Energie-Museum Berlin

The Energy Museum Berlin is located in the Lankwitz district of Berlin, on the grounds of the historic Steglitz power plant. Spread over four floors and roughly 1,800 square meters (about 19,400 square feet), the exhibition presents historic equipment and installations for generating energy, along with how that energy was put to use. Visitors get a look at a range of topics, including power plant technology, electrical grids, public lighting, measurement technology, and communications technology. A particular focus is the history of electrical engineering in Berlin, which earned the nickname "Elektropolis" at the beginning of the twentieth century. The museum is housed in a building that was constructed in 1984 as a battery storage power plant and served until 1994 as a frequency control facility for West Berlin's power grid. The architecture of the modern concrete structure stands in sharp contrast to the older, brick-clad administrative buildings on the site. The ensemble is now a protected historic monument. Admission is free, but visits are possible only by prior appointment, since the museum is run by volunteers.