It all started back in 2004 when managing director Mario Münch came up with the idea of using a solar system to create a secure provision for retirement for his parents. Demand grew right from his first project – within nine months he had achieved sales of more than one million euros.
«A shared goal of using this renewable generation to bring about sustainable change is what drives us all. This has the effect of creating a highly effective working atmosphere.»
Energy from renewable sources is characterised in that it is generated from resources such as hydro and wind power or sunlight. The advantage of these resources is that they regenerate endlessly, i.e. using it to produce energy does not deplete its stocks on the earth. This is in contrast to fossil fuels like coal, oil or gas, which are not available in endless quantities, and which emit huge quantities of greenhouse gases, which add to global warming, when converted into energy.
Today the company Münch Energie employs 90 members of staff referred to affectionately as “energy rebels”. Together they work at the most energy-cost-efficient company location in Germany, which simply produces its energy itself using sustainable sources. This is made possible due, among other things, to the company’s own photovoltaic systems, photovoltaic car ports as well as a patented intelligent control system. All employees can charge up their car with energy for free while at work. The full battery can then be plugged into a socket at home and used to feed free electricity into the house: “We just think differently from most other companies,” says Mario Münch. “This method easily helps save around EUR 4,000 in energy costs per year.”
Baloise in Germany has been supporting the company Münch Energie on this unique path since its earliest stages. “In Baloise I had found an insurance company that already had a wealth of expertise on the subject of photovoltaic systems,” says Münch. “This partnership has run smoothly ever since, and we gladly recommend Baloise to our own customers too. This means we can be certain that everything will be dealt with by one unit in the event of an insurance claim. And regardless of whether claims are involved, the experts at Baloise Insurance always endeavour to find solutions for every challenge.”
As a finance company, we do not manufacture goods. Nonetheless, we want to promote the sustainable change towards more renewable energy with our opportunities and already acquire 100% of the electricity at all of our locations from renewable sources. But our greatest influence comes in the form of our investments, which we approach on the basis of our Responsible Investment Policy. This policy governs the integration of environmental and social criteria and responsible corporate governance in our investment decisions.
There is a widespread misconception that sustainable energy requires exceptional amounts of rare commodities. This is despite the fact that a photovoltaic system has paid for itself in an ecological sense after just two years and can be recycled for up to 200 years. Here communication is simply being consciously misdirected, prompting people to ask questions that nobody would otherwise ask. Take for instance the purchase of a new washing machine: Would you ask how long it would take for this to pay for itself in ecological terms?”
Mario Münch wants to be able to look into his children’s eyes one day and tell them that he has done everything possible to hit the brakes on climate change. It’s this philosophy he applies to running his company too. Humanity and its combined endeavours to work for a more sustainable world are the top priority. That is why Mario Münch is always happy to welcome policymakers and other interested parties to his company premises to show them the advantages of sustainable energy compared with coal and nuclear power. By doing so, he hopes to raise awareness among more and more people with a view to accelerating the energy revolution.
Münch Energie’s work is so successful that all projects built with its energy solutions replace half a nuclear power plant in total annually. In 2019, it even succeeded in helping to build a power plant for the ABB Group that enabled the whole site to be run emission-free. Here the investment costs are included in the electricity price, which is nevertheless cheaper than it would be with a central electricity provider. In short: immediate savings without any investment costs.