2019 has been one of the hottest years in recent decades, marking a new milestone in the worldwide increase in greenhouse gas emissions and extreme weather events. The transportation sector alone is responsible for 23 percent of CO2 emissions worldwide. Looking at these numbers Michelin has decided on an objective and that is all of its plants across the world will emit zero CO2 emissions by 2050. The company is also looking to reduce tire-related energy consumption per kilometer traveled by 20 percent by 2030. This strategy is in line with the Paris Agreement signed at the COP21 in 2015 to limit global warming to below 2 degrees Celsius.
To reduce the carbon footprint of production at a global level, Michelin developed a strategy founded on two pillars: consume less, and implement an energy transition. This strategy has already had concrete and positive effects: in Europe, 85 percent of its plants are powered by electricity that is guaranteed to come from renewable sources. Between 2010 and 2018, CO2 emissions from the company’s production facilities were down by 22 percent.
The company is looking to improve energy efficiency of its industrial tools, using more renewable energy, and eliminating coal. Currently, 5 out of 70 of the Group’s sites around the world are still coal-fired. We have already launched studies to evaluate the feasibility of replacing coal with another source of primary energy, such as gas or biomass. All our plants will phase out the use of coal by 2030 at the latest.