Gesellschaft zur Energieversorgung der kirchlichen und sozialen Einrichtungen GmbH (KSE Energie)

KSE Energie GmbH — formally Gesellschaft zur Energieversorgung der kirchlichen und sozialen Einrichtungen GmbH — is a church-owned energy supply company headquartered in Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany. It was founded in 2008 by the four large Christian churches of Baden-Württemberg: the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Freiburg, the Diocese of Rottenburg-Stuttgart, and the Protestant regional churches of Baden and Württemberg. The company was created as a joint procurement vehicle so that parishes, church administrations and church-affiliated social institutions could buy energy collectively under ecological criteria. Its core business is the nationwide supply of certified green electricity and natural gas, with an optional climate-protection contribution, as well as the sale of wood pellets in Baden-Württemberg and neighbouring regions. Beyond pure energy supply, KSE Energie has developed into an energy service provider for church institutions. Its service portfolio includes energy data management, energy controlling, photovoltaic project support and e-mobility charging infrastructure, including a customer portal for recording, managing and evaluating energy data. A 2018 amendment to the company's statutes paved the way for this broader role. Since 2022 KSE Energie has supported its four shareholder churches in preparing and implementing photovoltaic systems on church buildings in Baden-Württemberg, handling site assessment, planning, contracting, construction supervision and operational management. It also advises church institutions on planning, installing and operating electric-vehicle charging infrastructure and operates its own charging points. KSE Energie positions itself explicitly as a non-profit church energy provider. According to its own statements, its statutes rule out a profit-oriented business purpose, and its offering is aimed exclusively at church and church-social institutions. Its shareholders are the four churches, and its supervisory board is composed of representatives of those churches. This ownership structure gives the company a distinctive place in the German energy market: it is not a conventional utility competing for mass-market customers but a specialised service organisation for the church sector, helping its owners and their parishes meet climate and energy-transition targets.

KSE Energie GmbH was founded in 2008 by the four large Christian churches of Baden-Württemberg: the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Freiburg, the Diocese of Rottenburg-Stuttgart, and the Protestant regional churches of Baden and Württemberg. The original purpose of the company was the joint procurement and supply of energy for church and social institutions, taking ecological criteria into account. This collective approach allowed parishes and church-affiliated organisations to benefit from pooled purchasing and a shared commitment to environmental standards. As the German Energiewende (energy transition) gathered pace, the company expanded its field of activity. A change to its statutes in 2018 created the legal basis for this further development. In the following years KSE Energie built up additional business areas in energy data management, photovoltaics and electric mobility. This transformed it from a company specialised purely in energy supply into a broader energy service provider for church institutions. Since 2022 KSE Energie has, on behalf of its shareholder churches, accompanied the preparation and implementation of photovoltaic systems on buildings of the four large Christian churches in Baden-Württemberg. Its role covers the entire project chain: site assessment, planning, commissioning and supervision of construction, and operational management of the installations. The company also supports church institutions in the planning, installation and operation of charging infrastructure for electric mobility and operates its own charging points. Today KSE Energie supplies certified green electricity nationwide and natural gas with an optional climate-protection contribution, and sells wood pellets in Baden-Württemberg and adjacent regions. Its service portfolio includes support for energy-industry administrative tasks, provision of energy data for controlling purposes, preparation of climate balances, and accompaniment of energy-transition projects in church properties. A customer portal allows energy data to be recorded, managed and evaluated. The company remains wholly owned by the four churches, with a supervisory board made up of their representatives, and describes itself as non-profit-oriented, serving exclusively church and church-social institutions.

• 2026

  The Evangelical Church in Baden reaches the first megawatt milestone of its solar roof programme with KSE Energie's support.

• 2022

  KSE Energie begins supporting its shareholder churches in preparing and implementing photovoltaic systems on church buildings in Baden-Württemberg.

• 2018

  Amendment of the company's statutes creates the basis for expanding into energy data management, photovoltaics and electric mobility.

• 2008

  KSE Energie GmbH founded by the Archdiocese of Freiburg, the Diocese of Rottenburg-Stuttgart, and the Protestant regional churches of Baden and Württemberg.

Non-profit church energy provider and energy-transition partner serving exclusively church and church-social institutions in Germany.

• Certified green electricity

  Nationwide supply of certified green electricity to church and church-social institutions.

• Natural gas with optional climate-protection contribution

  Natural gas supply with an optional contribution to climate protection.

• Wood pellets

  Sale of wood pellets in Baden-Württemberg and adjacent regions.

• Energy data management and controlling

  Customer portal and services for recording, managing and evaluating energy data, and for energy controlling.

• Photovoltaic project services

  Support from site assessment and planning through construction supervision to operational management of PV systems.

• E-mobility charging infrastructure

  Planning, installation and operation of charging infrastructure, including own charging points.

1. 1KSE Energie official websitekse-energie.de
2. 2KSE Energie – Wikipedia (German)de.wikipedia.org
3. 3Gesellschaft zur Energieversorgung der kirchlichen und sozialen Einrichtungen – Wikidatawikidata.org