MHKW Müllheizkraftwerk Frankfurt am Main GmbH

What MHKW Müllheizkraftwerk Frankfurt am Main GmbH does

MHKW Müllheizkraftwerk Frankfurt am Main GmbH operates a municipal waste-to-energy plant in Frankfurt am Main's Nordweststadt district, processing up to 525,600 tonnes of municipal solid waste per year across four combustion lines and converting it into 49 MW of electrical output and up to 99 MW of district heating. The plant uses an air-cooled pusher grate (Vorschubrost) combustion system operating at a minimum of 850°C, paired with a two-stage Circoclean flue gas cleaning process and fabric filters with 1,752 sleeves per line, and is integrated with a Kraft-Wärme-Kopplung (combined heat and power) configuration that delivers heat through Mainova AG's approximately 300 km district heating network to roughly 30,000 households and commercial customers in Frankfurt. Its R1 energy efficiency factor of 0.890 (2021) places it as the most energy-efficient waste solution for the region per an Öko-Institut study.

The operating entity was established on October 1, 2006 as a 50/50 joint venture between FES Frankfurter Entsorgungs- und Service GmbH (51% City of Frankfurt, 49% REMONDIS) and Mainova AG (over 75% City of Frankfurt). FES coordinates municipal waste delivery from Frankfurt, Hochtaunuskreis, Maintaunuskreis, and other Rhein-Main municipalities; the facility explicitly does not accept waste from private households. Revenue derives from waste processing/disposal fees under long-term public infrastructure contracts and from electricity generation and district heating sales, with pricing not publicly disclosed. The company holds ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 50001, and ISO 45001 certifications, R1 energy efficiency certification (valid until 2028), and Entsorgungsfachbetrieb certification (valid until 2026).

The asset is mature and stable, employing approximately 105 staff per the company's own facts page, operating 24/7/365 with scheduled biennial maintenance shutdowns. Strategic activity is incremental rather than transformational: hydrogen-capable burners have been commissioned for CO2 reduction, district heating network integration was completed in 2017, and the most recent technical inspection took place in 2024. The business is wholly municipally embedded, with no venture capital, private equity, or external institutional investment, and no M&A activity.

Name

MHKW Müllheizkraftwerk Frankfurt am Main GmbH

Legal name

MHKW Müllheizkraftwerk Frankfurt am Main GmbH

Website

https://mhkw-frankfurt.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2006

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

MHKW Frankfurt operates a four-line municipal waste-to-energy plant in Frankfurt am Main, processing up to 525,600 tonnes of waste annually into 49 MW of electricity and 99 MW of district heating for Frankfurt and surrounding municipalities under a 50/50 joint venture between FES GmbH and Mainova AG.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Waste-to-Energy Services

NAICS

Solid Waste Combustors and Incinerators (562213), Steam and Air-Conditioning Supply (221330)

SIC

Cogeneration Services & Small Power Producers (4991), Refuse Systems (4953)

akta.pro primary industry

Waste-to-Energy (WtE) Combustion Facilities (BPALACAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Waste-to-Energy CHP (Municipal/Industrial Waste Incineration) (EUACAKAC), Industrial & Commercial Waste Incineration (Non-hazardous) (EUAAAKAC), Industrial Waste-to-Energy (Non-Hazardous Process Wastes) (EUACAIAI)

Keywords

• Waste-to-energy services
• Municipal waste processing
• District heating supply
• Combined heat and power
• Flue gas cleaning

Headquarters

HQ city

Frankfurt am Main

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Infrastructure, Personnel, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Waste Processing / Disposal Fees: Revenue from processing municipal solid waste from Frankfurt and surrounding districts. Waste from the Hochtaunuskreis, Maintaunuskreis, and other Rhein-Main region municipalities is processed under contractual arrangements.
2. Electricity Generation and Sales: Generation of electricity through Kraft-Wärme-Kopplung (combined heat and power). The plant produces 49 MW electrical turbine capacity, supplying power to the grid. Additionally, up to 99 MW of district heating is extracted from the waste operation.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

MHKW Müllheizkraftwerk Frankfurt am Main GmbH operates a municipal waste-to-energy plant that thermally processes up to 525,600 tonnes of household and commercial waste per year across four combustion lines, converting the waste into electricity (49 MW) and district heating (99 MW). The facility is a 50/50 joint venture between FES Frankfurter Entsorgungs- und Service GmbH and Mainova AG, providing guaranteed Entsorgungssicherheit (disposal security) and CO2-neutral heat recovery for the Frankfurt am Main region.

