Audi looks to invest in renewable electricity

Audi joins international Desertec alliance as associated partner

Renewable energy sources powering Audi production

Total energy balance in the focus

Audi CEO Rupert Stadler: “Electric cars from Audi will run on sustainably produced electricity”

Ingolstadt, – AUDI AG is looking to invest in renewable sources of energy. In support of this goal, Audi this week signed an agreement with the international consortium “Desertec Industrial Initiative”. The long-term goal of the joint venture is the climate-friendly production of energy in the deserts of North Africa and the Middle East. As an associated partner, Audi will initially work to create the right conditions and to establish the necessary infrastructure.

“When at Audi we speak of sustainable mobility, we are looking at the entire energy balance”, said Rupert Stadler, Chairman of the Board of Management of AUDI AG. Audi is looking to introduce its first small-series electric car to the market as early as 2012. In doing so, Stadler said Audi will not only apply the principles of sustainability to the production of the cars, but also to ensure that customers can sustainably operate the cars. “Electric cars from Audi will run on sustainably produced electricity. To achieve this goal we’re supporting the development of solar- and wind-driven power plants”, Stadler said.

By partnering with Desertec, Audi is joining a unique industrial initiative. It is working to achieve a safe, sustainable and climate-friendly energy supply from the deserts of North Africa and the Middle East. The Desertec Industrial Initiative is working to develop the right conditions for targeted investment in solar and wind energy on the basis of careful analysis. Today the Desertec Industrial Initiative is backed by 16 founding companies, the DESERTEC Foundation and associated partners, who work to support the initiative’s objectives.

In its holistic view of the energy balance of its products, AUDI AG includes its production processes. Surpassing the common German mix, an above-average percentage of the energy needed for production is fed into AUDI AG’s plants from renewable sources. Novel photovoltaic panels on its roofs actively feed green electricity into the German grid. In the future, roughly an additional 14,000 megawatt hours are to be added to this through wind power; the utilization of biogas is also foreseen. The partnership with Desertec now expands this commitment.