Diersch & Schröder GmbH & Co. KG

What Diersch & Schröder GmbH & Co. KG does

Diersch & Schröder GmbH & Co. KG (DS Group) is a family-owned German limited partnership founded in 1920 in Bremen, operating across three business divisions: Energy, Chemicals, and Young Business. The Energy division encompasses wholesale of heating and automotive fuels (including the up to 90% CO2-neutral HVO100 product), operation of tank farms and retail/automated gas stations (DS card + drive via the tankpool24 network), EV charging infrastructure through ENERGU (480+ points in Bavaria for a major retail chain), and green hydrogen production/refueling at HY.City.Bremerhaven (900 kg/day). The Chemicals division supplies customized additive formulations for metalworking, cleaning, printing, agriculture, and construction through subsidiaries including Esti Chem A/S (Denmark), Additiv-Chemie Luers, LEVACO Chemicals, and the majority-acquired Norwegian distributor Sparks AS (Jan 2024). The Young Business division incubates and absorbs start-ups in sustainable technologies such as Lynatox (photocatalytic air purification) and Polytives (polymeric additives).

The group serves primarily B2B customers — logistics operators, industrial process companies in Northern Europe, public-sector clients, and a major German retail chain for EV charging — alongside retail fuel consumers. Revenue is generated through commodity fuel trading, specialty chemical sales, tank-storage service contracts, and EV/hydrogen refueling fees, with all pricing conducted via B2B negotiation rather than public rates. The portfolio is supported by approximately 1,000 employees across more than 20 subsidiaries in Germany, Denmark, and Norway, generating ~€1 billion in 2024 turnover. The company is owned by the Karstedt family, with Jan Christiansen as CEO and Steffen Koplin as Managing Director, and has pursued a deliberate decarbonization pivot through HVO100, hydrogen, EV charging, and carbon capture investments.

Name

Diersch & Schröder GmbH & Co. KG

Legal name

Diersch & Schröder GmbH & Co. KG

Website

https://ds-bremen.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1920

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Diersch & Schröder is a family-owned German group founded in 1920 operating across Energy (fuels, tank farms, EV charging, hydrogen), Chemicals (specialty additives via Esti Chem, Additiv-Chemie Luers, LEVACO, Sparks AS), and Young Business start-ups (Lynatox, Polytives), serving logistics, industrial, and public-sector B2B customers across Germany and Northern Europe.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Energy Distribution and Trading

akta.pro primary industry

DER Management Systems (DERMS) & Virtual Power Plants (VPP) (EUADAPAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Retail Supply + DER/Virtual Power Plant Bundles (Solar, Storage, DR) (EUAGABAI), DER Aggregation & Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) (EUAMAJAC)

Keywords

• Mineral oil trading
• Specialty chemical additives
• Hydrogen refueling
• EV charging infrastructure
• Tank farm logistics

Headquarters

HQ city

Bremen, Bremen

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices8 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Energy & Fuel Sales: Wholesale and retail sale of heating fuels, fuels, and automotive fuels; operation of tank farms and fuel stations; E-mobility charging infrastructure (ENERGU); hydrogen refueling (HY.City.Bremerhaven). Revenue from physical commodity trade and fuel distribution.
2. Chemical Products: Sale of customized chemical formulations, additives, and specialty chemicals for metalworking, cleaning, printing, construction, and agricultural applications. Subsidiaries include Esti Chem A/S (Denmark), Additiv-Chemie Luers GmbH & Co. KG, LEVACO Chemicals, Sparks AS (Norway), and Polytives GmbH.
3. Renewable Energy Services: ENERGU installs and operates EV charging infrastructure (over 480 charging points for a department store chain in Bavaria); photovoltaic solutions; sustainable heating solutions including pellets.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Diersch & Schröder GmbH & Co. KG (DS Group) is a diversified, family-owned group founded in 1920 in Bremen that trades and distributes heating fuels and automotive fuels (including HVO100), operates tank farms, retail fuel stations and automated logistics fuel stations, runs EV charging infrastructure and green hydrogen production, and manufactures specialty chemical additives (metalworking fluids, surfactants, defoamers, esters) and polymeric additives. The group operates through more than 20 subsidiaries across Energy, Chemicals, and Young Business divisions.

