LANXESS Signs Three-Year Green Power Deal With VERBUND for German Sites

LANXESS has signed a three-year agreement with VERBUND to source renewable electricity from Bavarian hydropower plants for its German production facilities.

Specialty chemicals manufacturer LANXESS has entered into a three-year contract with Austria-based energy company VERBUND to procure renewable electricity for several of its production sites in Germany. Under the agreement, electricity generated from hydropower plants in Bavaria will be supplied to LANXESS facilities located in Bergkamen, Bitterfeld, Brunsbüttel, Mannheim and Wietmarschen.

Between 2026 and 2028, VERBUND will deliver approximately 200,000 megawatt hours of electricity from hydropower stations along the Inn River in Bavaria. When compared with the average German electricity mix, this supply is expected to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by around 60,000 tonnes. LANXESS stated that the move supports its strategy to lower the carbon footprint of both its manufacturing operations and the products produced at these sites, contributing to its target of achieving climate-neutral production by 2040.

Commenting on the agreement, Alexander Sonnenberg, Head of Energy Procurement at LANXESS, said that continuous electricity supply is essential for round-the-clock industrial operations and that hydropower offers both reliability and support for the company’s long-term climate objectives.

From VERBUND’s perspective, the partnership reflects growing industrial demand for renewable energy. Andreas Lanz, Center Manager Industrial Customers at VERBUND Energy4Business, noted that the company’s Climate Transition Plan aims to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 through a science-based reduction pathway. He added that VERBUND’s renewable electricity solutions are designed to assist industrial customers in meeting their climate targets while maintaining security of supply.

VERBUND currently operates 22 run-of-river hydropower plants in Bavaria and along the Bavarian-Austrian border, with a combined installed capacity of 1,040 megawatts and annual generation of 5.9 terawatt hours, including around 4.0 terawatt hours supplied within Bavaria. The company has already implemented or is in the process of implementing projects in the region valued at approximately EUR 600 million, with a further EUR 1 billion in projects under planning or approval.

Environmental protection measures form part of VERBUND’s hydropower operations in Bavaria. These include provisions for fish migration, river renaturation initiatives, habitat preservation and ongoing efforts to improve water quality. Investment earmarked for ecological measures in Bavaria and along the border region totals around EUR 100 million through 2030, with approximately EUR 30 million already executed.

VERBUND has outlined investment plans of EUR 5.9 billion by 2027 to expand and modernise its renewable energy portfolio. In addition, around EUR 400 million is planned for ecological projects by 2030, with about half of that amount already invested. These initiatives include biodiversity protection, ecosystem conservation and adaptation measures linked to climate change.

Alongside its 2040 climate-neutral production goal, LANXESS is targeting climate neutrality across its full value chain by 2050, including upstream and downstream emissions. These objectives have been validated by the Science Based Targets initiative as consistent with the 1.5°C pathway set out in the Paris Agreement. The company has also been included in the CDP Climate A List for the seventh consecutive year.