Solar energy makes Volvo dealers climate-neutral

Solar energy makes Volvo dealers climate-neutral 

Volvo Trucks has inaugurated its first climate-neutral dealership facility . The
inauguration took place in Verona, Italy. With the help of solar cells on the
building's roof, more energy will be produced than is needed to heat up the
offices and workshops.  

“When we decided to build an entirely new facility, we wanted to make sure we
integrated pro-environmental technologies from the ground up,” says Marco
Lazzoni, Managing Director of Volvo Trucks' operations in Italy. “And what is
cleaner than solar energy?” 

Green electricity 

Solar energy produced at the Volvo Truck Center in Verona will be supplied to
the local power grid, thus generating an income from the electricity that the
dealership facility itself does not need. In return, the dealership will only
purchase green electricity from solar, wind-power or hydro-power sources.
Heating of the premises will take place using fossil methane gas. However, the
surplus electricity that the solar panels generate more than compensates for the
carbon dioxide emissions caused by burning the methane gas. 

Climate-neutral operation 

“Here at Volvo Trucks we work intensively to ensure that ever-increasing
proportions of our operations are climate-neutral. With the new facility, we're
carrying our dedication to the climate out to the dealership level,” says Lars
Mårtensson, environment affairs manager at Volvo Trucks. 
Volvo Trucks' aim is that more dealers should follow Verona's example. It is not
likely that all will follow the path of solar cells, but there are alternative
ways to proceed. 
“Energy efficiency and a larger proportion of energy from alternative sources
are the foundation of our work. The exact measures that are most suitable for
implementation are determined by local conditions.”

Over the past few years, Volvo Trucks has implemented a range of measures that
help reduce the environmental imprint of its operations and products. For
instance, the company's largest production facility in Ghent in Belgium became
the world's first climate-neutral vehicle factory in 2007. That same year, Volvo
Trucks demonstrated 7 trucks each running on a different renewable fuel. This
past spring the world's first heavy-duty hybrid refuse trucks were handed over
to customers for field testing. 

“These activities show that even a player in heavy industry can reduce climate
impact to a major extent - from both its products and its facilities. What is
more, we have several additional factories that will also soon become
climate-neutral,” says Lars Mårtensson.  

June 15, 2008

For further information, please contact: 
Marie Vassiliadis, phone +46 31 322 41 27, e-mail marie.vassiliadis@volvo.com


Visit http://www.thenewsmarket.com/volvogroup to access broadcast-standard video
from the Volvo Group. You can review and request video material, and choose to
receive it as an MPEG2 file or on Beta SP tape. Registration and video are free
to the media.


Volvo Trucks provides complete transport solutions for professional and
business-driven customers. The company offers a full range of medium to heavy
duty trucks, with a strong global network of 3,000 service points in more than
130 countries. In 2006 Volvo Trucks sold more than 105,000 trucks worldwide.
Volvo Trucks is a part of the Volvo Group, one of the world's leading
manufacturers of trucks, buses and construction equipment, drive systems for
marine and industrial applications, aerospace components and services. The Group
also provides solutions for financing and service.