Specialty chemicals company LANXESS has signed a three-year power supply contract with VERBUND, Austria’s largest energy company and one of Europe’s leading hydropower producers, to source green electricity from hydropower plants in Bavaria, Germany.
Under the agreement, VERBUND will supply LANXESS with around 200,000MWh of renewable electricity between 2026 and 2028. The power will be generated at existing run-of-river hydropower plants on the Inn River in Bavaria and will supply LANXESS production sites in Bergkamen, Bitterfeld, Brunsbüttel, Mannheim and Wietmarschen.
According to the companies, the contract will reduce LANXESS’ carbon emissions by approximately 60,000 tonnes of CO2 compared with the German electricity mix. The move supports LANXESS’ target to achieve climate-neutral production by 2040.
“Our production facilities operate 24/7, so we need electricity day and night. VERBUND’s hydropower plants can guarantee this. At the same time, they support us on our path to climate neutrality,” said Alexander Sonnenberg, Head of Energy Procurement at LANXESS.
VERBUND Energy4Business Center Manager for Industrial Customers Andreas Lanz added: “The growing demand for sustainable electricity is a clear trend and a prerequisite for greater climate protection, security of supply and reliability. With the VERBUND Climate Transition Plan, a clearly defined path to reducing greenhouse gas emissions with the goal of achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, we are pursuing a science-based reduction path and supporting industrial companies in reducing their carbon footprint and achieving their climate goals with our green electricity solutions.”
VERBUND currently operates 22 run-of-river hydropower plants in Bavaria and along the Bavarian-Austrian border. These facilities have a combined installed capacity of 1040MW and annual generation of 5.9 TWh, with 4.0 TWh supplied to Bavaria.
To expand regional energy production, VERBUND has implemented or is currently developing projects worth around €600m. A further €1bn in projects is in the planning and permitting stages.
The company has also allocated €100m for ecological measures at its Bavarian hydropower assets and cross-border sites by 2030, including fish passage systems, river restoration projects, habitat protection and water quality improvements. Around €30m has already been invested.
VERBUND plans to invest €5.9bn by 2027 to support the energy transition. The company has also committed €400m to environmental and biodiversity projects by 2030, with approximately €200m already implemented.
LANXESS, meanwhile, aims to achieve climate neutrality across its entire value chain by 2050, including Scope 3 emissions. The company’s targets have been validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) and aligned with the 1.5°C pathway of the Paris Agreement. LANXESS was recently included in the CDP Climate A List for the seventh consecutive year.
