Wirtschaftsbetrieb Hagen

What Wirtschaftsbetrieb Hagen does

Wirtschaftsbetrieb Hagen (WBH) is an Anstalt des öffentlichen Rechts (public-law institution) wholly owned by the City of Hagen, Germany, employing approximately 350 staff to deliver integrated municipal infrastructure services. The organization operates five service divisions — Entwässerung (drainage), Bau (construction), Grün (green space management), Betrieb und Werkstätten (operations and workshops), and Friedhöfe (cemeteries and crematorium) — covering the full lifecycle of planning, construction and maintenance for ~700 km of public canals, ~19,000 street lighting points, 207 traffic signal intersections, ~30,000 managed trees, ~200 bridges, and Hagen's municipal forest (~25% of Hagen's 42% forest area).

The technology stack centers on a GIS Smallworld canal information system introduced in 2002, supplemented by remote monitoring of special structures (pump stations, retention tanks, stormwater clarification basins), high-pressure cleaning vehicles with water-recovery technology, and sensor-based tree assessment (tilt angle and drill resistance). Street lighting has been progressively converted to LED since 2005, reducing energy consumption by ~45% (~2.5 million kWh saved). WBH also operates 12 rainfall gauges, ~35 km of "green wave" coordinated traffic signal corridors, and has studied wastewater heat-recovery potential across the canal network since 2013.

Revenue is generated through a hybrid model: regulated municipal drainage fees (Entwässerungsgebühren) from property owners in Hagen, usage-based fees for green-waste disposal and compost at the Hagen composting facility (e.g., €3.00/100L, €24.00/m³), sales of PEFC-certified firewood, burial and crematorium fees, and direct municipal budget allocations under a public mandate from the City of Hagen. WBH also wholly owns two urban development subsidiaries (HEG and HIG) and is involved in the IGA 2027 Ruhrgebiet garden exhibition reconstruction of Villa Hohenhof.

Name

Wirtschaftsbetrieb Hagen

Legal name

Wirtschaftsbetrieb Hagen - Anstalt des öffentlichen Rechts der Stadt Hagen

Website

https://wbh-hagen.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Wirtschaftsbetrieb Hagen is a public-law municipal utility wholly owned by the City of Hagen, Germany, employing ~350 staff to plan, build and maintain public drainage, roads, bridges, green spaces, traffic infrastructure, cemeteries and forestry.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Municipal Infrastructure Services

NAICS

Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction (237), Water and Sewer Line and Related Structures Construction (237110), Highway, Street, and Bridge Construction (23731)

SIC

Heavy Construction Other Than Bldg Const - Contractors (1600), Water, Sewer, Pipeline, Comm & Power Line Construction (1623)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Works & Municipal Infrastructure (Streets, Stormwater, Facilities) (BPAIACAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Highway & Roadway Construction (Highways, Arterials, Streets) (IMAFAEAA), Stormwater & Drainage Infrastructure Construction (Sewer, Detention, Outfalls) (IMAFAGAF), Roadside Structures & Ancillary Works (Noise Barriers, Lighting, Guardrails, Fencing) (IMAFAEAJ), Roadside Vegetation & Right-of-Way (ROW) Management (TLAJAAAG), Road & Highway Authorities (Planning, Construction, Maintenance) (BPAIALAA), Storage & Conveyance Structures (Reservoirs, Tanks, Culverts, Tunnels) (IMAFAGAE)

Keywords

• Municipal drainage services
• Public infrastructure construction
• Urban green space management
• Wastewater system management
• Municipal cemetery services

Headquarters

HQ city

Hagen

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Municipal Drainage Fees: WBH Hagen charges drainage fees (Entwässerungsgebühren) to property owners in Hagen for the use of the public sewage system. These fees fund the planning, construction, and maintenance of the canal network.
2. Compost and Green Waste Disposal Fees: Commercial and private users pay fees for disposing of green waste at the composting facility. Fees scale by volume (per liter or cubic meter) with discounts for customers who also take compost.
3. Firewood and Timber Sales: WBH sells PEFC-certified firewood (cut to 25cm or 33cm) sourced from the Hagen municipal forest, with delivery available by truck by appointment. Also sells game meat from the hunting program.
4. Burial and Cemetery Services: WBH operates municipal cemeteries and a crematorium, generating revenue from burial services, cemetery plots, and cremation.
5. Municipal Mandate Services: WBH operates under public mandate from the City of Hagen as an Anstalt des öffentlichen Rechts, performing core municipal infrastructure services (roads, bridges, canals, green spaces, waterways, cemeteries, and forestry) funded through municipal budgets and user fees.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Wirtschaftsbetrieb Hagen (WBH) plans, constructs, and maintains the public infrastructure of the City of Hagen, including approximately 700 km of sewage canals, roads, bridges, green spaces and parks, waterways, traffic engineering systems (signals, lighting), municipal cemeteries and crematorium, and forestry operations. It operates as a public-law institution under the City of Hagen, delivering integrated municipal services through five operational divisions: drainage, construction, green space management, operations/workshops, and cemeteries.

