The company is known for its lignite-coal and nuclear power plants, but since it created its renewables arm, RWE Innogy, in 2008, it has been investing more than €1bn ($1.35bn) a year in biomass, hydropower and wind — most notably offshore.
Fritz Vahrenholt, who has a long history in Germany’s energy sector — founding turbine manufacturer REpower in 2001 — was brought in to run Innogy at its launch.
