ARKEMA ENERGY: an integrated approach to improving energy efficiency

In order to reduce its energy consumption and carbon footprint, Arkema is developing the ARKEMA ENERGY program at all of its industrial sites in favour of a true culture of energy sobriety

Main project's drivers for reducing the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions

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Energy and resource efficiency

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Energy Decarbonisation

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Energy efficiency improvements

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Improving efficiency in non-energy resources

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Emission removal

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Financing low-carbon issuers or disinvestment from carbon assets

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Reduction of other greenhouse gases emission

Project objectives

The ARKEMA ENERGY project aims to improve the Group’s energy efficiency. Through a structured and homogeneous approach covering the entire industrial perimeter, it consists of implementing an energy-saving culture at all levels of the company.

Detailed project description

Deployed since 2014, this project is based on the positive evolution of employee practices and improved efficiency of the Group’s industrial processes.

More specifically, the actions carried out include:

  • Energy-saving employee practices:
    • E-learning recommended to all employees on the industrial premises and offered to all other employees, highlighting the challenges and the areas of progress for each employee at their level;
    • Specific training dedicated to all local project managers;
    • Wide publication of a good practice guide, revised every two years;
    • Sharing of all projects on a shared interactive platform.
  • Improving the energy efficiency of industrial processes:
    • Creation of a global network of designated “energy leaders” pooling all actions and projects carried out in their unit via a platform;
      • 120 people – monthly meetings – global coordination and regional monitoring – dedicated energy performance reporting system
    • Provision of a good practice guide, directly applicable methodologies and framework agreements negotiated upstream that simplify the implementation of action plans on each industrial site;
      • Steam networks: systematic identification of defective steam traps entrusted to a subcontractor and replacement (at 35 plants – gain 53 GWh – emissions: -10 800 tonnes of CO2/year)
    • Creation of benchmarks giving rise to global action plans with key improvement points, according to the “bulldozer approach”. With a long-term follow-up of actions and results and wide dissemination;
    • Allocation of an investment budget ($34M) dedicated to the actions carried out as part of this programme, which benefits about sixty projects per year.

This project was a determining factor in reducing the group’s annual energy consumption. This amounts to nearly 930 GWh/year – a decrease in annual GHG emissions related to energy consumed of 216 kt CO2 over the 2014-2021 period.

At the end of 2021, most of the group’s industrial sites – representing more than 80% of its energy consumption – carried out actions in this context.

Emission scope(s)

on which the project has a significant impact

Scope 1

Direct emissions generated by the company's activity.

Scope 2

Indirect emissions associated with the company's electricity and heat consumption.

Scope 3

Emissions induced (upstream or downstream) by the company's activities, products and/or services in its value chain.

Emission Removal

Carbon sinks creation, (BECCS, CCU/S, …)

Avoided Emissions

Emissions avoided by the activities, products and/or services in charge of the project, or by the financing of emission reduction projects.

Scope 1 – Energy and resource- savings (in particular behaviour) and improved energy efficiency

  • Quantification : -185 kt CO2 eq.
    (in 2021 compared to 2014)

Scope 2 – Energy and resource- savings (in particular behaviour) and improved energy efficiency

  • Quantification : -31 kt CO2 eq.
    (in 2021 compared to 2014)

Between 2014 and 2021, the Arkenergy projects led to a drop in consumption of 930 GWh/year, of which 9% is linked to a drop in electricity consumption and 91% is linked to a drop in heat consumption (gas, steam).

Key points

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Invested amount

34 M€

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Starting date of the project

2014

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Project localisation

Worldwide

Project maturity level

Prototype laboratory test (TRL 7)

Real life testing (TRL 7-8)

Pre-commercial prototype (TRL 9)

Small-scale implementation

Medium to large scale implementation

Economic profitability of the project (ROI)

Short term (0-3 years)

Middle term (4-10 years)

Long term (> 10 years)

Illustrations of the project

A genuine corporate culture has been put in place with sharing of experience (good or bad) at the global level.This project also contributed to reduce the carbon footprint of marketed products, and where customers have increasing expectations. 

The project is completely reproducible, whether in terms of energy efficiency results or climate impacts.

The principle of this project is to allow all Arkema plants to benefit from the feedback from each project carried out in a plant in order to benefit from Group synergy

EDF, ENDEL, AMSTRONG,

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Project URL links :

arkenergy@arkema.com