Product overview

Diersch & Schröder Gruppe is a diversified energy and chemical company group founded in 1920 in Bremen, Germany. The company operates three main business divisions: Energy (heating fuels, automotive fuels, gas stations, tank farms, E-mobility, photovoltaics, hydrogen, and pellets), Chemicals (custom formulations for metalworking, agriculture, cleaning, paints/coatings via subsidiaries Esti Chem, LEVACO, Additiv-Chemie Luers, and Sparks AS), and Young Business (startup investments in air/water purification and plastic recycling via Lynatox and Polytives). The portfolio includes physical products (fuels, chemicals, additives) and infrastructure services (gas stations, tank farms, charging stations), organized through multiple subsidiaries operating under the DS Group umbrella.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Heating and Automotive Fuel Wholesale

Quantifiable outcome

• Up to 90% CO2 reduction with HVO100 fuel compared to conventional diesel
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• proTeam Himmelsthür gGmbH (PTH)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023DS card + drive GmbH cooperates with proTeam Himmelsthür, a workshop for people with disabilities (WfbM), to maintain green areas at gas stations. The workshop handles tasks such as garbage removal, hedge and tree trimming, and care of bee-friendly shrubs. This cooperation supports inclusion by providing employment and qualification opportunities for people with assistance needs.
• Polytives GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDS Group has a strengthened strategic partnership with Polytives GmbH, a specialist in polymeric additives, acquiring shares of Beteiligungsmanagement Thüringen GmbH (bm-t) to strengthen its commitment. Polytives develops polymeric additive solutions for environmentally friendly plastic production in collaboration with Prof. Felix H. Schacher from Friedrich Schiller University, Jena.
• HY.City.BremerhavencoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDS Group is a shareholder and one of six partners in HY.City.Bremerhaven, which operates hydrogen production and refueling infrastructure. 900 kg of green hydrogen is produced daily at the facility and supplied to an on-site hydrogen refueling station serving public transport and private/commercial vehicles.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Others

• HAHN Automation Group: Not a close peer; included only to indicate the broader German Mittelstand industrial ecosystem where DS Group operates and competes for talent and capital.

Direct peers

• H&R GmbH & Co. KGaA: German specialty chemicals and refinery operator producing white oils, lubricant base oils, and specialty waxes. Comparable to DS Group's Additiv-Chemie Luers in industrial lubricant and specialty chemical manufacturing.
• Helm AG: Hamburg-based family-owned chemical distribution company with specialty chemicals, life science, and crop protection divisions. Directly comparable to DS Group's chemicals business through Esti Chem, LEVACO, and Sparks AS.
• ADDINOL Lube Oil GmbH: German specialty lubricant manufacturer producing industrial oils, motor oils, and metalworking fluids. Directly comparable to Additiv-Chemie Luers in industrial lubricant and additive manufacturing.
• Carl Bechem Lubricants GmbH: German specialty lubricant manufacturer with industrial, automotive, and metalworking fluid products. Comparable mid-sized German Mittelstand specialty chemicals/lubricants peer.
• Mabanaft (Marquard & Bahls): Hamburg-based family-owned fuel trader and tank storage operator with similar B2B energy distribution, mineral oil trading, and logistics infrastructure across Europe. The closest direct comparable to DS Group's traditional mineral oil and tank farm core.
• Oiltanking GmbH (Mabanaft subsidiary): Independent tank storage provider, now part of Mabanaft, operating terminals across Europe. Closely comparable to UTG and WESER-PETROL's petroleum tank farm operations and storage services.

Broad incumbents

• Vopak: Dutch global tank storage operator with similar tank farm infrastructure and storage service model to DS Group's WESER-PETROL and UTG. Relevant peer for storage-side economics and terminal operations.
• BayWa AG: Large Munich-based diversified group spanning energy, agriculture, and building materials trading, with renewable energy operations. Comparable to DS Group in diversified family-controlled Mittelstand structure and energy trading breadth.

Regional players

• Avista Oil AG: German used-oil re-refining and specialty base oil producer. Relevant peer for circular-economy and sustainable base oil positioning that complements DS Group's sustainable chemicals direction.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/DierschundSchroeder
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/diersch-&-schr%C3%B6der-gmbh-&-co-kg
• Instagraminstagram.com/diersch_und_schroeder

Compliance7 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Subsidiaries11 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 Diersch & Schröder GmbH & Co. KG