the Hanover Fair 2019, Enercon announced that it would sell the wind turbine types developed by the Lagerwey company, which it acquired in 2018, under its own E-series designation.

The newly developed EP5 platform is based on the LP4 platform from Lagerwey. Lagerwey technology also dispenses with a gearbox in favor of a direct drive. The main difference is the use of permanent magnets in Lagerwey generators. Enercon has been successful since the E-40 with separately excited electromagnets made of copper or aluminum on the EP3 platform. Increases in performance with Enercon technology necessarily went hand in hand with larger generator diameters. The high magnetic energy density of the permanent magnets allows the construction of more compact generators (diameter: 5.5 m). The magnets use rare earth metals .

The EP5 platform initially consisted of the E-147 EP5 and E-160 EP5 turbine types with rated outputs of up to 5,500 kilowatts, followed later by the E-136 EP5 (previously: Lagerwey L136).

Other business activities

Hydropower

Enercon's entry into the hydropower project began in 2001. For this purpose, a new type of turbine with a particularly high degree of efficiency was developed, which is based on the experience gained in wind power. As a pilot project, two turbines with a total of 2300 kW were put into operation in Raguhn an der Mulde in June 2009 .

In June 2007 Enercon announced that it would equip the Weser power plant in Bremen on the Weser weir near Bremen- Hemelingen with two Kaplan turbines , each with a nominal output of 5 megawatts. Construction of the joint Enercon and swb AG project began in May 2008. On November 11, 2011, the system went into operation for the first time for a three-month trial period. It is intended to save 35,500 tons of carbon dioxide annually. Two generators of the type E-82 wind turbines were installed. Together, they are expected to produce around 42 GWh of electricity annually, which corresponds to the needs of around 17,000 households based on 2500 kWh of electricity consumption per household and year.

In February 2010 work began on assembling the generator and turbine for the Prater power plant in Munich . The generator comes from Enercon, so there is no need for an interposed gearbox. The impeller has a diameter of around 2.3 m and a weight of around 30 t. The output of the plant is 2.5 MW, the planned energy yield around 12.7 GWh per year.

Seawater desalination plant

The Enercon seawater desalination plant works on the principle of reverse osmosis (use of membranes). According to the manufacturer, no chemicals are used to treat the water. Thanks to a patented special construction of the system, it should be more energy-saving and more flexible in operation than other reverse osmosis seawater desalination systems. As a result, the Enercon system is particularly energy-saving, environmentally friendly and, thanks to the possibility of flexible operation, is well suited for energy supply from wind turbines.

egoo Frya Fresena shunting locomotive of the type Alstom  V100
Terex CC 2800-1

Transport and crane technology

Enercon has its own small shipping company, Enercon Shipping GmbH , based in Aurich. The shipping company was founded after Enercon had the E-Ship 1 built. In addition to a diesel drive, the cargo ship also has a drive using Flettner rotors and is therefore a rotor ship . The four Flettner rotors developed by Enercon have a height of 27 meters and a diameter of 4 meters. The aim is to achieve fuel savings of 30–40 percent when traveling at 16  knots . The E-Ship 1 transports parts of wind turbines for Enercon from the port of Emden . The ship was built at the Lindenau shipyard in Kiel and, after its bankruptcy in 2010, was completed at the Cassens shipyard in Emden .

Enercon is also involved in the Aurich-Emden railway infrastructure company . The railway company Eisenbahngesellschaft Ostfriesland-Oldenburg mbH is also part of the group.

Enercon sometimes uses its own crane technology for the assembly of its wind turbines. Examples: Terex CC 2800-1, Terex CC 9800-1, Liebherr LR 1200 or Liebherr 1000 EC-B125 tower crane.

Direct marketing

In 2014, ENERCON bought the Düsseldorf direct marketer QUADRA Energy . As a wholly owned subsidiary of the ENERCON Group, QUADRA has been controlling all of the ENERCON Group's key energy logistics processes since then.

Energy supply in Aurich

ENERCON has a 40% stake in the energy supply company Stadtwerke Aurich . In 2017 Stadtwerke Aurich was awarded the contract to take over the concession for the electricity and gas network in Aurich. After taking over the network from EWE AG , the municipal utility could become a distribution network operator .

Charging station for e-vehicles

A prototype of ENERCON's E-Charger 600 was put into operation in spring 2018. The E-Charger 600 should enable fast charging of e-cars with a maximum charging power of up to 350 kW.

Others

Employee representatives

Employee representatives were often blocked or hindered in their work. Even trade unionists were denied entry by locking the gate, and in 1999 prevented the release of a works council member, which is mandatory from the 200th employee of a company, by outsourcing some of the employees to a newly founded company.

