Towards greener operations
2022 marked an acceleration in the actions carried out by our Operations teams to reduce the environmental impacts of our activities, in line with the Group’s climate strategy. These included measuring emissions, implementing short-term improvement actions, and launching projects to shape the future.
Improving the energy efficiency of facilities
Several key actions undertaken in 2022 have reduced the energy consumption of facilities: pipe lagging and insulation, optimized settings for air treatment units, voltage regulators, replacing lighting, etc.
In addition, a €10 million investment is currently underway to modify the heating circuits and gas treatment at our Gaillac site, which specializes in the production of pharmaceutical active ingredients. Starting in 2025, the site’s direct CO2 emissions will be reduced by 10% compared to 2021.
Finally, the share of renewable energies in the Operations mix is increasing. In 2022, 50% of gas consumption at the Soual site was replaced by biogas, and the installation of photovoltaic panels was approved for production (Soual, Gaillac) and distribution (Ussel) sites.
Using less water
In addition to immediate actions taken to reduce water consumption (reduction or elimination of watering, improvement of cleaning processes, etc.), the teams have launched a series of transformative projects.
These include a project for a “closed loop” facility at the Soual site and a new water purification plant, known as an “osmosis unit,” at the Gaillac site. The aim is to reduce consumption by 100,000 m3 per year by 2026, with the first measurable effects anticipated from 2023.
Reducing waste
To promote a circular economy, the Operations teams are multiplying initiatives to reduce the waste generated by product manufacture: reuse of plant waste in a biomass boiler, wooden pallets used as raw materials for finished products, and recovery of co-products.
Reducing our indirect CO2 emissions
As the main contributors to our company’s carbon footprint, raw materials, packaging and transport are subject to a policy of constant measurement and reduction by the industrial and logistics purchasing departments. New measurement tools have been put in place to guide the actions launched, which have confirmed the importance of switching to biofuel for the shuttle trucks connecting our sites from 2023 onwards. These actions come as part of our Ecovadis and Fret 21-accredited initiatives
