At its Essenbach location near the city of Landshut, E.ON Kernkraft operates the nuclear power stations Isar 1 and 2. Isar 1 was commissioned in 1977, and Isar 2 in 1988, and both are used for base-load supply.

Isar 1 has a net capacity of 878 megawatts. Because of their location, the two plants are ideally suited for connection to Bavaria's high-voltage system, and their proximity to the Isar River means they have an excellent supply of cooling water. The location also has good access to transport infrastructure. The two blocks (Isar 1 and Isar 2) are completely separate from each other, and their safety facilities are completely independent from each other, so there is no risk of interaction between the two.

In the 1970s it became apparent that the existing nuclear power plants - Isar 1, Grafenrheinfeld and Blocks B and C in gundremmingen - would not be sufficient to meet the future demand for electricity. Projections of future power demand lead to the construction of a new plant, Isar 2, which was commissioned in 1988. The plant initially had a capacity of 1,410 megawatts. It was also built in the Essenbach area because the location was already well developed for nuclear energy owing to the presence of Isar 1.

The safety facilities of Isar 1 and Isar 2 are completely independent from each other, so there is no risk of interaction between the two. Measures are also in place to ensure that the two blocks do not breach statutory requirements regarding radiation shielding, noise abatement and air and water pollution, even when they are both operating at the same time.