Renault Group and The Future Is NEUTRAL accelerate in the circular economy

• As part of its “Renaulution” strategic plan, Renault Group is aiming for leadership in the automotive circular economy. Today, the Group is stepping up the pace with the implementation of concrete actions ranging from products to the transformation of skills.
• Already pioneer in Europe, Renault Group is rolling out an industrial and collaborative ecosystem of circular economy solutions from Flins (France) to Bursa (Turkey) and Seville (Spain).
• Initiated by Renault Group, The Future Is NEUTRAL is the first company operating across the entire automotive circular economy value chain. Its mission is to support the automotive industry towards resource neutrality, by bringing together the Group’s existing expertise and opening up to partners with complementary skills.
• The parts reconditioning activities of The Future Is NEUTRAL are launching a new range of products dedicated to electric vehicles (electric motor, power electronics and battery): a first in Europe.

Renault Group and its subsidiary The Future Is NEUTRAL will be present at the ChangeNow Summit, from March 25 to 27 at the Grand Palais Ephemere in Paris, to present their progress in the circular economy.

THE FUTURE IS NEUTRAL ACCELERATES IN THE REMANUFACTURING OF ELECTRICAL PARTS

The Future Is NEUTRAL is today launching a new remanufacturing activity of three parts adapted to the electric powertrain. This is a European first in the automotive sector. Customers with electric vehicles can now choose between new original parts or a range of quality reconditioned products, that are more accessible (up to 30% cheaper) and help to limit the impact on resources and CO² emissions.

To support the democratisation and expansion of its 100% electric range, Renault Group will offer this after-sales offer: ereconditioned electric motor (ZOE, Twingo E-Tech, Kangoo E-Tech and Master E-Tech), power electronics (ZOE and Kangoo E-Tech) and traction battery (ZOE, Twingo E-Tech and Megane E-Tech). From 2024, The Future Is NEUTRAL will have the capacity to produce more than 3 000 reconditioned parts dedicated to electric vehicles, in Flins plant (France).

RENAULT GROUP, PIONEER OF THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY ON AN INDUSTRIAL SCALE

From Flins to Bursa and Seville, Renault Group is deploying an industrial and collaborative ecosystem of circular economy solutions. This ecosystem is structured around four complementary poles, ranging from parts and products to the transformation of skills:

Re-trofit: extending the life of vehicles via

• The Renew Factory (Flins, Seville, Bursa): reconditioning used vehicles of all brands.
• The BodyWork Factory (Flins): heavy body repair of vehicles.
• The Retrofit of Master III Light Commercial Vehicles from combustion engines to electric in partnership with TOLV.

Re-energy: producing, storing, and management of green energy thanks to

• The Expert Battery Repair Centre (CERBF), operated by The Future Is NEUTRAL, for diagnostics, high value-added repairs, tests, and preparation for the 2nd life of the battery.
• The Renault Group’s Battery Repair Workshop (30 centres worldwide), for battery diagnostics and repair.
• The reuse of batteries in the conception of energy storage units as part of projects led by Mobilize: from mobile and modular storage units that can replace polluting generators to large-scale stationary storage, with already over 20 MWh of storage capacity in battery farms in France and Germany

Re-cycle: recycling and reuse of parts and materials;

• The parts reconditioning and refurbishment activities managed by The Future Is NEUTRAL (Flins)

Re-start: supporting change and structuring the circular economy and sustainable mobility sector;

• 160,000 hours of training for employees of the Flins Refactory as part of the transition to the new circular economy business.
• The “Campus de l’Industrie Circulaire” operated by ReKnow University, in partnership with the Refactory and The Future Is NEUTRAL (Flins): a training program dedicated to the circular economy for students and professionals.
• The Future Is NEUTRAL’s Open Innovation Hub (Flins): supports start-ups contributing to climate solutions through an incubation program focused on the circular economy and a turnkey industrialisation offer at the Refactory.

The transition and success of these new activities, ensured by the development of employees’ skills, are now a reality within the Group: it now covers a wide scope of the circular economy to extend the life of vehicles and parts, repair them, renovate them and recycle them. These activities will make a key contribution to achieving Renault Group’s targets of incorporating 33% of materials from circular economy into new vehicles by 2030 and achieving a “net-zero carbon” footprint for all its activities in Europe by 2040 and worldwide by 2050.

THE PROGRAM AT THE CHANGENOW SUMMIT

From 25 to 27 March 2024, experts will be present on the stand of The Future Is NEUTRAL, located in the space dedicated to the circular economy of the show, to present the circular economy offers: recycling at each stage of a vehicle’s life, reconditioning, support for the sector, etc.

Two round tables:

• Clea Martinet, VP Sustainability of Renault Group: Carbon reduction – From Strategies to Concrete Actions
  • Monday, March 25 from 11:00 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.
• Jean-Philippe Bahuaud, CEO The Future Is NEUTRAL: Transforming businesses across the value chain
  • Tuesday, March 26 from 02:30 p.m. to 03:45 p.m.