Bavans and Seloncourt R&D Centers: FORVIA to Cut Scope 1 Emissions Through Partnership with Schneider Electric
FORVIA, France’s 1st and the world’s 7th-largest automotive technology supplier has entered into two services contracts with Schneider Electric to fully electrify two FORVIA R&D centers in Bavans and Seloncourt, France, by mid-2024. Using an innovative Electrification-as-a-Service (EaaS) model backed by a best-in-class energy performance FORVIA will eliminate 85% of Bavans’ scope 1 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and 100% of Seloncourt scope 1 GHG emissions with no upfront CapEx investment.
Continuously reducing our carbon footprint
Schneider Electric has already supported part of FORVIA's PPA renewable energy purchasing program. In Bavans and Seloncourt facilities, Schneider Electric will retrofit the heating and distribution systems, employing state-of-the-art technologies for heat pumps, electrical boilers, destratification, and energy monitoring. The two projects are expected to achieve respectively 85% and 100% reduction in CO2 emissions, accelerating FORVIA’s objective to reach Net Zero emissions across all three scopes by 2045. With the complete electrification of the heating system, the Bavans site will save an estimated 2.6 GWh of natural gas consumption and Seloncourt will save 540 MWh per year.
“Use less and better are the two first actions of FORVIA’s decarbonization strategy. Through this Electrification-as-a-service partnership, we aim to reduce our energy consumption drastically and eliminate fossil fuels by using green electricity in our sites. Our sites in Bavans and Seloncourt are the first EaaS applications, but many other sites will follow to reach net-zero emission in scopes 1 and 2 as early as 2025,” said Elisabeth Delval, Group Sustainability Vice President at FORVIA.
Best of both electrification solutions from a technical and economic perspective
To reach this comprehensive solution, the sites underwent a thorough pre-study and investment grade audit to identify the most suitable opportunities for electrification both from a technical and economic perspective. Moreover, energy efficiency measures will be implemented in both sites, generating additional savings to fund further electrification efforts. A 15-year monitoring and validation program will ensure best-in-class results are achieved.
“This innovative Electrification-as-a-Service model will help global companies like FORVIA accelerate decarbonization while also delivering on financial performance and reduced operational risk,” said Fabien Chene, Vice President of Schneider Electric’s Sustainability Business. “Electrification is a key solution to address both scope 1 emissions and energy volatility around the world, and especially in Europe.”
The contract is third-party financed by Kyotherm, a European Energy-as-a-Service investment company and energy producer.