Kreis Lippe Der Landrat

Kreis Lippe was founded as a Municipal Administration in 1973 and is now one of the major employers in the Lippe region, with around 5,000 employees and apprentices in different fields and an annual income of 700 million Euros. The main activities include topics like nature and the environment, economy, education, public health and culture. One of the key strategic aspects of Kreis Lippe is the production of renewable energy. Currently more than 40% of the overall energy in the region is coming from renewable energy sources. In Lippe, there are three energy suppliers, several large photovoltaic plants, dozens of windmills and several biogas facilities. Additionally, a big project was initiated by Kreis Lippe, the so-called Smart Energy Village (“Energiedorf Wendlinghausen”), where households, a small sawmill and commercial buildings are powered 100% with renewable energy and heating. The village is already used in several research projects where simulation models are coupled with physical components, and real-time optimisation of energy usage is performed. Together with various companies and, Kreis Lippe works on topics such as development of innovative methods and strategies for efficient energy management, e-mobility integration in a smart grid or decreasing the CO2 footprint to zero.