Tavcor Motor Group’s Sustainability Philosophy

Tavcor Motor Groups Board of Directors authorized a sustainability initiative over a decade ago to reduce our carbon footprint, educate employees, and develop community projects. It was our commitment to giving back and safeguarding the long-term viability of the company.

With Sustainability and Environmental best practices entrenched in our company values and philosophy and powered by a strong Environmental, Health, and Safety Team we have adopted a project per year starting with a single rainwater tank at TAVCOR Technical Centre in 2010.

With a specific focus on Solar, Rainwater harvesting, Recycling, and Education we have ensured that each year we tackle a sustainability project.

Solar Plants

We have developed four solar plants over the years, reducing our dependency on the country’s limited electrical source. Furthermore, all extra power is routed back into the national grid under a wheeling arrangement with the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality. To date, the group has invested R7 million in solar projects, with a fifth project starting on the TAVCOR Commercial roof. We have already saved 825 tons of CO2 emissions, equivalent to planting 24 593 trees, and there is still more to come!

The Solar Projects don’t just benefit TAVCOR as Ubuntu Pathways and Tavcor have collaborated on the projects. Tavcor Motor Group’s solar project infrastructure was sold as a contribution to Ubuntu Pathways through the Sale of Asset Partnership, an innovative model of partnership. While Ubuntu profits from the sale of electricity and asset ownership, Tavcor benefits from a lower electricity rate than traditional Eskom rates, with this purpose in mind, the City benefits from more power to the system. All while helping the environment and the local community.

Rainwater Harvesting

Through rainwater plants on all sites, we have harvested over 12 million litres of rainwater meaning that all our Gqeberha sites are self-sufficient and don’t rely on NMBM water.

Employee Education

The Tavcor Motor Group’s Environmental, Health, and Safety committee runs all of the sustainability programmes and is responsible for awareness and educational campaigns among staff. This team effort has resulted in the Tavcor Motor Group being honored as the two-time winner of the Exporters Eastern Cape’s SJM Flex Environmental Practice Award in 2018 and again in 2020.

Recycling

We recycle anything we can, including used oil, metal, batteries, catalytic converters, cardboard, and paper. The money we make from recycling goes toward our CSI projects. In line with eco-friendly practices and sustainable approaches, the CSI projects backed by TAVCOR have consistently incorporated these principles. Over the past seven years, our collaboration has led to the establishment of three educational centers within local communities.

If there is one thing we have learned, it is that every little bit counts. Incremental investment in sustainability makes a significant difference, and our industry’s sustainability is dependent on it.