Coca-Cola to invest in improved energy-efficient equipment as part of its 2020 Sustainability Plan

Within its manufacturing operations the report states it wants to improve its energy efficiency and make greater use of alternative energy sources. This involves managing the energy it uses and adopting best practices and behaviors; investing in new and improved energy-efficient equipment and investing in renewable and low-carbon energy sources, where possible.

Drive to conserve energy

Hubert Patricot, executive, VP/president, European Group Coca-Cola Enterprises (CCE), said in the company’s drive to conserve energy, it continues to invest in process innovation and energy-efficient technologies.

“The work includes centrally led projects in areas of high energy use and site-specific initiatives to address local opportunities, including bottle blower optimization​,” he said.

“Following a series of initiatives in 2013 to reduce the energy needed to blow our PET bottles, we have now redesigned the base of the moulds in which the bottles are blown so that the process requires less air pressure, and therefore less energy.​

“The new design was tested in 2014 at Grigny in France, Antwerp in Belgium and Sidcup in the UK and will be rolled out to 10 more sites in 2015​.

“We expect that this will result in 2,500 MWh less energy used, equivalent to a reduction of 560 tonnes CO2e​.”

According to the report, by 2020, CCE will manufacture every liter of product with 50% less carbon emissions for every liter of product it manufactures and source 40% of its energy from renewable or low-carbon sources.

Rigorous targets for reducing emissions

John Brock, chairman/CEO, CCE, said in working towards a low-carbon future, it has set rigorous targets for reducing emissions across its value chain.

“Within our production plants, the focus is on making our manufacturing more energy efficient. In 2014, we invested $59m in energy-efficient production lines and equipment and $10m in additional projects to reduce carbon emissions at our plants​,” he said.

“The use of electricity and gas accounts for 90% of the total energy used in our manufacturing and distribution sites. In 2014, our manufacturing operations used a total of 461,095 megawatt hours (MWh) of energy, a decrease of 5.31% since 2007 despite a 5.44% increase in production volumes. This resulted in an average of 23.8 grams of CO2e per liter of product produced, a 28% reduction against our 2007 baseline​.

“We monitor energy efficiency by calculating the energy use ratio, namely how much energy it takes to produce 1,000 liters of product. The calculation includes gas, oil, diesel, LPG, electricity bought from the national grid, and district heating​.”

He added central to this approach is the effective management of energy and carbon emissions with energy management and monitoring processes in place across CCE.

The company currently uses energy meters and inline monitoring and targeting systems to provide live data on the energy it is using and to identify opportunities for improvement.

Last year, it continued to install more advanced systems which combine production data with information on water and energy consumption.

Real-time reporting for line operators

Linked directly to its production software, these tools provide real-time reporting for its line operators.

These new systems have so far been installed at Dongen in the Netherlands and Dunkerque and Grigny in France. More will follow in 2015.

 Six of our manufacturing operations (Antwerp, Gent and Chaudfontaine in Belgium, Marseille and Toulouse in France and Dongen in the Netherlands) hold the ‘Energy-Savers’ certificate awarded under the Energy Savers program run jointly by The Coca-Cola Company and World Wildlife Fund (WWF).

In regards to packaging oven optimization, Patricot said wrapping shrink film over packs of bottles or cans involves heating the film. Having previously used electricity for this purpose, it is now converting its heating equipment to gas which is less carbon-intensive.

“This multi-site project continued in 2014 with packer ovens converted at Sidcup and Edmonton in Great Britain​,” he added.

“Others will follow in 2015 at Milton Keynes and East Kilbride in Great Britain, Dongen in the Netherlands, and Marseille and Toulouse in France. The work so far has cut the carbon footprint of our ovens by approximately 25%​.”

At Dongen in the Netherlands, CCE is working with the Ardagh Group to investigate whether it can capture and use waste heat from Ardagh’s glass production plant at its own manufacturing operations next door.

Tests carried out in 2013 and 2014 have confirmed it is feasible to recover the heat. In 2015, a detailed engineering study will indicate whether the project is financially viable.