Product overview

MHKW Frankfurt is a waste-to-energy power plant offering thermal waste recovery services, converting household waste into electricity and district heating. The core offering includes four combustion lines processing up to 525,600 tonnes of waste annually at temperatures of 850-1,000°C, producing steam at 60 bar/500°C for combined heat and power generation (49 MW electrical, 99 MW district heating). Supporting services include public tours, environmental reporting, climate protection information, compliance whistleblowing, newsletter communications, and downloadable technical documentation. The facility holds R1 energy efficiency certification enabling CO2-neutral heat recovery. Energy output benefits approximately 30,000 households via Mainova district heating network.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Müllheizkraftwerk Frankfurt (Waste-to-Energy Combustion Service) Thermal waste-to-energy service that combusts up to 525,600 tonnes of municipal solid waste per year across four combustion lines at 850–1,000°C, delivering Entsorgungssicherheit for Frankfurt, Hochtaunuskreis, and Maintaunuskreis. Sold under long-term public infrastructure contracts; waste cannot be accepted from private individuals.
• Fernwärme (District Heating Supply) District heating delivered at up to 130°C and 13 bar via Mainova AG's ~300 km heating network to approximately 30,000 households, commercial buildings, and industrial facilities in Frankfurt districts including Nordweststadt, Riedberg, Campus Westend, Eschersheim, Bockenheim, Messe, West, and Niederrad. Extracted from the waste-to-energy process at up to 99 MW.
• Electricity Generation and Sales Combined heat and power generation producing up to 49 MW of electrical output from waste combustion, supplied to the public grid via the Kraft-Wärme-Kopplung process.
• Schlacke (Bottom Ash By-Product) Processed slag recovered as a by-product of waste combustion, with residual materials handled through an FES-owned slag processing facility and used as landfill covering material.
• Führungen (Guided Plant Tours) Public guided tours for groups of 10–20 people (Monday–Friday 8:00–18:00, registration required at least four weeks in advance; school classes from 9th grade). Visitors see flue gas cleaning, control room, unloading hall, crane cabin, and combustion chamber through fireproof glass.

Quantifiable outcome

• Reduces CO2 emissions significantly by using waste as a fuel source instead of fossil fuels
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• FES Frankfurter Entsorgungs- und Service GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2006FES GmbH holds 50% ownership in the MHKW Frankfurt am Main GmbH joint venture. FES is responsible for waste collection coordination and logistics, delivering municipal solid waste from Frankfurt and the Rhein-Main region to the plant. FES employs approximately 1,700 people across its group of companies and is 51% owned by the City of Frankfurt am Main and 49% owned by REMONDIS AG & Co. KG.
• Mainova AGcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2006Mainova AG holds 50% ownership in the MHKW Frankfurt am Main GmbH joint venture. Mainova operates the ~300 km district heating network that distributes heat generated from the MHKW to households and businesses across Frankfurt. The company has invested approximately 150 million euros since 2009 in district heating infrastructure and power plant conversions. Mainova is over 75% owned by the City of Frankfurt am Main and holds over 50 subsidiaries in renewable energy and energy services.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Müllverbrennungsanlage Stuttgart (MVR): Stuttgart's municipal waste incineration plant with combined heat and power generation. Comparable in capacity, technology (grate combustion), and municipal-utility ownership structure serving a major German city.
• AGR (Abfallentsorgungs-Gesellschaft Ruhrgebiet): Operates multiple waste treatment facilities including WtE plants in the Ruhr region. Comparable in municipal waste processing scale and energy recovery from combustion.
• Abfallverwertungsgesellschaft AVG (Köln): Cologne's municipal waste-to-energy operator processing household waste with energy recovery. Comparable as a municipally-owned WtE facility serving a major German metropolitan area under similar federal regulations.
• EEW Energy from Waste GmbH: Germany's largest operator of waste-to-energy plants with multiple facilities of comparable scale to MHKW Frankfurt. EEW operates thermal waste treatment and CHP plants nationwide, directly comparable in core technology and end markets.
• Müllverwertung Borsigstraße (MVB) Hamburg: Hamburg's municipal waste-to-energy plant operating large-scale combustion lines with district heating and CHP output. Directly comparable as a German municipal WtE utility with similar regulatory framework under 17. BImSchV.

Broad incumbents

• Mainova AG: 50% shareholder of MHKW Frankfurt and operator of the ~300 km Frankfurt district heating network. While not a direct WtE competitor, Mainova is the channel for monetizing MHKW's heat output and thus closely linked economically.
• MVV Energie AG (Mannheimer WtE plant): Utility group operating the Mannheim waste-to-energy plant with combined heat and power generation. Comparable in municipal waste combustion and district heating integration, though MVV is a broader incumbent energy utility.
• REMONDIS AG & Co. KG: One of Germany's largest waste management companies, part-owner of FES (and therefore connected to MHKW Frankfurt). Operates multiple WtE facilities and waste processing infrastructure across Europe as a broad incumbent.
• FES Frankfurter Entsorgungs- und Service GmbH: 50% shareholder of MHKW Frankfurt and municipal waste collection operator for Frankfurt. Direct operational and commercial linkage through waste offtake logistics, though FES focuses on collection rather than thermal treatment.

Regional players

• Zweckverband Abfallwirtschaft Region Hannover (aha): Regional waste authority operating WtE and treatment facilities for the Hannover region. Comparable as a German municipal/regional waste-to-energy operator with district heating integration.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mhkw-m%C3%BCllheizkraftwerk-frankfurt-am-main-gmbh

Compliance7 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 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 MHKW Müllheizkraftwerk Frankfurt am Main GmbH