France: How to Save 1.25 Million Tons of CO2 Per Year

In France, fleet vehicles travel 754 million kilometers per year, which translates to 4.7 billion liters of fuel consumed annually or 12.5 million tons of CO2 emissions. These are the figures from the study Vehicle Fleets of Legal Entities by the Ministry for Ecological Transition, published in 2019. This is equivalent to the annual emissions of a country like Senegal. In other words, through better fleet management, companies have a major lever for climate action.

In order to reduce fuel consumption and emissions across a vehicle fleet, it is essential to be able to accurately track vehicle usage and the amount of gasoline or electricity they consume. Only through such tracking can corrective actions be identified. To achieve this, data generated by sensors installed in newer vehicles can be collected by Echoes and displayed in the CarFleet tool, supporting fleet managers and helping to control costs.

Up to 25% fuel savings possible

There are many ways to influence consumption:

Reduce your speed. For example, lowering your speed from 130 to 120 km/h on the highway can reduce fuel consumption and emissions by 12.5%, according to ADEME (the French Agency for Ecological Transition)
Check that aerodynamics are not compromised. Body damage or the presence of aftermarket accessories (roof racks, bike racks, etc.) can increase fuel consumption by up to 10%.
Check tire pressure: According to Le Figaro, tire pressure that is 0.5 bars below the recommended level results in 2.4% higher fuel consumption.
Make sure that plug-in hybrid vehicles have their drive batteries charged regularly from the mains, otherwise fuel consumption will increase unnecessarily

When all these factors are taken into account, the reduction in fuel consumption and emissions could reach at least 25%, provided that vehicles are closely monitored and tracked. In practice, even a 10% reduction would already result in significant savings on a national scale: these would amount to 470 million liters of fuel or 1.25 million tons of CO2 emissions. Beyond the environmental aspect, these 470 million liters also represent approximately 700 million euros wasted unnecessarily by French companies each year. This is crucial information, given that the CSRD requires companies to submit non-financial reports outlining their strategies for reducing CO2 emissions.

Real-time data to help reduce energy consumption

Echoes’ Carfleet solution relies on real-time data transmitted directly from the vehicles to the manufacturer via an onboard 4G/5G chip. No installation of a device is therefore required, nor is any work on the vehicle: data transmission can begin immediately after the contract is signed. This data is generated by the numerous sensors found in modern vehicles, ranging from the odometer and flow meter to the speedometer and the traction battery charge level.

Consolidated into a dedicated interface, this data can be analyzed and exported for use in analysis. This data includes, over a time period defined by the user, and for each connected vehicle:

Details of trip history, including distance traveled and average speed
The average and total fuel consumption of each vehicle, in liters of fuel or kWh of electricity, as well as direct CO2 emissions
Information regarding the vehicle's condition and maintenance, including tire pressure alerts or alerts following an accident

Analyze, act, and measure with CarFleet

With this tool, fleet managers will be able to track and monitor their fleet’s fuel consumption on a daily basis, with historical data that allows them to track trends over time. Specifically, CarFleet enables:

To measure the fuel consumption and emissions of its fleet, while identifying vehicles and/or drivers with abnormally high figures
To analyze the behavior of vehicles affected by this excessive fuel consumption and determine its cause
Take action regarding the vehicles in question or communicate with the drivers in question to encourage them to reduce their speed
Monitor the results of the action plan on a daily basis and communicate them both internally and externally

Tomorrow, cars will be smarter and more fuel-efficient than ever

In the near future, it will be possible to further optimize the movement of company vehicles, thanks to various technological advancements in CarFleet that Echoes is currently investing in:

Analysis of driver behavior in terms of acceleration and braking intensity: a way to detect aggressive driving that is harmful to the vehicle and its fuel consumption
Tracking the number of passengers using seatbelt sensors. This will enable us to analyze fuel consumption and emissions based on vehicle occupancy and to implement measures to promote carpooling
Analysis of routes using artificial intelligence, and optimization of trips in terms of schedules, routes, speed, and electric charging.

While we await these developments, CarFleet already offers the ability to analyze and take concrete action regarding vehicle fleets. And it does so without the need for any hardware installation, commitment, or subscription.