Biomass investment boosts sustainability of INEOS Automotive’s Hambach factory

INEOS Automotive has opened a cutting-edge €15m biomass heat plant at its Hambach production and assembly site. With a 9.2 megawatt output, the plant will consume up to 14,000 tonnes of locally- and sustainably-sourced woodchips per year, to supply 78% of the facility’s heating requirements.

More than half a billion euros has been invested in Hambach since 2019. Key upgrades over the last five years include a new fully-automated bodyshop, semi-automated paintshop, quality inspection laboratory, and a wading pool for water ingress testing. With this, the plant’s usable footprint has grown by over 60% to a total of 210,000 m², resulting in a significant increase in heating requirements.

The new biomass plant features two boilers with joint thermal outputs of 8.4 MW connected to an 800 KW heat pump. It will supply over three-quarters of the site’s heating needs, with the existing gas boiler providing the balance. The switch to biomass is expected to cut around 8,800 tonnes of CO₂ per year from the site’s emissions. Waste ash is then recycled via the local agriculture industry – its high nitrate content making for an enriched fertiliser.

“Our ongoing investment in Hambach means our Grenadier and Quartermaster models are built to world-class quality standards, and in an environmentally sustainable factory, for export to over 50 sales markets around the world,” said Lynn Calder, CEO INEOS Automotive. “We’re very proud of the advanced facilities and its exceptional workforce, which together make it one of the most advanced automotive production sites in Europe.”

Philippe Steyer, President of INEOS Automotive SAS, said: “The new biomass plant is the latest in a longstanding and ongoing programme of sustainability-driven initiatives at Hambach. It was critical for us to increase our sustainable energy capacity to meet our growing consumption as the site expands.”

Fortifying Hambach’s longstanding sustainability track record, the Hambach Energy Transition project marks another huge investment in the site. It was supported by France’s ADEME (Agency for Environment & Energy Management) with a €3.9m grant under Heat Fund assistance & PNCEE (Pôle national des certificats d’économies d’énergie). It is also assisted by an agreement between INEOS Automotive and Dalkia, which is providing a grant of up to €1.5m.