Five years inside the energy transition

Context

An industry being rebuilt

Industry context

When Wildberger joined E.ON in 2016, Germany's energy companies were in the middle of a structural break. Nuclear phase-out, rapidly growing wind and solar power and falling wholesale prices had undermined the old model of large central power stations. E.ON responded by spinning off its conventional generation and trading business as Uniper in 2016 and concentrating on energy networks, renewables and customer solutions.

In 2018 E.ON and RWE agreed an asset swap: E.ON took over innogy, including its networks and retail business, while RWE took over renewable generation. The EU Commission approved E.ON's takeover of innogy in September 2019. For E.ON's customer business, that meant absorbing millions of additional customers and their systems.

Verified fact

Wildberger's announced role at appointment was Chief Markets Officer, with responsibility for innovation management, product development and the renewables business (IPP Journal, December 2015). Over time his portfolio was reported as covering sales and customer solutions, energy management, marketing, digital transformation and IT. Sources differ on his formal title, and this archive uses the neutral description “Member of the Board of Management”.