More than 50% of all electricity used at the General Motors Orion assembly is from renewable energy. Note that this is where the company is making the Chevy Bolt. The renewable energy is specifically from a solar array and landfill gas. This outstanding achievement has not gone unnoticed, earning the company an enviable 8th place in the latest Onsite Renewable’s Challenge by the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency).
A big part of the electricity used by Orion Assembly plant comes from onsite generator which uses local landfill gas. According to General Motors, the combined electricity from solar energy and landfill gas makes it the largest producer and consumer of renewable energy.
The Chevy Bolt, a mass-produced EV (Electric Vehicle) that will come to the market in 2017 ahead of Tesla’s Model 3, is seen as a game-changer for the car manufacturing giant, as well as in the whole automobile industry.
Great Milestone
“The fact that we’ve built the Bolt EV in a facility which uses 54% clean energy only adds to the environmental credentials of the car”, stated Alicia Boler-Davis, GM’s vice president of Global Manufacturing.
The car manufacturing company is already producing big part of its own green energy. The company was already using 106 MW of landfill gas, waste-to-energy and solar at its facility. This is according to EPA. The company will also exceed its 2020 target of using 125 MW of removal energy.
The car manufacturing company has shown a lot of commitment to solar energy more so after the bankruptcy and financial crises that plagued it in 2009. It is not just using green energy to raise public opinion but rather, it is to save money. Located some 30 miles north of Detroit, the Orion Plant alone is saving the company a whopping $1 million yearly in energy costs.
For some time now, the company has embarked on boosting its credentials of green energy. It is among the founding companies to launch REBA (Renewable Energy Buyers Alliance). This body was set up to help firms understand the advantages of turning to renewable energy and to offer assistance to achieving that.
Just recently (May 2016), REBA announced its member’s target of deploying over 60 giga-watts of corporate renewable energy, something General Motors will surely take a lead role in. The company is also a part of Green Power Partnership by EPA, which was meant to help utility companies and corporations to migrate to renewable energy.
Also, the Orion assembly plant met the EPA’s Energy Star Challenge through reducing its energy consumption during operations by 67% within 2 years.
James Critchfield, who is the Green Power Partnership manager, had glowing tributes for Orion Assembly. He was quoted as saying: “EPA praises Orion Assembly for its novelty in producing green energy from landfill gas system and for taking leading position on the environment.”
Other notable car manufacturing companies are also increasing their usage of renewable energy. For example, in Texas, Toyota is currently putting up one of the greenest headquarters in the US. In 2014, Ford also installed the biggest array in Michigan.
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