In view of rising energy consumption and declining reserves of fossil fuels, renewable energies are attracting greater interest in sustainable economic development. The use of wind and water power, solar energy, biomass and geothermal energy offers huge long-term potential both ecologically and economically. HOCHTIEF has already been active in this future-oriented market for some years, contributing its extensive experience in the planning, construction and operation of technical facilities and power plants.

Geothermics

Another emerging segment is heat and power from geothermal energy: There is a highly promising future market in tapping the earth?s internal heat to generate electricity. The potential usefulness of a given geothermal site depends on its energy content and temperature. Designing, building and operating a geothermal power plant is a particularly complex undertaking involving not only geological, drilling and electrical engineering considerations, but also matters of environmental law, mining law, finance and insurance. Because of this, planning and building a geothermal power plant is something that can only be done by pooling expertise in a strategic alliance. We are commited to harvesting geothermal energy because it makes sense both environmentally and economically. Offering a full range of capabilities as general contractors, we are ideally placed to serve this new market.

Hydropower

Of all renewable energy forms, hydropower is currently making the greatest contribution to power supply, with a global share of about 20 percent. The big advantage of energy from hydropower is that it can be stored easily, virtually without any loss and is available at short notice. While in Germany the potential for hydroelectric power stations is virtually exhausted, experts still see good development possibilities in many other countries. HOCHTIEF has been — and is — involved in the construction of hydroelectric power stations and dams in Africa, China, South America, Canada, and Scotland.

Solar energy

In one hour, the sun sends out more energy to Earth than the entire world population can consume in a year. It thereby represents an energy source which could easily meet the demands of the world population. This makes the sun an important alternative to energy gained from fossil fuels and is promoted by governments in many countries. In Germany, this form of energy is governed by the Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG), the most modern energy legislation of its kind anywhere in the world. It specifies additional costs which arise when solar energy is used, and allocates them to all electricity consumers. The EEG also commits energy suppliers to buying up all the electricity produced from renewable energy sources and to paying for it at prescribed rates. All in all, plenty of attractive reasons for builders to move to solar energy.