On 9 December, the hybrid AUGA M1 tractor for professional farm use developed by AUGA group was recognised as innovation of the year in the green innovation category among enterprises at the international Rimi Baltic Sustainability Awards.
The award organisers received as many as 323 applications across different categories. Sustainable solutions from enterprises and NGOs were evaluated by an international panel of experts from 12 countries.
“The entire AUGA group team is delighted that our AUGA M1 tractor has gained international recognition. Sustainability is no longer just a buzzword, it is becoming an essential part of the strategy and day-to-day operations of enterprises and NGOs. We are all affected by climate change, especially in agriculture. Therefore, we shouldn’t stall. We are developing technologies that will allow us to produce food with no cost to nature and deliver it to consumers. When choosing such food, people will make a positive impact on climate change every day,” says Kęstutis Juščius, CEO of AUGA group.
The first climate-neutral tractor prototype developed by the company was introduced in September 2021. According to the head of AUGA group, one AUGA M1 tractor can save up to 100 tonnes of CO2 emissions per year. In addition, the tractor is powered by biomethane extracted from agricultural waste right at the source. The greenest of biofuels in its production and use cycle, biomethane compensates for more emissions per unit of energy than it emits itself.
This solution is unique in that it has solved the technological barriers that have existed so far, barriers that prevented adapting the sustainable machinery offered by other manufacturers for professional agricultural work.
“The AUGA group engineering team has found solutions to solve the problem of biomethane replenishment and ensure uninterrupted operation of the tractor for a full work-day. This innovation will be available not only to AUGA group farms, but also to farmers around the world who want to work sustainably. And there definitely is a need for this. Even though the tractor is still being tested and prepared mass production, there is already considerable interest from local and foreign farmers in what we have created,” says K. Juščius.
In November of this year, the company signed a cooperation agreement on contract manufacturing of tractors with Rokiškio Mašinų gamykla, which specialises in the production of various agricultural machinery. The AUGA group plans to start mass tractor production in 2022. This innovation will reach the company’s farms first and, later, other farmers.