Industrial chemical plants need lots of energy to run. Therefore these economics actors pay a particularly attention to energy future. Interesting for the IMAGINE concept is the approach of SOLVAY. This chemical company runs a large plant near Besancon, at Tavaux. Because of its size, the industry activities of this site are very much linked and integrated to the territory and within the local governance.

© Photography by Henri Bertand

As following of its commitment to sustainable development and as part of its long-term strategy, Solvay has been actively contributing to develop alternatives to fossil fuel in its own plants. In Tavaux, a co-generation project is being run, while a biomass fuelled power station is already active. In Germany, non-recyclable residues are used as fuel for a power station in the Bernburg plant.

Besides this, Solvay is also one of the main contributors to the SolarImpulse project, which is a long-range solar plane project currently under study. This project is being presented in an exhibition at the Saline Royal in Arc-et-Senans, where the IMAGINE annual seminars take place.

For more information on Solvay's approach to sustainability, click here.

German industry conglomerate, Siemens AG, approaches the urban sustainability dimension with a simple question. How can cities protect the environment and save money at the same time?

Siemens' activities brings mainly technological know-how to cities sustainability challenges. Technological solutions provided by Siemens' tools are mostly about energy savings and therefore about reducing costs. Siemens, for example, as infrastructure provider is contributing to London's sustainable mobility, but also works on buildings energy efficiency with the city of Berlin through energy saving contracting, or is developing cogeneration in New York.

On the company website, two studies are highlighted and go deep towards both London's future as well as Imagine partner's, Munich, paths toward a Carbon-Free Future. More on Munich sustainable future study on the next post.

Business in the energy sector is clearly concerned by the changing energy situation and its impacts on the environment.

Shell (Royal Dutch Shell) interestingly explore different scenarios, looking ahead the energy future until 2050. While opposing a scramble to a blueprint scenario, Shell shows that sustainability need important decisions to be taken as soon as possible and that in order to secure a working energy future, actors needs to act positively, and not only react to events.