Product overview

Wirtschaftsbetrieb Hagen (WBH) is a municipal public utility company (Anstalt des öffentlichen Rechts) providing comprehensive infrastructure services for the city of Hagen, Germany. The organization operates as a multi-department service provider with five core service divisions: Entwässerung (drainage/sewer services including the canal database), Bau (construction services including canal construction, road construction, bridge engineering, green/sports/playground construction, and traffic technology), Grün (green space management including tree safety, waterways, composting, and forestry), Betrieb und Werkstätten (operations including canal and road maintenance, IT, and workshops), and Friedhöfe (cemetery and crematorium services). WBH manages approximately 700 km of public canal networks, 19,000 street lighting points, 207 traffic signal systems, and extensive green spaces and forestry holdings. The organization uses modern technologies including GIS-based canal databases (Smallworld), remote monitoring systems, LED street lighting, and intelligent traffic management systems to deliver these services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Entwässerung (Drainage Services) Planning, construction, and maintenance of public sewer systems including drainage planning, property drainage, storm water consulting, canal database management, and wastewater heat recovery feasibility studies.
• Bau (Construction Services) Construction and maintenance of canal systems, waterways, roads, bridges and engineering structures, green spaces, sports and playgrounds, and traffic technology.
• Grün (Green Space Management) Maintenance of urban green spaces, parks, gardens, tree safety management, waterway maintenance, composting facility operation, and forestry management.
• Betrieb und Werkstätten (Operations and Workshops) Canal network maintenance, road maintenance, IT services, vehicle fleet management, and street data management operations.
• Friedhöfe (Cemeteries and Crematorium) Management and maintenance of municipal cemeteries including the crematorium for citizens of Hagen.
• Kompostierungsanlage (Composting Facility Services) Composting and green waste disposal services for commercial and private users with compost and mixed soil sales.
• Kaminholz (Firewood Sales) PEFC-certified firewood sales sourced from the Hagen municipal forest with delivery options.
• Verkehrstechnik (Traffic Engineering Services) Operation of traffic signals, street lighting, parking guidance, and coordinated traffic management systems.

Quantifiable outcome

• Street lighting energy consumption reduced by nearly 45% (~2.5 million kWh) through LED modernization since 2005
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• IGA 2027 RuhrgebietcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2027The International Garden Exhibition (IGA) 2027 Ruhrgebiet will take place in the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region, the first IGA in NRW in its current form. WBH Hagen is involved in the reconstruction of the heritage-listed garden of Villa Hohenhof as part of IGA 2027.
• Hagener Erschließungs- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft (HEG)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWBH Hagen manages the Hagener Erschließungs- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft (HEG), a real estate development company, through WBH staff who also serve as HEG management. WBH staff provide high-rise building management and project management services to HEG.
• Stadtbeleuchtung Hagen GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe City of Hagen established Stadtbeleuchtung Hagen GmbH as the owner of street lighting infrastructure, using WBH Hagen's operational services. WBH maintains all street lighting fixtures, handles repairs, and performs annual technical upgrades.
• IKT (Institut für unterirdische Infrastruktur)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWBH collaborated with IKT and other municipalities to create a short informational film about canal construction projects, addressing citizen concerns and improving public acceptance of construction measures.
• Energielenkerprojects GmbHminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIn cooperation with Energielenkerprojects GmbH from Greven, WBH Hagen created a climate balance report to track and reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions since 2011.

Scale indicators15 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Stadtentwässerung Frankfurt am Main: Municipal drainage and wastewater infrastructure operator for Frankfurt am Main, organized under city ownership with a comparable focus on canal/sewer planning, construction, and maintenance. Highly analogous mandate to WBH's Entwässerung division.
• Berliner Wasserbetriebe: Public water and wastewater utility for Berlin, operating a comparable sewer network with planning, maintenance, and inspection responsibilities. Similar AöR-like governance and stormwater management focus to WBH Hagen.
• Hamburg Wasser: Hamburg's municipal water and wastewater utility, providing water supply, wastewater disposal and infrastructure planning under public mandate. Mirrors WBH's combination of drainage fees, GIS-style network management, and large-scale network operation.
• Stadtentwässerung Hannover: Municipal drainage utility of Hannover managing sewer infrastructure, flood/stormwater protection, and canal-network maintenance for a comparable mid-sized German city. Operates under a similar single-city public-mandate model to WBH Hagen.
• KWL Kommunale Wasserwerke Leipzig GmbH: Municipal water and wastewater utility for Leipzig, owned by the city, providing drinking-water supply and sewage-network operation. Comparable public-mandate structure and mid-sized German municipal footprint to WBH.
• Stadtentwässerung Dresden GmbH: Dresden's municipal drainage and wastewater services company, organized as a city-owned entity with a comparable sewer-network operational mandate. Highly analogous business model to WBH's drainage division.
• Stadt Bonn – Stadtbetrieb Abwasser: Bonn's municipal wastewater/street drainage operator under city ownership. Closely comparable in scale and mandate to WBH, focusing on sewer-network operation for a mid-sized German municipality.

Broad incumbents

• Stadtwerke München (SWM): Munich's municipal multi-utility (water, wastewater, energy, public transport, swimming). Operates in the same broad municipal-infrastructure space as WBH but at much larger scale and with a broader portfolio of services.
• Stadtwerke Bonn (SWB GmbH): Municipal multi-utility for the City of Bonn providing water, energy, and infrastructure-related services. Overlaps with WBH on the municipal infrastructure mandate but operates as a larger, broader multi-utility.

Regional players

• Wien Kanal (Stadt Wien): Municipal sewer and drainage operator for the City of Vienna, Austria. Very similar canal-network planning and maintenance mandate, but operates in a different country/regulatory environment, making it a regional rather than direct competitor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@wirtschaftsbetriebhagenaor9086
• LinkedInde.linkedin.com/company/wirtschaftsbetrieb-hagen-wbh

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Wirtschaftsbetrieb Hagen