Land Rover today announced the first projects in its ‘CO2 Offset Programme’, which enables both Land Rover and its customers to reduce greenhouse gases.
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The programme offsets emissions generated by Land Rover production operations in Britain and the first 45,000 miles vehicle use by UK customers.
The ultimate goal, Land Rover says, is CO2 neutrality with investments being made in renewable energy projects such as wind and solar, technology change and energy efficiency.
The first projects will include providing hydro-electric power to a remote area of Tajikistan and funding a wind farm in China. Together these projects will offset 150,000 tonnes of CO2 a year and bring social and environmental benefits to thousands of people.
In addition, Land Rover is evaluating projects in Uganda, India, Turkey and the Dominican Republic. Details of these projects will be available once they are confirmed.
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By GlobalDataPhil Popham, Land Rover’s Managing Director, said, “We’re taking an integrated approach to help reduce the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere. We’ve cut emissions from our vehicles and are working on technologies, like hybrids, that will make even bigger reductions. These offset schemes will make a difference now and will be of real benefit to communities, the environment and wildlife.”
Projects
Tajikistan – Installation of two hydro electricity generators supplied by naturally formed lake.
After the Soviet era diesel supplies to the region became intermittent. For the past 15 years residents of the city of Khorog have suffered intermittent power supplies. This project brings a reliable source of power and light to the region. Customers in the city are now able to keep warm and cook without wood fuel for the first time in many years during which 70% of the region’s trees have been cut for firewood. In addition schools and the local hospital will have a reliable energy supply. This project will offset 50,000 tonnes of CO2 a year.
China – Wind Energy Hebei Province (250 km north of Beijing)
China is reputed to be commissioning a new coal fired power station every five days as the economy expands. Hebei province is one of the windiest in China and the project offsets nearly 100,000 tonnes of CO2 a year.
Land Rover’s Carbon Dioxide Offset Programme
The CO2 Offset Programme has been established specifically for Land Rover and supports a multi-billion euro investment by Ford Motor Company across its European operations to develop environmental technologies. Land Rover engineers are at the forefront of that development work.
The CO2 Offset Programme is run by Climate Care and overseen by an independent Board of Governance. Other offset schemes will be announced in due course.
- Customers of all new Land Rover vehicles sold in the UK pay to offset the CO2 emissions produced by their vehicle, calculated on the certified CO2 emissions level for each Land Rover model up to 45,000 miles, typically three years use. The cost is from GBP85 to £165 depending on model.
- New Land Rover vehicles all have lower emissions than predecessors in their model range. The all-new Freelander 2, for instance, has 11% less CO2 emissions in petrol form and the diesel version emits 5% less than the outgoing Freelander. The combined fuel cycle for Freelander 2 TD4 manual is 37.7 mpg (7.51 l/100km).
- The new Range Rover TDV8 has performance figures to match the V8 petrol model but has 32% better fuel economy.
- Emissions from Solihull (Land Rover’s main UK plant) have been cut by 30% since 1997.
- The overall UK fleet average for Land Rover is 32 mpg (8.8 l/100km).
