Groupe Renault launches Møbilize brand dedicated to mobility and energy services

Groupe Renault launches Møbilize brand dedicated to mobility and energy services

Groupe Renault has launched Mobilize, an all-new business venture targeting customers wishing to adopt more sustainable, shared forms of mobility.

It will also address changing customer needs and will promote sustainable energy use, in line with Groupe Renault’s target of carbon neutrality and its ambition to develop value from the circular economy.

Møbilize, a brand on a mission

The goal of Mobilize is to look beyond the traditional use of cars, offering new ways of transporting people and goods, either with or without a car. Expectations of customers, companies, cities and regional authorities are changing, with greater emphasis on sustainability and clean energy. Mobilize addresses this with its new mobility solutions.

Mobilize brings together Groupe Renault activities in mobility, energy, and data-related solutions while taking advantage of expertise from RCI Bank and Services.

In addition to this, it also helps foster partnerships and brand-new open ecosystems that bring significant advantages in timing and scaling-up, while also helping to solve the major challenges faced by the automotive industry. It will:

• Reduce the gap between car usage and cost as cars are currently left unused 90 per cent of the time
• Improve residual value to prevent the value of new vehicles from falling by over 50 per cent after three years
• Contribute to zero impact CO² footprint target

Clotilde Delbos, CEO, Mobilize Brand, said: “We are very excited to embrace the disruption of the automotive world shifting from ownership to usage, whenever and wherever you need it. Beyond automotive, Mobilize will offer a wide array of innovative services in the mobility, energy and data fields. With a variety of partners, our goal is to maximize car usage with simplified, more sustainable and accessible mobility journeys for people and goods, while reducing the environmental impact.”

Open Ecosystems

Mobilize offers flexible mobility services for people and goods, adapted to the evolving expectations of customers, corporate organisations, and local communities. It addresses real-life issues and provides seamless solutions that are complementary to traditional models of car ownership. By promoting higher usage of goods through circular and sharing economies, it contributes to a more sustainable future.

Furthermore, with a potential of more than 6,000 Renault dealerships in Europe, Mobilize will be able to offer mobility solutions for all need, ranging from one minute to several years, in cities and towns throughout the region.

Mobilize will also use its existing portfolio of innovative mobility and energy start-ups to help co-create the best solutions for its customers.

• Purpose-designed vehicles for mobility services: Mobilize has strong competitive advantages as it enters the mobility market leveraging Groupe Renault’s experience in vehicle design and manufacturing, and EV-leadership. Mobilize benefits from dedicated engineering and design teams and will develop a range of purpose-designed vehicles. Intended for heavy use, they will be modular, robust, and 100 per cent electric, and will fulfil the most critical needs of new mobility: car sharing, ride-hailing, last mile delivery, and on-demand.
• Easier fleet acquisition through financing services: RCI Bank and Services provides Mobilize with easy access to financial solutions and services, from subscription and leasing to pay-as-you-go. This way, fleet ownership costs can become variable.
• Increased car-usage through mobility, data and AI software platforms: Mobilize benefits from the Renault Software Factory, the Software République, and partners to develop leading-edge algorithms and data processing software, allowing better prediction of user demand and better vehicle allocation. The aim is to increase the rate of car use by at least 20 per cent.
• Maintenance and recycling services for carsharing fleets: When our vehicles are no longer fit for use, they will be taken care of by our maintenance and recycling services at Renault Re-Factory. When batteries of electric vehicles are no longer fit for automotive use, Mobilize will recycle them, giving them a second life as a stationary energy source.

Carbon neutrality, circular economy and extended vehicle life cycle

Mobilize builds on Groupe Renault’s strong EV-expertise, particularly in battery lifetime value management.

It is invested in developing an energy ecosystem that includes smart charging solutions and advanced energy storage solutions to help drive the energy transition as well as a combination of solutions that can be integrated in Smart Islands, districts, or other urban planning projects to help reach carbon neutrality.

To further enhance electric mobility, Mobilize offers solutions to support EV uptake. As part of this, it is developing a charging pass for customers to easily locate public charging points and to pay with a single Europe-wide payment solution. For EV and PHEV fleet customers, Mobilize will work through its subsidiary Elexent to offer easy access to charging infrastructure solutions across Europe.

Designed for shared mobility

The EZ-1 Prototype exemplifies the goals of the Mobilize brand and embodies the brand’s design vision: service at the heart of vehicle design. EZ-1 Prototype is a new urban mobility solution that is designed for shared use. As such, it is going to be offered in an innovative way: users will only pay for what they use, in terms of drive-time or mileage. The vehicle is fully connected for simple multi-driver sharing: it comes with keyless access and interacts with users via their smartphone.

Mobilize EZ-1 Prototype is a compact and agile electric vehicle for two people. Its architectural model means it is only 2.3 metres long and has a minimal footprint. Featuring top-to-bottom glass doors it gives users a completely uninterrupted view of the surrounding urban landscape. Agile, dynamic and inclusive, it works seamlessly in the urban world.

The EZ-1 Prototype features an innovative battery exchange system. An alternative to the traditional charging infrastructure, which means the vehicle can be used non-stop without having to be out of service.

Built according to circular economy principles, the EZ-1 Prototype is made with 50 per cent recycled materials and will be 95% recyclable at the end of its life cycle thanks to facilities at the Flins Re-Factory.

Patrick Lecharpy, Mobilize Design director, said: “The Mobilize EZ-1 Prototype is a mobility device that will blend in with the city. Agile, dynamic and inclusive, it is emblematic of the new Mobilize brand. It accompanies users in their lifestyle change towards more efficient and responsible mobility.”