Volkswagen Group : Striving to Be Ecological Leaders

Going green is now an old mantra for most car manufacturers. The need to be more environmentally friendly has gone from being a cause to a necessity in modern times and just about every manufacturer is doing their research on sustainable energy resources and reducing their carbon footprint. Volkswagen Group has been a forerunner on this agenda and their dedication towards saving the planet has reached new heights with their recently announced agenda to undertake a fundamental ecological restructuring across the group.

The company has set some ambitious new targets as they wish to position themselves as market leaders in this sphere. In doing so, Volkswagen is looking at reducing CO2 emissions to below the 120 gram CO2/km mark by 2015 in its European new vehicle fleet. This will be a 30 per cent reduction in CO2 emissions as compared to 2006. To achieve these targets, the group has allocated more than two thirds of the 62.4 billion Euro investment program to be spent  on making more efficient vehicles, powertrains and technologies.

Further to this, production will also be scrutinized and the company intends on becoming 25 per cent more environmentally compatible by 2018. By 2020 Volkswagen is looking at a 40 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions associated with production related energy supplies and the company will invest close to 600 million Euros in order to expand their use of renewable energies such as wind solar and hydroelectric power.

Going forward, Volkswagen has promised that every new model generation will be on average 10-15 per cent more efficient than its predecessor. The company has already shown the way forward with their MQB platform which is touted to be cutting edge in all respects and possibly the kit for future vehicles from many brands under the Volkswagen group umbrella. Closer to the present however, Volkswagen is working on their e-mobility solutions which include the e-up! which would then be followed by a number of fully electric or hybrid solutions from other group companies as well.

It’s an ambitious plan that Volkswagen has rolled out and the challenge has just begun. While the road to achieve these targets will be fraught with hurdles, Prof. Dr. Martin Winterkorn, Chairman of the Volkswagen Group Board of Management, made it rather clear when he stated that this goal must be achieved under all costs in order to secure Volkswagen’s future and make them leading automotive manufacturers in the realm of ecological sustainability as well.