After works councils had been elected in dozens of subsidiaries in 2009 and 2010 and 2013 and 2014 with the support of IG Metall , these faced massive disabilities. When individual people turned to the Ostfriesische Nachrichten anonymously , this newspaper researched details: Since their commitment, skilled workers have been employed with significantly less qualifications and, for example, are assigned fewer shifts , are assigned punishments or, in some cases, are given unfounded warnings . An unlawful dismissal was given to a works council in mid-2014 that campaigned for temporary workers so that they did not have to complete the training they needed during their free time . This led to a far-reaching response, with the solidarity campaign “One is affected, we are all meant!” 160 works council members support Nils-Holger Böttger. In the 4/2014 issue of the Windblatt, eleven works council members then publicly commented on the allegations made by IG Metall.

criticism

In the summer of 2018 it became known that Enercon is planning to lay off more than 800 employees. Federal Minister of Economics Peter Altmaier criticized the management's refusal to hold talks about a socially acceptable solution. The labor lawyer Hajo Köhler explained to the numerous subsidiaries: "Here it becomes relatively clear that an employer has chosen this structure in order to get out of responsibility."

Wind blade

A company magazine under the name “Windblatt” appears every three months online and in print. Topics are current projects of the company, technology and transport of the Enercon wind turbines as well as the cooperation with supplier companies.

Mass layoffs due to a bad order situation due to politically given conditions

On November 8, 2019, it was announced that the company would cut 3000 jobs in the coming months, 1500 of them at the locations in Aurich and Magdeburg. Kettwig himself gave the reason that, due to severe political conditions, the order situation had narrowed significantly. Only 150 systems were installed in the first nine months of 2019, which is a decrease of 80% compared to previous years. According to information from the Daily Port Report , only 65 wind turbines were installed in the first 10 months of 2019, compared to 711 in 2017. Senvion only filed for bankruptcy in April 2019, while Nordex SE reported a drop in profits of 50 percent.

See also

Web links

Commons : Enercon GmbH  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Company presentation ( Memento from September 14, 2015 in the Internet Archive ). Snapshot of the Enercon website at archive.org from September 14, 2015, accessed on August 1, 2018.
  2. a b Federal Gazette : Consolidated financial statements for the financial year from January 1, 2017 to December 31, 2017 (UEE Holding)
  3. The 100 largest companies in Lower Saxony , November 2013 (PDF; 403 kB), accessed on January 2, 2016
  4. Windblatt 01/2020. (PDF) Enercon, accessed on April 23, 2020 .
  5. ^ Vestas Keeps Lead in Onshore Wind, Siemens Gamesa Narrows Gap. In: Bloomberg New Energy Finance. February 26, 2018, accessed February 26, 2018 .
  6. Florian Langenscheidt , Bernd Venohr (Hrsg.): Lexicon of German world market leaders. The premier class of German companies in words and pictures . German Standards Editions, Cologne 2010, ISBN 978-3-86936-221-2 .
  7. Windblatt 02/2012. (PDF) Enercon, accessed on July 3, 2012 .
  8. https://www.aloys-wobben-stiftung.de/
  9. Goldwind replaces Vestas at the top of the world. In: Renewable Energies. The magazine . Retrieved February 24, 2016 .
  10. Enercon exceeds 20,000 MW mark in Germany . In: IWR , December 22, 2016, accessed December 22, 2016
  11. Vestas returns to number one in BTM survey . In: Windpower Monthly , March 28, 2014, accessed April 5, 2014
  12. ↑ The variety of systems in installations is increasing: Drastic shifts . In: Renewable Energies. The magazine , February 17, 2016, accessed on December 22, 2016.
  13. Federal Gazette: UEE Holding GmbH , accessed on July 17, 2012
  14. a b Responsibility, enercon238.html Enercon withdraws from responsibility NDR of August 21, 2018
  15. Jeversches Wochenblatt: Enercon relies on the railways: cast parts are an eye-catcher , accessed on November 25, 2013
  16. More trains, more works: Enercon provides signals for 2015 . In: Renewable Energies. The magazine , January 10, 2015, accessed on January 10, 2015
  17. June 5, 2013: New ENERCON rotor blade factory officially inaugurated in Haren
  18. Construction of the Enercon factory in Emsland begins in 2011 , accessed on February 25, 2012
  19. Enercon turbines are waiting for rotor blades. Retrieved December 23, 2014 .
  20. ^ Factory for wind turbines in Zurndorf on ORF -Burgenland on March 11, 2012, accessed on March 11, 2012
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