Wind energy from the North Sea: Evonik and EnBW sign a long-term supply contract for electricity from offshore wind farm He Dreiht

Essen/Karlsruhe. Evonik is becoming less dependent on fossil fuels: The specialty chemicals company signed a long-term power purchase agreement (PPA) for wind energy with the energy supplier EnBW. The PPA provides Evonik with 100 megawatts (MW) from the new 900-MW He Dreiht wind farm in the German North Sea. This agreement alone will enable Evonik to cover around a quarter of its electricity needs in Europe with renewable energy from 2026 on. EnBW will supply the green electricity over a period of 15 years. Since chemical production requires a constant energy supply, Evonik will compensate for fluctuations of the wind energy feed-in through its own balancing group management.

"Together with EnBW, we are accelerating the implementation of our ambitious sustainability strategy. We are becoming less dependent on fossil fuels and their price fluctuations," says Christian Kullmann, CEO of Evonik. "Clearly, the less fossil and more green energy we use, the better the future opportunities for our German and European sites will be." The PPA with EnBW is just the beginning. Evonik is working on other agreements for green electricity purchased directly from producers to increase the company's share of renewable energy usage. "The green electricity from the new offshore wind farm is a very important lever for our goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions," says Thomas Wessel, responsible for sustainability on the Executive Board. "Today, 27 percent of Evonik's externally purchased electricity worldwide already comes from renewable sources. Implementing the PPA with EnBW significantly increases this share to more than 40 percent."

At the same time, the cooperation reduces Evonik's Scope 2 emissions (electricity from external sources) by 100,000 metric tons of CO₂ per year. The company recently announced the goal of reducing its Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions from the current 6.5 million tons to 4.9 million tons by 2030. About one-third of this net reduction will be achieved by switching to renewable energy sources.

The He Dreiht wind farm will be built about 90 kilometers northwest of Borkum and 110 kilometers west of Helgoland. It is scheduled to start operating at the end of 2025. In 2017, EnBW won the first tender in Germany with a zero-cent bid and thus initiated a new trend in the offshore market. The subsidy-free offshore wind farm is currently one of Europe's largest energy transition projects. For the first time, 15-MW turbines will be deployed.

As a central instrument of the energy transition, PPAs are becoming increasingly important: "We can only achieve the energy transition together. PPAs are a tool for this. They help companies to achieve ambitious climate targets and enable developers of renewable energy projects to obtain reliable financing. This way, the economy and the climate both benefit," explains EnBW management board member Georg Stamatelopoulos. "With Evonik, we have gained another strong partner for our He Dreiht offshore wind farm," he adds. EnBW will make the final investment decision on the offshore wind farm in 2023.

Evonik offers a range of products for offshore wind turbines. Its crosslinkers ensure highly robust and long-lasting rotor blades. Silica and silanes strengthen the bonding of glass fibers and resin. Structural foam from Evonik will make the design of future rotor blades even more efficient at low weights. Synthetic base oils from Evonik provide cost-effective lubrication of the turbines’ gearboxes and protect them from wear and corrosion.

Evonik is one of the world leaders in specialty chemicals. The company is active in more than 100 countries around the world and generated sales of €15 billion and an operating profit (adjusted EBITDA) of €2.38 billion in 2021. Evonik goes far beyond chemistry to create innovative, profitable and sustainable solutions for customers. About 33,000 employees work together for a common purpose: We want to improve life today and tomorrow.

Disclaimer
In so far as forecasts or expectations are expressed in this press release or where our statements concern the future, these forecasts, expectations or statements may involve known or unknown risks and uncertainties. Actual results or developments may vary, depending on changes in the operating environment. Neither Evonik Industries AG nor its group companies assume an obligation to update the forecasts, expectations or statements contained in this

With over 26,000 employees, EnBW is one of the largest energy companies in Germany and Europe. It supplies around 5.5 million customers with electricity, gas, water as well as services and products in the areas of infrastructure and energy. The expansion of renewable energies is a cornerstone of the growth strategy and a focus of investment. EnBW will invest around four billion euros in the further expansion of wind and solar energy between 2021 and 2025. By the end of 2025, more than half of the generation portfolio is set to consist of renewable energies. Furthermore, the expansion of renewable energies is an important part of EnBW’s Sustainability Agenda as the company heads towards climate neutrality by 2035.

EnBW has been actively involved in PPA matters in Germany from the very beginning: In 2019, the company signed the first PPA of its kind in Germany with Energiekontor. In December 2021, it announced the first supply contract with Fraport AG for 85 megawatts of electricity from the “He Dreiht” offshore wind farm.