Dutch and French automotive partners team up officially

On September 14, Transalley Technopark, the Dutch Automotive Campus, ARIA Hauts-de-France, RAI Automotive Industry NL, and Nord France Invest confirmed their partnership by signing a Memorandum of Understanding. The signing ceremony took place during the Automotive Innovation Mission from The Netherlands to Hauts-de-France, at Transalley Technopark in Valenciennes, France, writes the Automotive Campus in a press release. 

France and the Netherlands both face sustainability challenges in many sectors of their economies, including Zero Emissions Transport & Infrastructure, Smart Mobility, and Energy Transition. France leads the way in many of these sectors. The same goes for the Netherlands. Both are regarded as gateways and have committed themselves to strict action programs in the field of sustainability and mobility. This is to combat climate change and achieve the targets for the reduction of greenhouse gases and sustainable energy generation for 2030 and 2050.

Constructive partnership

“Our visit to France is the start of constructive collaboration. We are on the eve of an enormous transition in automotive and other business models. The energy transition is in full swing as is the change of use and ownership. Both Transalley Technopark and Automotive Campus work close to educational institutes. Therefore, we see wonderful forms of collaboration for students and campus residents, ” says Pieter Rahusen, Business Development Manager of Automotive Campus.

“We have a nice ecosystem, just like in France, so there is a kind of similar ecosystem 250 km apart. This alliance brings them together. I was very impressed by the beautiful facilities the Transalley Technopark has and how they work on innovation within automotive. It is great to explore together how we can give sustainable mobility a new dimension,” the manager states.

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Bram Hendrix, Manager of Smart Mobility at RAI Automotive Industry NL, adds: “The Hauts-de-France region is known as the manufacturing region of France with 7 production plants (including the ones of Renault, Stellantis, and Toyota). In addition, it will become one of the most important regions in Europe in the field of battery production, with 3 announced giga-factories. It is important to cooperate with this eco-system, with the aim of getting Dutch companies in a position to contribute to this development.”

Connecting networks and exchanging knowledge

Automotive Campus and Transalley, in collaboration with RAI Automotive NL, ARIA Hauts-de-France, and Nord France Invest, have successfully connected networks and exchanged knowledge in recent years. Through this alliance, all parties wish to reiterate that they are opening their network to each other. This is in order to promote cooperation and allow all stakeholders in the constituency to use it.