Renault has released details of environment measures at its new EUR600m (US$724m) plant in the northern Moroccan city of Tangier.
The automaker will start manufacturing vehicles based on the low-cost Logan platform from 2012 with one line producing around 170,000 models per year. This is expected eventually to rise to 400,000 vehicles.
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Renault claims its new plant will reduce CO2 emissions by 98%, that no industrial water will be discharged and water used by manufacturing processes will fall by 70%.
These advances will be achieved through energy consumption improvements and renewable energy use, while some CO2 reduction will derive from either offsetting, buying carbon credits or generating renewable power on site.
Environmental services provider Veolia will help recover paintshop energy which will account for some 70% of the plant’s thermal consumption. Renault said it will cut its thermal energy needs by 35% at the Tangier site.
Biomass boilers partly using fuel from locally sourced olive stones will produce the superheated water for the paint process ovens, as well as ventilation required in the factory buildings.
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By GlobalDataThe rest of the fuel will derive initially from eucalyptus wood from southern Europe and within four years this will be from Morocco.
In a further development Renault said the entire plant would be powered by wind and hydraulic electricity while all industrial effluent would also be recycled.
Renault added initial investment in the new plant would total EUR350m, with this eventually rising to EUR600m.
