Gasbehälter

Gasbehälter stands in Augsburg’s Oberhausen district, within an eight-hectare former gasworks complex. Park-like grounds surround protected industrial buildings from 1915. Nearly all the original structures remain, including the oven house, workshops, electrical centre, and workers’ houses. The site combines industrial scale with an almost castle-like setting.

Gas production began here in late 1915, after Augsburg’s earlier works had supplied street lighting since 1848. Coal produced town gas here until 1968. Natural gas conversion continued until 1978, while the holders stored peak supplies until decommissioning in 2001. The former electrical centre houses a museum with MAN diesel engines from 1918 and 1958.

The 1954 Gaskessel rises 84.1 metres, spans 45 metres, and stores 100,000 cubic metres. Its twenty-sided shell uses about 1,800 riveted iron plates. Inside, a 70-metre Foucault pendulum and 58 organ pipes create a walk-in sound installation. An external staircase climbs 392 steps to the roof, where a viewing platform offers a 360-degree panorama of Augsburg. Two telescopic holders from 1910 and 1913 stand nearby in water-filled basins.