Hochtief: Difference between revisions

The firm grew rapidly, but was not comparable with the major German construction companies of the era. In 1921, it attracted investment from the [[industrialist]] [[Hugo Stinnes]] (described by ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' as the "New Emperor of Germany" for his wealth and influence) and in 1922, the firm moved its base to Essen as part of its integration into the Stinnes group.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Pohl |first1=Manfred |title=Hochtief und seine Geschichte: von den Brüdern Helfmann bis ins 21. Jahrhundert |last2=Siekmann |first2=Birgit |date=2000 |publisher=Piper |isbn=978-3-492-04270-3 |location=München Zürich |page=92}}</ref> Stinnes planned to use Hochtief for all his construction projects, while Hochtief saw an opportunity to profit from the [[Treaty of Versailles]], organising the delivery of construction materials to France as part of German [[World War I reparations|reparations]] for [[World War I]]. Stinnes died in 1924,<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Pohl |first1=Manfred |title=Hochtief und seine Geschichte: von den Brüdern Helfmann bis ins 21. Jahrhundert |last2=Siekmann |first2=Birgit |date=2000 |publisher=Piper |isbn=978-3-492-04270-3 |location=München Zürich |pages=81}}</ref> and within a year his industrial empire collapsed. With the help of several [[bank]]s, the company (now known as ''Hochtief Aktiengesellschaft für Hoch- und Tiefbauten vorm. Gebrüder Helfmann'') avoided [[insolvency]]. In the aftermath of the Stinnes collapse, the major [[Public utility|utility]] [[RWE]] and electrical equipment producer [[AEG (German company)|AEG]] became major shareholders in Hochtief, and Hans Weidmann stepped down in 1927.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Pohl |first1=Manfred |title=Hochtief und seine Geschichte: von den Brüdern Helfmann bis ins 21. Jahrhundert |last2=Siekmann |first2=Birgit |date=2000 |publisher=Piper |isbn=978-3-492-04270-3 |location=München Zürich |pages=113}}</ref>