Renault sets up ‘Refactory’ in Seville to repair EV batteries
Renault has set up a ‘Refactory’ at its Seville plant, which will involve repairing batteries for a second life in energy storage.
The new project is an extension of the programme implemented at its Flins site in Yvelines, France, which remains the Group’s circular economy strategic hub for Europe.
The manufacturer says this new Refactory will bring together circular economy activities for Spain based on the vehicle’s value potential at each stage of its life cycle.
In order to convert the potential value generated by the circular economy into a growth lever, the Seville Refactory will be structured around four areas of activity, from maintenance to recycling, in order to support the entire life of the vehicle.
This includes the reconditioning of used vehicles; for recycling, resource management and the manufacture of E-Tech gearboxes; repairing and developing applications for batteries in second life such as energy storage; and a training and R&D centre dedicated to the circular economy.
José Vicente de los Mozos, EVP Industry, Renault Group, said: “One year after the launch of the Refactory in Flins, which we are about to celebrate the first anniversary, this project illustrates the Group’s strong ambitions in terms of the quality and sustainability of its products in order to meet the challenges of the ecological transition and the issues of more sustainable consumption.
“Thanks to their competitiveness, our Flins and Seville plants are now demonstrating their ability to invent a new profitable industry model for more sustainable mobility.”
The Refactory in Seville will be rolled-out between 2022 and 2024 and will cover a built-up area of 5,000m2 at the end of the project. The Re-Trofit division will start operations at the end of 2022, with the capacity to refurbish more than 10,000 vehicles and repair up to 1,000 batteries per year by 2025.
