Renault inaugurates
the world’s largest photovoltaic system in the automotive industry
Paris - This week
Renault is inaugurating 40 hectares of photovoltaic panels
simultaneously at six of its French production sites. The initiative
further confirms Renault’s environmental commitment and is also an
innovative way of protecting new vehicles before they leave plants.
Renault this week is
inaugurating 400,000 square meters (equal to 60 soccer pitches) of
photovoltaic panels, making the system the world’s largest in the
automotive industry. The panels are located at six covered, ISO
14001-certified sites – Douai, Maubeuge, Flins, Batilly, Sandouville and
Cléon – in delivery and shipping centers and employee parking areas.
The entire surface area is covered with
photovoltaic panels developing total power of 59 MW and able to produce
52,600 MWh of electricity a year, enough for a town of 15,000 people. On
average, photovoltaic solar plants have total power of around 1 MW.
Renault’s photovoltaic installations will
help to make a 200-tonne reduction in the CO2 emitted annually by
electric engine production (calculated on the basis of the energy mix in
France), the equivalent of 550 round-the-world trips by an
internal-combustion vehicle emitting an average 100 g/km of CO2 or a
fleet of roughly 1,500 vehicles each travelling 15,000 km a year.
The photovoltaic system also showcases the
Group’s expertise in renewable energies. Sustainable ratings agencies
have for a number of years ranked Renault among the most “virtuous”
companies in terms of environmental management, particularly on carbon
strategy. Renault continued to figure among the frontrunners in the 2011
rankings from SAM, Carbon Disclosure Project and Oekow Research.
The initiative is also an innovative way
of protecting new vehicles before delivery to the sales network because
it limits storm damage. The panels are designed to resist impact and
hail in particular.
The photovoltaic project was developed by
Renault, project initiator and coordinator, in its role as lessor,
together with its partners Gestamp Solar and Coruscant (Cléon only), in
their role as operational project managers.
The system is made
up as follows:
Douai
Maubeuge
Flins
Batilly
Sandouville
Cléon
Panel
surface area (m2)
79,5
79
71
69
70
33
Electricity production (MWh a yr)
10,4
10,3
9,3
9,1
9,2
4,3
The system is also being rolled out
internationally. The Group is to set up nearly 100,000 square meters of
photovoltaic panels at the Valladolid and Palencia plants through an
agreement with Cenit Solar, while feasibility studies are underway in
Slovenia, Morocco, Brazil, Colombia, Chile and Romania. Further projects
are being introduced at the Busan site in South Korea, with 300,000
square meters scheduled for finalization in December 2012.
