biota-Institut für ökologische Forschung und Planung GmbH

What biota-Institut für ökologische Forschung und Planung GmbH does

Biota-Institut für ökologische Forschung und Planung GmbH is a privately held environmental research and planning consultancy founded in 1993 and headquartered in Bützow, Germany. The firm operates with a small core team of 7 employees and delivers interdisciplinary environmental consulting services that combine natural science, technical, economic, and legal perspectives. Its service portfolio spans 12 environmental domains, including biological mappings and expert reports, water protection and Water Framework Directive implementation, soil/floodplain/peatland protection, nature conservation planning (FFH, Natura 2000), climate protection and adaptation, hydrology and flood protection, ecological construction supervision, geodata processing, and rural development/tourism planning. The company serves primarily German public-sector clients, including federal agencies (Bundesamt für Naturschutz, Bundesanstalt für Gewässerkunde, Umweltbundesamt), multiple state ministries (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Saxony-Anhalt, Saxony, Baden-Württemberg, Schleswig-Holstein, Brandenburg), municipal authorities (Hansestadt Rostock), and environmental NGOs (NABU).

Biota's revenue model is fee-for-service consulting, charging negotiated fees on a project-by-project basis through public procurement and direct engagement with government clients. The firm does not sell a standardized software product but has developed specialized tools including the ÖkoMoni QGIS Python plug-in for economic valuation of ecosystem services at federal waterways, a web-based GIS Decision Support System (GIS-EUS) for spatial development planning, and a digital water cadastre system. These tools originated from federal research projects (MBBF-funded PROSPER-RO, BfN-funded AMBERS) and are described as project deliverables rather than commercial software products. The company's go-to-market is sales-led, relying on public procurement tenders, established agency relationships, and its scientific publication record as primary visibility channels. Its competitive positioning rests on three decades of accumulated project references, an interdisciplinary talent pool, and integration with German federal research programs and collaborations with institutions such as the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ) and Katholische Universität Eichstätt-Ingolstadt (KUEI).

Name

biota-Institut für ökologische Forschung und Planung GmbH

Legal name

biota – Institut für ökologische Forschung und Planung GmbH

Website

https://institut-biota.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Biota is a Bützow-based German environmental research and planning consultancy (7 employees, founded 1993) delivering interdisciplinary ecological consulting to federal agencies, state ministries, municipalities, and NGOs across water management, nature conservation, peatland protection, and climate adaptation.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Environmental Consulting Services

NAICS

Environmental Consulting Services (54162), Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services (54169)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEUAHAKAI

Ecological/Habitat & Land-Use Change Modeling (Biodiversity, Conservation Planning)

Energy, Utilities & Environment/Environmental Compliance, Monitoring & Consulting/Environmental Data Management, Modeling & GIS/Remote Sensing

Keywords

• Environmental consulting services
• Ecological planning
• Water resources management
• Nature conservation planning
• Environmental impact assessment

Headquarters

HQ city

Bützow

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Consulting and Professional Services: biota generates revenue through fee-for-service consulting engagements with government agencies, municipalities, and public-sector clients. Services span scientific analysis, expert opinions, strategic planning, and project implementation across environmental domains including water management, nature conservation, soil and peatland protection, climate adaptation, and landscape planning. Projects are acquired through public procurement and direct engagement with public-sector clients.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

biota provides interdisciplinary environmental consulting, research, and planning services to German public-sector clients, spanning scientific analysis, expert assessments, strategic and conceptual work, and project implementation across water management, nature conservation, soil and peatland protection, climate adaptation, and rural development. The firm supplements its consulting practice with proprietary GIS tools, including a web-based ecosystem services decision support system and the ÖkoMoni QGIS plug-in, to deliver nature conservation and water management solutions to federal, state, and municipal authorities.

Product overview

biota is an environmental research and planning institute offering a comprehensive portfolio of ecological consulting services. The company provides interdisciplinary environmental services spanning nature conservation, water management, climate protection, soil/peatland protection, and rural development. Core service offerings include biological mappings, environmental impact assessments, GIS-based geodata processing, hydrological engineering, and ecosystem services valuation. The firm also develops specialized software tools including the ÖkoMoni QGIS plugin for ecosystem service monetization and custom GIS decision support systems. Services are delivered through consulting projects rather than a unified software platform, with offerings spanning research, planning, approval management, and construction supervision.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Biologische Kartierungen und Fachgutachten (Biological Mappings and Expert Reports) Mapping of biological species and preparation of expert reports for environmental impact assessments and conservation planning, delivered to public-sector clients in Germany.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 30 years of project experience with hundreds of completed reference projects across water management, nature conservation, and environmental planning.
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Helmholtz-Zentrum für Umweltforschung (UFZ)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022biota collaborates with the UFZ (Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research) on the BfN-funded project 'DynAu' (More Dynamics in Water and Floodplain Development), addressing the tension between process protection and conservation-oriented nature conservation in Natura 2000 sites. The partnership involves developing practical solutions for river and floodplain restoration within the European Natura 2000 network.
• Katholische Universität Eichstätt-Ingolstadt (KUEI)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022biota partners with KUEI in the DynAu research project, contributing to the development of solutions for balancing process protection with FFH conservation requirements in river and floodplain restoration.
• psn media GmbH & Co. KGminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partnerpsn media GmbH & Co. KG serves as the technical implementation partner for biota's website, providing website hosting and technical support based in Rostock, Germany.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Ramboll Deutschland GmbH: Global engineering, environmental, and sustainability consultancy with significant German operations covering water management, nature-based solutions, and climate adaptation — a scaled incumbent competing for the same federal contracts.
• Sweco GmbH: European engineering and environmental consultancy active across Germany in water, climate adaptation, and environmental planning — a broad incumbent competing for municipal and federal environmental contracts.
• AFRY Deutschland GmbH: European engineering consultancy offering water resources, environmental, and climate services in Germany — competes in the same federal water and climate planning space as biota.
• Arcadis Germany: Global design and environmental consultancy with German offices offering integrated water, nature, and climate services — broad incumbent serving the same federal and state authorities as biota.

Direct peers

• Bosch & Partner GmbH: German environmental planning consultancy offering landscape planning, ecological surveys, FFH management, and GIS-based environmental services across Germany — directly comparable scope and federal/state client base to biota.
• Öko-Institut e.V. Independent German environmental research institute conducting applied research on climate, biodiversity, and sustainability for federal agencies and EU institutions — directly comparable research-and-advisory model to biota.
• ifu Hamburg GmbH: Hamburg-based environmental consulting and software firm specializing in life cycle assessment, material flow analysis, and environmental information systems — comparable niche technical expertise and public-sector clientele.
• Planungsgruppe Grüner Winkel: Specialized German landscape and environmental planning firm delivering ecological surveys, FFH management plans, and GIS-based environmental analysis to public-sector clients.
• Froelich & Sporbeck GmbH: German engineering and landscape planning consultancy active in environmental impact assessment, nature conservation planning, and water management — closely matching biota's service portfolio and public-sector focus.

Emerging players

• Buro Happold: International engineering consultancy building out environmental and nature-based solutions practices in Germany; not as deeply embedded in the BfN/Mittelstand ecosystem yet, but an emerging competitive threat for integrated environmental planning engagements.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/biota-institut-f%C3%BCr-%C3%B6kologische-forschung-und-planung-gmbh

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 biota-Institut für ökologische Forschung und Planung GmbH