Coalition aims to accelerate energy transition in transport and logistics

At the Rencontres Économiques d’Aix-en-Provence, an economic forum attended by many organizations from around the world, 11 international groups have announced they have joined forces to form an international coalition open to new members. AWS, Carrefour Group, CMA CGM Group, Cluster Maritime Français, Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, Engie, Faurecia, Michelin, Schneider Electric, Total and Wärtsilä are the existing members.

The coalition aims to accelerate the development of energy sources and technologies to address the challenges posed by sustainable mobility in the transport and logistics industry by reducing emissions, fighting global warming and protecting biodiversity.

The 11 existing members are pooling their expertise in pursuit of three key goals to achieve genuine technological breakthroughs with tangible results by 2030:

• Unlock a more extensive portfolio of clean energy sources,
• Lower energy consumption per kilometer-equivalent of goods transported,
• Eliminate a substantial proportion of emissions linked to transport and logistics.

Nine concrete projects devised by the nine working groups already set up

Over the past few months, the coalition has established nine working groups with several dozen participants to devise nine concrete projects that will help shape the energy sources of the future:

• Develop green hydrogen procurement solutions for the transport sector,
• Develop biofuels for the various modes of transport,
• Expand the use of biogas and synthetic gases in transport,
• Replace fossil fuels with green energy across the supply chain,
• Launch zero-emission vehicle pilot projects by the end of 2021,
• Create a digital door-to-door route planning system that calculates the option with the lowest environmental impact,
• Optimize the operational management and loading to step up the energy efficiency of each ton carried,
• Make multimodal platforms more environmentally friendly for logistics applications,
• Consolidate methods used to measure the impact of energy transition projects in transport and logistics.

The coalition was launched in late 2019 during the French Maritime Economy Conference (Assises de l’Economie de la Mer) and has received the backing of French President Emmanuel Macron.

The coalition’s initial findings will be officially presented in January 2021 at the IUCN World Conservation Congress.

The following are the official statements from coalition members:

“At AWS, we are committed to running our business in the most environmentally friendly way possible, and we aim to achieve 100% renewable energy use across Amazon by 2025 on the path to net zero carbon by 2040. Beyond our own commitment, we are also convinced that the power of AWS is an asset for freight and logistics companies to accelerate research and innovation in renewable energy and make informed decisions based on the analysis of large data sets. We are delighted to put our technological expertise at the service of the coalition,” said Julien Groues, managing director of AWS in France.

Alexandre Bompard, chairman and chief executive officer of the Carrefour Group, added:
“The food transition for all, which has become Carrefour’s “raison d’être”, will not happen without an energy transition. We are a committed player and have set ambitious objectives to fight global warming, through the promotion of cleaner means of transportation, and through our aspiration to build a food distribution model that, from producer to end consumer, is environmentally friendly. We are taking actions within the Group; but the challenges are so immense, so complex, that they are necessarily collective. It is the aim of this coalition to take up these challenges, that meet the expectations of citizens and chart a new path for our societies.”

Rodolphe Saade, chairman and chief executive officer of the CMA CGM Group, stated:
“In view of the challenges facing the world, we must unite our strengths in order to accelerate the energy transition of the transport and logistics industry. I am delighted that 11 global corporations, leaders in their respective fields, have joined this initiative. CMA CGM will provide all its expertise and experience to this first large global multi sectoral coalition, supported by the President of the French Republic, Emmanuel Macron. We are all fully mobilized to produce concrete short, medium-and-long-term solutions.”

Frédéric Moncany De Saint-Aignan, president of Cluster Maritime Français, said:
“Gathering more than 430 companies, the French Maritime Cluster brings the expertise of the entire French maritime ecosystem to the “coalition for tomorrow’s energy.” Similarly, in partnership with the ADEME (French State Agency for Environment and Energy), with major maritime companies (first and foremost CMA CGM) and with all the members of the French Maritime Cluster, we are building up a “Vision for 2050 of the maritime industry ecological and energy transition,” in order to identify and create the necessary inclusive dynamics to help companies and regions in the required economic, technological and regulatory ruptures.”

Jacques Ripoll, chief executive officer of Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, declared: “Global action is urgently needed to address the climate challenges our planet is facing. The transport sector and all players involved in its value chain have a key role to play to lead a technological and ecological progress. As a global leader in transport finance, from ships to trains, Crédit Agricole CIB is very proud to support the Transport Coalition and the future generations to achieve a better and cleaner future.”

Jean-Pierre Clamadieu, chairman of the Board of Engie, commented:
“The economic recovery plans and both public and private investments they will generate will structure our economies for many years to come. It is therefore essential to seize this opportunity to accelerate the decarbonization of all industries, particularly transportation. The coalition we are launching today is proof that solutions are within reach if we work in a coordinated manner and across the entire value chain. Tomorrow, they will be an asset for our companies and for the economy as a whole.”

Patrick Koller, chief executive officer of Faurecia, added:
“The objectives of the coalition reflect our convictions through our “CO2Neutral” project and our sustainable mobility strategy. We are particularly committed to reach carbon neutrality for our facilities by 2025 with a global program of savings and of decarbonated energy use. With strong expertise in hydrogen technology and materials, we will play our full part within the Coalition to make the energy transition for transport a reality. This will require new technological solutions, which will emerge more quickly through the creation of open ecosystems and knowledge sharing.”

Florent Menegaux, president of the Michelin Group, stated:
“The Michelin teams are committed to making mobility more sustainable and working with all relevant partners, inside and outside the Movin’On ecosystem, to create and promote new solutions. By joining the Coalition for the energy of the future, the Group is taking another step in this direction. We want to seize this opportunity to share our experience and expertise, especially in hydrogen mobility, and accelerate the energy transition in transport.”

Jean-Pascal Tricoire, chairman and chief executive officer of Schneider Electric, said:
“At Schneider Electric, our commitment is to be the partner of our customers in their journeys toward sustainability and become carbon positive ourselves. We are proud to be part of the Coalition for the energy of the future, contributing to the energy transition in transportation and logistics thanks to our expertise in energy and automation digital solutions.”

Patrick Pouyanne, chairman and chief executive officer of Total, declared:
“Total shares the ambition to get to net-zero emissions by 2050, together with society, for its global business across its production and energy products used by its customers. By joining the Coalition for the energy of the future alongside major partners, we intend to support and accelerate the joint development of tangible energy solutions, therefore directly contributing to the reduction of carbon intensity of the transportation and logistics sectors.”

Jaakko Eskola, president and chief executive officer of Wärtsilä, commented:
“The shipping industry’s transition to cleaner, more sustainable energy use is a movement in which we at Wärtsilä continue to play a leading role. Through the development of smart technologies, research into alternative future fuels, and our holistic approach to raising efficiencies in all aspects of shipping and port operations to create a Smart Marine Ecosystem, we have shown our commitment to promoting decarbonization. We are, therefore, proud to be part of this coalition which perfectly aligns with our purpose to enable sustainable societies with smart technology.”