EconomyFinancialAudi again sends a request to Semarnat to install...

Audi again sends a request to Semarnat to install a solar park at the Puebla plant

Puebla.- Audi has a clear objective: to achieve the decarbonization of all its plants around the world by 2025. To achieve this in Mexico, the company of German origin presented, for the second time , its proposal for the installation of solar panels in its plant. San Jose Chiapa, Puebla .

This complex, inaugurated in September 2016, will begin assembling electric vehicles in 2027. Audi’s goal is for all its battery models to be included in zero-emission value chains, and its network of assembly plants is relying on renewable energies to achieve it.

In July, the Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources (Semarnat) denied him the Environmental Impact Statement (MIA) permit for the project for a solar park, which would supply the factory. For the recent request, the company expects a response from the authority before the end of the current year .

According to Semarnat, the MIA’s authorization for the construction of the Audi Mexico Solar Park project in Puebla, presented on May 26, was rejected, since it should have been carried out in the regional and not private modality.

The project contemplated the start-up of an electric power generation plant through photovoltaic conversion in the factory, but according to what is marked by the General Directorate of Environmental Impact and Risk, projects like this require, from their initial conception, the establishment of the plant itself, the electrical substation and the internal transmission lines. For this reason, when carried out within a certain ecological zone, the regional modality corresponded to it.

A 4,200 KW solar park

Héctor Andrade, environmental director of the complex, highlights that Audi Mexico has already made the necessary adjustments to the MIA and entered it again , this time in the corresponding modality, hoping to have the resolution before the end of the current year .

According to the Semarnat Ecological Gazette, the request, filed on September 6 under code 21PU2022E0063, consists of the construction and operation of a clean energy generation plant with a gross capacity of 5,195 KWP in direct current and a generation net of 4,200 KW in alternating current, which will be supplied to the assembly plant.

The solar park will have 9,620 high-efficiency bifacial photovoltaic modules installed in an area of 67,557 square meters.

Pablo Álvarez, the company’s environmental planner, highlights that Audi has the objective of achieving the decarbonization of all its factories by 2025, driven by its global Mission: Zero strategy. Although, he adds that the average for the response to the authorizations of the MIA by Semarnat is approximately 60 days, the company will limit the times and the resolution granted by the authority .

“We have also been learning from all the procedures, we are not someone who is dedicated to making energy systems, but we are respectful of both the times and the government’s decisions regarding this project,” he maintains.

In 2018, the complex in Brussels , where the Audi A3 model is assembled, was the first to achieve carbon neutrality within the Audi plant network , also being certified as the first high-volume production plant for zero-emission premium vehicles. in the world, through the coexistence of a photovoltaic system with an area of 107,000 square meters, in addition to the use of biogas.

The plant in Mexico also stands out in reducing emissions , which have dropped 80%, in addition to being certified with the Energy Management System, based on the international standard ISO 50001:2018, to improve the energy performance of the plant.

Renewable energies: a challenge for the industry

The decarbonization of manufacturing operations is one of the challenges facing the automotive industry today. On Tuesday of this week, the Mexican Association of the Automotive Industry (AMIA), which brings together 20 assemblers located in the country, expressed its concern about the result of the consultations on energy matters requested by the United States and Canada against Mexico, in the framework of the T-MEC, given the preference for state energy companies and the undermining of private renewable energy projects .

Despite the above, Christine Khulmeyer, communication director of Audi Mexico, assures that the brand has “an open dialogue with the Government”, in addition to the fact that there are already invested capitals .

“As Audi we don’t have this concern, because we already invested. From the presidency of Audi Mexico we are very sure that we will continue with this issue, to achieve the objectives”, he asserted without specifying an investment amount.

Audi will build a 'mirror plant' in Puebla to assemble electric vehicles

The German firm will start the production of electric vehicles in 2027, which will require new ships, more sustainable schemes and new suppliers.

The end of the manual transmission could come long before electrification

Vehicle manufacturers have begun to reduce their offerings of manual gearbox versions as they add new hybrid and electric models to their offerings.

Balloon credit: Is it convenient to buy a new car?

This scheme allows financing a part of the total price of the vehicle and obtaining low monthly payments for 36 or 48 months. For brands, it is a way to shorten vehicle renewal time.

E-commerce grows while the world needs us to generate less garbage, how to be...

Electronic commerce is not going to go backwards, but both companies and consumers must make "green" decisions to reduce the environmental impact of their purchases.

The US wants more electric vehicles made in Mexico and less 'made in China'

Assembly plants that manufacture electric or plug-in hybrid vehicles in Mexico could see increased demand thanks to the measures contained in the US Inflation Reduction Law.

More