Renault touts 90pc cradle-to-grave CO2 cuts
BY MIKE STEVENS | 8th Oct 2024
RENAULT says its Emblème hydrogen FCEV concept, on display at this month’s Paris motor show, is more than just a design and tech preview: it is emblematic of the car-maker’s commitment to Polestar-like measurement – and radical reduction – of emissions over the entire lifecycle of its vehicles.
The company says the Emblème was conceived from the ground up as a model that could, as part of a planned system for sourcing, manufacturing and recycling, reduce CO2-equivalent emissions “from cradle to grave” by 90 per cent compared with an internal combustion engine vehicle on sale today.
Renault has been on a product tear in recent years, unveiling new ‘E-Tech’ electric models in numbers to rival the most progressive legacy brands in the business, from the retro-inspired Renault 5, Renault 4 and new Twingo, to the more modern new-generation Megane, Scenic, Twizy-replacing Mobilize Duo, and a fleet of electric vans.
Unlike the Emblème, those models were developed to Renault’s more short-term targets of a 35 per cent emissions reduction by next year (compared to 2019 levels), that ambition growing to a 65 per cent cut by 2030.
However, this strategy is also not a full ‘cradle to grave’ plan – while it addresses aspects like manufacturing and on-road vehicle emissions, and a reduction in the carbon intensity of its supply chain and battery production, it does not include the full extent of materials sourcing, distribution and logistics, or end-of-life recycling.
Renault’s established commitments are largely in line with its rivals and the Paris Agreement, but it also shows exactly how important the Emblème is to the company’s longer-term goals of complete carbon neutrality in Europe by 2040 and worldwide by 2050.
For context, a 90 per cent reduction in CO2-equivalent (CO2e) emissions would, according to Renault, result in five tonnes of CO2e over a vehicle’s full cradle-to-grave lifecycle – whereas today’s BEVs are forecast to have lifecycle emissions of around 15 to 25 tonnes CO2e.
Internal combustion engine vehicles typically produce 40–50 tonnes of CO2e over their lifetime.
Although an ambitious goal, particularly in discussing cradle-to-grave plans at all, given most other European brands have spoken proudly of carbon neutrality targets, but rarely to the extent of a full lifecycle with all ‘upstream’ and ‘downstream’ aspects accounted for.
Up to now, the only exception to this has been Polestar and its former parent, Volvo, but only in respect to the C02e of its current models, particularly the Polestar 3.
Renault has not yet offered specific details on how it will achieve its cradle-to-grave goals, but its research division Ampere will deliver a deeper look at the project and its 20 partners at the end of October.
The company has also not confirmed if the Emblème previews a more imminent new model, but it describes the ‘shooting break’ as a 4.8-metre long family car that rides on a 2900mm wheelbase – well beyond the 2690mm footprint of Renault’s largest current family model, the Koleos.
It has at least revealed that the Emblème’s electric motor uses no rare earth materials, and its use of a hydrogen fuel cell means it also features a smaller battery (of NMC chemistry) than would otherwise be needed for a BEV of this size, at just 40kWh, while delivering a driving range of “several hundred kilometres”.
“This configuration maximises the versatility of this type of vehicle, which is able to cover a distance of up to 1000km as rapidly as an ICE vehicle: without charging but with just two stops for hydrogen refuelling, less than five minutes each time, for a range of 350km,” the company says.
It adds that a typical journey between Paris and Marseille would see 75 per cent of the vehicle’s electricity use produced by the fuel cell, with no emissions other than water provided truly green hydrogen is used.
More broadly, hydrogen remains a largely niche idea for passenger cars in Europe, let alone Australia. Battery electric vehicles have lower operational costs, higher energy efficiency, and a rapidly expanding charging infrastructure, making them more attractive for consumers and policymakers.
This could change if – and only if – renewable energy becomes so abundant that excess can be diverted to hydrogen production, with the hydrogen produced being stored and transported with minimal emissions.
