Location of the Economic Region
Population of Westbrandenburg
Employees subject to social security contributions
Businesses in Westbrandenburg
Water is a connecting element that flows, is alive and in constant motion. The location on the Havel river is one of the connecting elements in the emerging Westbrandenburg Economic Region with its cities Brandenburg an der Havel, Premnitz, and Rathenow.
Since 2011, the cities have joined forces as the Westbrandenburg Economic Region. As a voluntary merging of the three cities, supported by the District of Havelland, the economic region aims, together with various partners, to strengthen and promote the business location of Westbrandenburg. This includes supporting local companies and potential investors, and developing the location’s soft factors to up the desirability of the economic region as a place for living and working.
The Westbrandenburg Economic Region has developed into one of the strongest business locations in the state of Brandenburg and has excellent prospects. The following are the main reasons why the economic region is so attractive to businesses and residents:
- An active network of public players and partners from business and educational institutions, strengthening the economic region at an institutional level.
- Diverse educational and research institutions with the Brandenburg University of Applied Sciences as the largest educational science institution in the region, the medical school founded in 2012 as well as several educational and further education institutions, grammar schools, upper secondary schools and secondary schools.
- Short-term available land for settlement and business expansion in attractively located, fully developed industrial and commercial areas at reasonable prices.
- Maximum support of business investment, especially in plastics and chemicals, optics, energy, metal, and tourism clusters, as well as an attractive network of companies and institutions.
- Good transport links between the cities of the economic region and the federal capital, Berlin, and the state capital, Potsdam.
- Visible and tangible history of the cities as economic locations with city centres dating back to the Middle Ages and numerous testimonies from the time of the industrial revolution.
- Excellent facilities with social infrastructures such as schools, playschools, libraries, hospitals, and health centres, cultural institutions, sports clubs, etc.
- High standard of living and leisure due to its location in the middle of vast waters and wooded landscapes.
Brandenburg an der Havel – Historic town changing with the tides
Brandenburg an der Havel is the oldest town in the state. The over 72,000 inhabitants are proud of their beautifully renovated historic city centre. Surrounded by many forests and tucked away on an idyllic river and lake landscape, the inhabitants literally live on the water. Those who live and work here experience the work-life balance daily.
Brandenburg an der Havel is one of the largest industrial centres in the state of Brandenburg, where many companies produce and offer their services on historical industrial grounds. The good economic development is mostly down to the fact that several global companies settled in the city and fast-tracked the development from an industrial site to a technology location. Today, hardly any other city in the state occupies so many business sectors. In the meantime, in addition to the large companies, above all medium-sized companies with special expertise are located in specific sectors.
For more information, please click the following link: https://www.stadt-brandenburg.de/international/
Premnitz – Energy from industry and nature
Open waters, wooded hills, and a stargazing park characterise the nature park of Westhavelland. Situated in the heart of it all and close to the cities of Rathenow and Brandenburg an der Havel is the town of Premnitz with around 8,500 inhabitants, which in the 20th Century became an important chemical industry location. The local companies in the industrial location of Premnitz benefit from infrastructure, well-built access roads, an extensive rail network, excellent wastewater facilities and possibilities for extracting cooling water from the Havel. Hence, the Industrial Park Premnitz offers a wide range of settlement options for companies.
The historical role of industrial production has become a characteristic of the city, which explains why companies from chemical and environmental technology have been so well received. With a wide range of refurbished housing, public infrastructure, shopping facilities and natural recreation areas through Westhavelland, Premnitz has developed into an exciting place for living, working, and production.
Further information can be found on the City of Premnitz’s website at the following link: www.premnitz.de
Rathenow – City of Optics
Rathenow boasts more than 200 years of tradition as an optics industry location. Still today, the production and logistics centre of Fielmann AG and approximately 25 small and medium-sized companies represent the extent of optics production in Rathenow. With more than 1,300 employees, Rathenow is the optical centre of the state of Brandenburg.
The district city of Havelland is more than 800 years old. The city has around 25,000 inhabitants, and around 10,000 people from the region work there. The economic development focuses on the commercial and industrial areas developed in the southern part of the city. The Havel is not only the lifeline of the city; its private freight port also provides a connection to waterway transport. The city also benefits from good transport connections to the country’s capital, Berlin.
Rathenow has grown through successful urban development and economic policy into a desirable location for industry, commercial use, but also for a high quality of life and standards of living in the countryside.
Further information can be found on the City of Rathenow’s website: https://www.rathenow.de/en/home/
Havelland – Bridge to the Economy
“It is reflected in your streams – landmarks, castles, forts and cathedrals”, once wrote the famous Brandenburger Theodor Fontane about this area, where sleepy villages and vast lowlands characterise this city on the river: Havelland. Explorers can take a journey through the German Road of Romance or the German Avenue Road through the Nature Park of Westhavelland. Charming castles and gardens, literature and the “Havelland Music Festival” give Havelland a striking cultural flair.
Around 162,000 people live in the 13 cities and municipalities of the District of Havelland, which is located close to Berlin and Potsdam and forms a bridge to important economic and metropolitan centres such as Leipzig, Bremen, Hamburg, and Hanover. Its central location in the middle of Europe and the well-developed transport links also means Havelland is a desirable location for investors.
With an extensive network of federal waterways, motorways, country roads and train lines, the region has an exceptional connection to the national and international transport network. Through Berlin West Freight Transport Centre in Wustermark and Brieselang, a logistical interface between local and long-distance transport has developed here, ensuring an abundance of logistics companies settling here. These factors build a bridge from the state on the river to the economy in Germany and Europe.