Green power for Erfurt wallpapers
Iqony to supply wallpaper manufacturer Erfurt & Sohn from January 2023 via Green PPA
Wuppertal/Essen. Iqony will supply the Wuppertal-based Erfurt Group with green electricity from the beginning of the year. The Essen-based energy company and the wallpaper manufacturer Erfurt, inventor of woodchip wallpaper, have agreed on a multi-year electricity supply contract, a so-called Green Power Purchase Agreement (PPA).
As an experienced energy trader with its own generation portfolio of several gigawatts of power, Iqony guarantees its contractual partner Erfurt & Sohn KG a supply of green power, independent of the actual production. "For this purpose, Iqony makes use of new PPA offers on the market or uses the capacities available within the group from the photovoltaic subsidiary Iqony Solar Energy Solutions to supply the traditional and well-known Wuppertal paper manufacturer with green electricity, as in the current case," explains Sebastian Holzer, who has been preparing the cooperation with the Erfurt Group for Iqony over the past few months.
Matching supply and demand
The contracts between Iqony and its energy customers are negotiated separately by the trading division ("Origination and Sales") Iqony with operators and consumers. But because the availability of renewable electricity is subject to weather-related fluctuations, unlike electricity from conventional generation, Iqony's role is not limited to the purchase and resale of green electricity. For if the sun does not shine or the wind does not blow sufficiently, the Essen-based energy specialist takes care of green replacement procurement.
Iqony's role is that of a broker: "We buy fluctuating generation power from solar plants and structure it according to the customer's requirements. This is where Iqony's load control centre, which is staffed 24 hours a day, plays an important role, as it can compensate for shortfalls or surpluses at any time through purchases and sales," explains Dr Tobias Pfingsten, who heads the Iqony load control team.
Iqony offers service from a single source
This comprehensive service package offers many advantages to both the operators of renewable generation plants and the purchasers of renewable energy: "As a rule, it makes no sense for either sellers or buyers to take care of energy trading themselves. This is because the marketing or purchase of renewable energies in particular is a highly complex transaction due to their volatility and the hedging transactions that become necessary as a result, which require experience and the ability to act literally around the clock. Many companies can't do that and that's where we come in," says Jens Rupocinski, who heads the renewable energy trading division at Iqony.
Advantages for the customer
For the customer, this comprehensive service makes the process much easier: "Paper production is an energy-intensive business. We are therefore dependent on cheap and reliable supplies. That is exactly what we get from Iqony - including the guarantee that we will be supplied with renewable energy even when the weather is not optimal," says Dr Holger Tristram, Managing Director at Erfurt & Sohn KG.
This is particularly important from a competitive point of view, Holger Tristram continues: "If we want to remain competitive in the long term, we have to decarbonise. In view of the high energy intensity of our industry, this can be achieved not only through our own further development but also through energy procurement. However, because the matter is very complex and can certainly require a great deal of control, we are glad to have found a partner in Iqony that is as experienced as it is reliable."
At its locations in Wuppertal, the Erfurt Group is pursuing a holistic strategy in the decarbonisation of its business areas with the goal of reducing the Erfurt Group's CO2 emissions by at least 4.2 percent per year by 2030. With this, the Erfurt Group is following the 1.5 degree target according to the Paris Climate Agreement," says Managing Director Felicitas Erfurt-Gordon. The addition of green electricity to the electricity procurement portfolio is an important building block in this respect.
Partners agree on confidentiality
For competitive reasons, the partners have agreed not to disclose the details of the supply agreement.
