The promise had been made by former Jaguar Land Rover CEO Ralph Speth — now succeeded by Thierry Bolloré — that by the end of 2020 the entire range would be electrified. Said and done: this end of the year, all the group's models already have electrified versions, whether they are plug-in hybrids or, at best, mild mild-hybrid.
For a group that used to be so dependent on diesel engines — especially Land Rover, where more than 90% of sales corresponded to diesel engines — this is a critical change to face a challenging future, particularly in terms of reducing CO2 emissions. .
Failure to meet established targets incurs fines that quickly reach very high values. Jaguar Land Rover will be, precisely, one of those who will not be able to meet the imposed targets, having already set aside close to 100 million euros for this purpose.
And this despite the accelerated step seen in the addition of plug-in hybrid variants to practically all its ranges. However, discrepancies in the CO2 emissions of its more affordable and potentially popular plug-in hybrids — the Land Rover Discovery Sport P300e and Range Rover Evoque P300e — have forced them to stop marketing both and re-certify. Therefore, the number of units sold turned out to be much lower than initially expected, harming year-end accounts.
However, despite this costly setback, Jaguar Land Rover is calm in relation to 2021 — despite the bills becoming more demanding — as it will have on sale by the end of the first quarter, all the news that we became aware of in these last months of 2020.
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In addition to the aforementioned Land Rover Discovery Sport P300e and Range Rover Evoque P300e, the British group raised the bar on the Range Rover Velar P400e, the Jaguar F-Pace P400e, the Jaguar E-Pace P300e, the Land Rover Defender P400e, which come together to the well-known Range Rover and Range Rover Sport, also in the P400e version.
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The State Budget for 2021 (OE 2021) brought a lot of controversy in relation to the fiscal benefits (autonomous taxation) attributed to hybrids and plug-in hybrids, as well as the “discounts” in the ISV (Vehicle Tax) applied to them.
As of January, in order to access the benefits and the lowest incidence of ISV (up to -60%), all hybrids and plug-in hybrids must have an electric range of more than 50 km and CO2 emissions of less than 50 g/ km, which could bring added difficulties to the commercial careers of several models that do not meet these requirements.
In the case of Land Rover and Range Rover, only their larger (and more expensive) models seem to be left out of the new rules, namely the Defender and the Range Rover and Range Rover Sport.
All the others are in compliance with the various approved premises, with emissions below 50 g/km and electric autonomy ranging from 52-57 km for the Jaguar F-Pace and Range Rover Velar, to 62-77 km for the Land Rover Defender Sport, Range Rover Evoque and Jaguar E-Pace.
Destination Zero
Combating CO2 emissions is not just about the increasing electrification of vehicles themselves — the group claims to have reduced, in the last 10 years, the CO2 emissions of its vehicles by 50%. Jaguar Land Rover has the Destination Zero , a holistic program that not only wants to achieve carbon neutrality, but also seeks to reduce to zero accidents and also traffic jams — in the latter two cases thanks, in large part, to the evolution of advanced driving assistance systems, which will culminate in fully autonomous vehicles.
Recycling aluminum allows JLR to substantially reduce CO2 emissions.
To achieve carbon neutrality Jaguar Land Rover has been implementing circular economy principles. Something that becomes evident in the processes of product creation, with reuse and recycling gaining prominence, as well as the application of new sustainable materials, while seeking to eliminate the residues resulting from production.
Among several more specific measures Jaguar Land Rover has implemented a recycling program for aluminium, a material used extensively in many of its models. Aluminum is recovered not only from end-of-life vehicles, but also from other sources, such as soda cans; a use that allows a 27% reduction in CO2 emissions. Also in the field of recycling, a partnership with BASF allows them to convert plastic waste into top quality material to be used in their future vehicles.
The energy needed for its factories is also increasingly coming from renewable sources. At its engine plant in Wolverhampton, for example, 21,000 solar panels were installed. Jaguar Land Rover also already produces batteries for its growing number of electrified models at Hams Hall.