See link below about using power plants in Germany as thermal generators.

If I remember correctly, Hans Werner Grosse  used the same technique for his record flight to Spain but failed on an earlier attempt when the steel workers were on strike and the kiln was shut down at a factory he targeted as his first thermal of the day.

I learned to fly gliders in Pirmasens, Germany and we frequently used to extend our final glide aiming for the steel mills in Saar Louis. Years ago, here in the US, while flying out of Lillington with the NC Soaring Association, we used the Shearon Harris power plant (cooling tower) as our final glide extender.

Thanks to Tijl Schmelzer for sharing this great article. – PF

Link: http://www.scribd.com/doc/97134912/Cloud-Making-Machines