(Municipal utilities)-co-operation

Since liberalisation began in 1998, co-operation has become a tried-and-tested means of reaping the benefits of joint procurement, billing, IT, etc. on an equal footing. Co-operation has been gaining ground again as a result of the pressure caused by regulation and competition.

In Germany, there are a good three dozen examples of co-operation between independent municipal utilities. In recent years, a large number of joint grid companies have been founded. Liberalisation of metering is leading to new co-operation projects and companies so that the market opportunities offered by smart metering can be used and at the same time business risks steered clear of grid operations.

There are many different forms of co-operation: they have between two and over 70 shareholders, they work with generation projects, services or sales issues.

Co-operation is measured, not least, by whether it offers proven advantages for its shareholders. This is why co-operations also work with each other. In extreme cases, this ends with mergers.