photo: Seat presss materials/The new freight rail link will connect the SEAT and Volkswagen factories
SEAT S.A. in collaboration with Pecovasa Renfe Mercancías from the Renfe group takes another step forward in its “Move to Zerø” strategy with a new rail service linking its Martorell (Spain) plant with the Volkswagen Autoeuropa factory in Palmela (Portugal). As of this month, this service operates once a week and is expected to transport more than 20,000 vehicles per year, which will avoid 2,400 truck journeys and reduce CO2 emissions by 43%.
“The train is an environmentally friendly, cost-effective and efficient means of transport, which is why this new service between the Martorell and Palmela factories helps us make progress in our aim to reduce the carbon footprint of vehicle transport and brings us closer to our goal of logistical sustainability,” says Herbert Steiner, Vice-President for Production and Logistics at SEAT S.A. “This project is part of the ‘One Production’ strategy of Volkswagen Group factories on the Iberian Peninsula, which seeks to optimize resources, generate synergies between production centers and boost efficiency.”
The new train service, operated by Pecovasa Renfe Mercancías, is made up of 16 wagons, has a maximum length of 500 meters, and will be able to transport up to 184 vehicles per journey. From 2023, it is planned that the train will have two additional carriages and run up to 550 meters in length, enabling around 200 carriages to be transported.
Eliminating 2,400 road journeys will mean a reduction of almost 1,000 tonnes of CO2. By 2024, emission neutrality will be achieved with the arrival of hybrid locomotives that will allow electricity to be used on 100% of the route.
Source: Seat press releases
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