A small village in Lower Saxony is independent of energy supplies from far away. A biogas plant supplies almost all of the 250 residents of Ellringen south of Lüneburg in the joint municipality of Dahlenburg with heat. This is particularly important for the self-proclaimed bio-energy village this winter. "We are independent of wind and sun, we can always deliver," says managing director Thomas Koch, who set up the plant together with partner Axel Wilmsen in 2011. Koch himself lives in Schleswig-Holstein and drives to the small town several times a week. In almost every one of the more than 60 households, Koch negotiated the district heating contract locally.

The farmers in the area supply maize silage, sugar beets, liquid manure and manure. Two employees ensure that the combined heat and power plant works without fluctuations seven days a week. The electricity is fed into the small local grid operator, and the heat is sent to the village as a by-product in pipes. 98 percent of the residents are cared for in this way.

Bioenergy Village Ellringen