Düsseldorf. North Rhine-Westphalia is one of the most attractive locations for investors from all over the world. At the same time, many innovative North Rhine-Westphalian companies are successfully expanding abroad. With the NRW.Global Business AWARD, the state is today honoring significant investments by foreign companies in North Rhine-Westphalia and particularly successful international expansion activities by North Rhine-Westphalian companies. Economics and Climate Protection Minister Mona Neubaur and Felix Neugart, CEO of the state-owned foreign trade promotion agency NRW.Global Business, will present the award to the US hydrogen pioneer Plug, the Japanese technology group Asahi Kasei, the British-Ukrainian rocket startup SKYRORA, and the semiconductor producer Elmos Semiconductor from Dortmund.
Minister Neubaur: "The North Rhine-Westphalian economy is undergoing an important and ambitious transformation process. The repercussions from the Ukraine war are hitting the players hard. And yet we want to further strengthen our position in the international competition between locations. And we are convinced that we will achieve this by becoming the first climate-neutral industrial region in Europe. We want to combine innovation, digitization and climate protection into a successful business model. This will secure jobs in the long term and enable sustainable prosperity for the people of NRW. By attracting innovative companies to our location, new technologies will be implemented that will accelerate the transformation with alternative energy sources and more efficient production processes and make it more sustainable. We are honoring this valuable contribution by national and international companies in the state with the NRW.Global Business AWARD."
"North Rhine-Westphalia is a future-oriented location with an excellent university and research landscape, a lively startup scene, and numerous global players and SMEs that are pressing ahead in areas such as sustainable production, climate-neutral powertrains, and resource-conserving materials. This puts us in an excellent position to compete with other European metropolitan regions," says Felix Neugart.
An overview of the award winners:
Plug: Plug from the US state of New York specializes in hydrogen and fuel cell technology. To support the transformation to a climate-neutral economy, the company has created an entire hydrogen ecosystem: Plug develops and manufactures fuel cells, supplies green hydrogen, storage solutions, fueling systems and complete infrastructures. In 2022, the company established its European service and logistics headquarters in the Port of Duisburg. In the future, Plug will manage repair, test and maintenance orders here on 13,000 square meters. A hub for fuel cells, spare parts and electrolysers is also being created. The electricity will come from renewable energy sources – for this purpose, Plug is equipping numerous port buildings with photovoltaic systems in cooperation with Duisport.
Download winner photo Plug
Photo caption (from left to right): Pauline Kao, Consul General of the U.S. Consulate General in Düsseldorf; Robert Zalinski, Director of Services Plug Power Germany GmbH; Mona Neubaur, Minister for Economic Affairs, Industry, Climate Protection and Energy of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia; Felix Neugart, CEO NRW.Global Business GmbH. © NRW.Global Business/Jan Tepass
Asahi Kasei: The Japanese technology group with almost 40,000 employees worldwide has been operating its European business from Düsseldorf since 2016 and has since recorded steady growth at the location. At the newly built European headquarters in Düsseldorf's industrial port, Asahi Kasei combines sales, marketing, logistics, and research and development for various product areas. The focus is on highly specialized plastics for the automotive industry. In addition to modern office and meeting rooms, the new headquarters has a showroom where materials for the car of the future are presented, such as sustainable microfiber materials for seat trim and innovative foam products.
Download winner photo Asahi Kasei
Photo caption (from left to right): Dr. Stephan Keller, Mayor of the State Capital Düsseldorf; Akira Nishizawa, Managing Director Asahi Kasei Europe GmbH; Mona Neubaur, Minister for Economic Affairs, Industry, Climate Protection and Energy of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia; Felix Neugart, CEO NRW.Global Business GmbH. © NRW.Global Business/Jan Tepass
SKYRORA: The aerospace startup, based in Edinburgh, Scotland, develops and produces launch vehicles to carry small satellites into the Earth’s orbit. SKYRORA also operates a subsidiary in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro, where around 100 engineers develop efficient propulsion systems and innovative materials for rocket technology. In order to operate closer to the European market with its technologies, SKYRORA is settling in the immediate vicinity of Paderborn Airport to set up a research and development center. Here, the startup will operate a 3D printer that uses innovative technology to process metals and materials for the development of new rockets. In addition, the company is cooperating with the Chair of Materials Science at the University of Paderborn to create points of contact in the field of innovative 3D printing.
Download winner photo SKYRORA
Photo caption (from left to right): Petra Pigerl-Radtke, Chief Executive Officer of IHK Ostwestfalen zu Bielefeld; Olexandr Grydin, Managing Director SKYORA GmbH; Mona Neubaur, Minister for Economic Affairs, Industry, Climate Protection and Energy of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia; Felix Neugart, CEO NRW.Global Business GmbH. © NRW.Global Business/Jan Tepass
Elmos Semiconductor: The Dortmund-based company has been developing, producing and selling semiconductors primarily for use in the automotive industry since 1984. Global trends such as autonomous driving or electromobility are becoming safer, more comfortable and more energy-efficient due to the microchips. At its headquarters in North Rhine-Westphalia, the company combines all lines of business from development to sales. For many years Elmos has pursued a broad international expansion strategy. Today 16 international subsidiaries with about 1,200 employees carry the North Rhine-Westphalian brand Elmos out into the world.
Download winner photo Elmos Semiconductor
Photo caption (from left to right): Prof. Dr. Steffen Strese, Professor of Innovation Management and Co-Director of the Institute for Technology, Innovation & Entrepreneurship at the Technical University of Dortmund; Dr. Arne Schneider, CEO Elmos Semiconductor SE; Mona Neubaur, Minister for Economic Affairs, Industry, Climate Protection and Energy of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia; Felix Neugart, CEO NRW.Global Business GmbH. © NRW.Global Business/Jan Tepass
Download group photo of all winners
Photo caption (from left to right): Dr. Stephan Keller, Mayor of the State Capital Düsseldorf; Olexandr Grydin, Managing Director SKYORA GmbH; Akira Nishizawa, Managing Director Asahi Kasei Europe GmbH; Petra Pigerl-Radtke, Chief Executive Officer IHK Ostwestfalen zu Bielefeld; Pauline Kao, Consul General of the U.S. Consulate General in Düsseldorf; Mona Neubaur, Minister for Economic Affairs, Industry, Climate Protection and Energy of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia; Felix Neugart, CEO NRW. Global Business GmbH; Robert Zalinski, Director of Services Plug Power Germany GmbH; Dr. Arne Schneider, CEO Elmos Semiconductor SE; Prof. Dr. Steffen Strese, Professor of Innovation Management and Co-Director of the Institute for Technology, Innovation & Entrepreneurship at the Technical University of Dortmund. © NRW.Global Business/Jan Tepass