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Atlas Copco Airpower’s smart plant powered by North Sea wind energy thanks to agreement with ENGIE

Windmolenpark in zee

September 23, 2024

Atlas Copco Airpower in Wilrijk signs up to a Corporate Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) from ENGIE, getting its energy from Belgian wind turbines. ENGIE manages part of the energy from the C-Power wind farm in the North Sea and distributes it to a group of companies operating in Belgium, including Atlas Copco Airpower since August 2024.

16,000MWh of energy per year from Belgian waters

By signing up to a Corporate Power Purchase Agreement from ENGIE, Atlas Copco Airpower is buying capacity from the C-Power offshore wind farm in the North Sea. The C-Power wind farm is a wind farm in the Belgian North Sea with 54 wind turbines for a total capacity of 325 MW. ENGIE manages part of the energy generated by this wind farm and distributes it to various companies using PPAs. Atlas Copco Airpower has recently become part of this group of companies.

"At ENGIE, we are committed to working together to accelerate the energy transition. Our Corporate Power Purchase Agreements, accounting for 2.4 GW of green electricity by 2023, enable energy-intensive companies to contribute significantly to a more sustainable future by using local renewable energy sources, such as wind turbines, in the medium and long term."

Vincent Verbeke, CEO ENGIE Belgium

Specifically, for Atlas Copco Airpower, this means a capacity of 5.9 MW, which means about 16,000 MWh of energy per year for at least 4 years. This volume is the equivalent of the electricity consumption of 6400 Belgian families.

"Thanks to this PPA, we can partly run our smart factory in Wilrijk on wind energy from the North Sea. This helps us to reduce our carbon footprint. At Atlas Copco Group we want to contribute to the sustainable energy transition, and this way we help set the tone for change."

Wouter Ceulemans, President Airtec divisie - Atlas Copco Group

Smart factory in Wilrijk

Atlas Copco Airpower designs, manufactures, assembles and distributes, among other things, compressors and dryers used in almost every industry, such as the food, pharmaceutical and garment industries. Compressed air, as the fourth utility alongside water, gas and electricity, is crucial to many industrial processes. Atlas Copco Group's plant in Wilrijk has in recent years evolved into a smart factory where employees collaborate with cobots and robots and data is shared over a 5G network. That automation requires energy, some of which will now come from wind power from the North Sea.

Smart Factory

In line with Science Based Targets targets

Atlas Copco Group further rolls out its sustainability strategy. The Power Purchase Agreement is another step in the company's sustainability strategy, which is moving full steam ahead towards the Science Based Targets goals they have set for 2030.  Atlas Copco Group was recently named one of the 500 most sustainable companies worldwide by Time Magazine.   [https://time.com/collection/worlds-most-sustainable-companies-2024/ ]

"By 2030, Atlas Copco Group aims to reduce emissions from our own operations worldwide by 46% compared to 2019. As a major industrial player in areas such as compressors, we want to be at the forefront of the sustainable transition. We are currently in the midst of our deadline, and signing up to ENGIE's Purchase Power Agreement is one of many local initiatives we are undertaking as a Group globally to achieve our goals."

Wouter Ceulemans, President Airtec divisie - Atlas Copco Group