Sustainable energy supply needs a stronger use of renewable energies (RES). This is a special task but also chance for communal and regional actors - because renewable energies are local sources and locally used technologies. In this study the existence of plants, actors and acitivities as well as the chances, potentials and barriers of renewable energies are investigated in the German Region “Rhein-Neckar”.

The speciality of the investigation area lies in its wide potentials concerning all renewable sources: a comparatively good climatic situation, an above-average quantity of biomass, usable rivers, enough inland-wind and especially a huge geothermal area (Oberrheingraben). Based on these analyses recommendations are given of how to design regional initiatives to promote the regional use and increase of renewable energies. Within this a lot of tasks and packages of measures are proposed that can be set into action as a whole concept or in single steps. Therefore the results of the study are for regional and local actors in the fields of RES of the Region Rhein-Neckar as well as in general. The study was carried out from 2000 to middle of 2001.