RWE npower has set up a joint venture with Daldrup & Sohne AG (D&S), a firm specializing in planning and conducting geothermal drillings, for development and construction of geothermal power stations. The joint venture is being set up in Ascheberg and is subject to approval from Bundeskartellamt, the German antitrust authority. The new company will develop existing RWE geothermal drilling sites, for which permits have already been secured. Additional drilling permits will also be sought. It will also collaborate with geothermal and project development firms in Germany and other European countries to capitalize on the increasing focus on geothermal energy to produce heat and electric power.
