BERLIN, February 2, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

International Prize Under the Patronage of German Federal Minister of Economics Rösler

Businesses from industry and production have until 4 May 2012 to apply for the international dena Energy Efficiency Award 2012. In order to participate in the competition, companies must have successfully implemented projects to increase energy efficiency in their own operations. The prize, a total of EUR 30,000, is awarded by the Deutsche Energie-Agentur GmbH (dena) - the German Energy Agency - as part of its "Initiative EnergieEffizienz" ("Energy Efficiency Campaign") in cooperation with the Premium Partners DZ BANK, Imtech Deutschland and Siemens. The competition is held under the patronage of German Federal Minister of Economics, Dr. Philipp Rösler.  All information on how to enter the competition can be found under http://www.industrie-energieeffizienz.de.

The competition is open to any business from industry and production that has sucessfully implemented in-house energy efficiency projects. Cooperative entries from end users and the plant manufacturers, planners or advisers involved in a project are also allowed. Entries from small and medium-sized businesses are particularly welcome. A jury of top-ranking experts from politics, business, science and the media will assess the projects submitted and decide upon the winners. The first prize in the dena Energy Efficiency Award 2012 is EUR 15,000, the second EUR 10,000 and the third EUR 5,000. The prize will be awarded at dena's Energy Efficiency Congress in September 2012.

In 2011, three businesses were awarded the dena Energy Efficiency Award: The first prize was shared by SCA Hygiene Products SE for the savings it has made in various cross-sector technologies, and Heideblume Molkerei Elsdorf-Rotenburg AG for its successful implementation of energy contracting. The second prize went to Südbayerische Portland-Zementwerk for its efficient use of waste heat in its cement manufacturing operations. The international Energy Efficiency Award has been awarded since 2007.

dena is the centre of expertise for energy efficiency, renewable energy sources and intelligent energy systems. The "Initiative EnergieEffizienz" is a dena campaign funded by the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology.

The following businesses are supporting the Energy Efficiency Award 2012 as Premium Partners:
The DZ BANK AG is part of the Volksbanken Raiffeisenbanken cooperative financial network, which brings together some 1,200 cooperative banks. Within the cooperative financial network, DZ BANK acts as the central institution and commercial bank for the cooperative banks with their 12,000 branches across Germany.

Imtech Deutschland GmbH & Co. KG is the leading supplier of energy and building technology and part of the pan-European Imtech N.V. group with some 27,000 staff.

Siemens AG is a world leader in electronics and electrical engineering. The group is active in the industry, energy and health sectors and has some 360,000 staff worldwide.

Media contact:

Deutsche Energie-Agentur GmbH (dena) - German Energy Agency, Juliane Kammer, Chausseestrasse 128a, 10115 Berlin, Germany

Tel: +49(0)30-72-61-65-652, Fax: +49(0)30-72-61-65-699, E-mail: kammer@dena.de, Internet: http://www.dena.de

SOURCE German Energy Agency