Renaulution Kicks Off At The Renault Cléon Plant
The Renault plant at Cléon was opened in 1958 and has built 98 million engines and gearboxes since then. Now the factory is moving to the future with six new lines producing the ePT-160kW electric motor for the new Megane E-TECH Electric and a future new C-segment vehicle.
Renault has already invested €680 million in electrification at the plant since 2018 and 34% of all mechanical components produced there in 2021 were for electric vehicles.
Two families of e-powertrains are currently manufactured in Cléon: the motors for Renault ZOE, Kangoo and Master E-TECH Electric, as well as for the Smart EQ Fortwo for Daimler. The aluminium foundry is also transitioning to electric motors and will handle this aspect of production, machining and assembly on-site. This will concentrate manufacturing in one plant, optimising costs and limiting component transport.
Electric Powertrain Value Chain
This new capacity now opened is part of the company’s Renaulution plans for the future and will make Cléon a key link in the e-powertrain value chain in France.
By switching to electric motors, Cléon will move operationally closer to ElectriCity and create the biggest and most competitive EV production hub in Europe. ElectriCity includes three factories in Maubeuge, Ruitz and Douai and the Megane E-TECH Electric and Renault 5 EV will be among the vehicles to be built there.
By 2024, it will also expand the range of motors it makes, including the 100kW motor for the Renault 5 EV and a next-generation 200kW developed with Valeo and Valeo Siemens eAutomotive. Electrified motor production capacity at Cléon will grow over 1 million units annually.
Cléon will continue to manufacture internal-combustion and hybrid engines, and gearboxes. These include the 2.0 dCi M9 engine LCV and the electric motor in the E-TECH hybrid powertrain.
Giving People New Skills In A New World
Renault has also created its E-Mobility Academy at Cléon to help equip its employees and industry partners to move into the new trades required by the electric vehicle industry. This Academy is part of Renault’s ReKnow University. Around 2600 people were trained at the various ReKnow campuses and 10 000 more will be trained between now and 2025.
Refactory
Another initiative is the Refactory, which will recycle or refurbish old EV vehicles and components to prevent these from ending up in landfills and mitigate the environmental costs associated with mining and logistics. This process is part of what is known as the circular economy.
