The starting shot has been fired and Stadtwerke Gießen AG (SWG) has gained a new subsidiary: Elektrizitätswerk Hammermühle (EWH) in Selters (Westerwald) in the Rhineland-Palatinate has been competing in the electricity market as Elektrizitätswerk Hammermühle Versorgungs GmbH since 1 July.
Growing and not giving way.
With the purchase of Hammermühle, Stadtwerke Gießen is once again positioning itself towards competition. "Grow and don't give way" - this is the business philosophy of Manfred Siekmann, Chairman of the SWG Board of Management, who has been at the helm of the Giessen-based energy and water supplier for 15 years now. "With the purchase of Hammermühle, we are remaining true to our moderate expansion strategy of continuing to grow and being active on the electricity market throughout Germany," says Siekmann. Managing director takes up postIn order to keep EWH in the centre of the grid area of KEVAG, the Koblenzer Elektrizitätswerk und Verkehrsaktien-Gesellschaft, which is majority-owned by the RWE Group, on course for success, SWG board members Manfred Siekmann and his fellow board member Reinhard Paul decided to place the new sales company in the hands of a managing director. The aim will be to ensure that the solid and traditional E-Werk remains competitive and continues to grow. Harald Schott, who will also continue to work as Head of Business Customer Sales at SWG, will take on this task. Harald Schott has a wealth of experience in the competitive environment of the utilities sector. As Head of Business Customer Sales, he knows what is important: Satisfied customers is the top priority. "I am looking forward to this task. The high level of acceptance that EWH enjoys among its customers in the Westerwald is an incentive to continue on the path we have chosen. Through our customer proximity and competitive prices, I would like to win over more customers and convince them of our performance capabilities through reliable and individualised support," says Schott. Since the beginning of this year, Hammermühle has been purchasing 75 per cent of its electricity requirements from the municipal utilities - SWG expects around 30 million kilowatt hours (kWh) annually.