Circular Economy Opportunities Study for GRDF

Case study

Context

GRDF, operator of France’s main gas distribution network, has committed to halving its greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 compared with 2009.

Purchases of network materials (pipes, meters, tools, biomethane injection stations) account for a significant share of GRDF’s carbon footprint.

Procurement wanted to buy more circular materials to reduce this footprint. But it did not know what circular economy opportunities existed for its materials. It could therefore neither assess the circular economy’s potential for this purchasing category nor engage its suppliers on concrete solutions.

Our approach

GATE C conducted a market study of existing circular offers across GRDF’s 5 material categories (polyethylene pipes and fittings, steel pipes and fittings, network equipment, tools, biomethane injection stations), based on desk research. The study identified and qualified 26 circular offers, each described by its business model, its eco-design principle, and the ecosystem needed to implement it.

GATE C then designed and facilitated, with GRDF, a launch day built around co-creation workshops. These were run using GATE C’s own circular economy card game, a 32-card toolkit split into three families (business models, circular products, circular ecosystems) letting each material category compose and qualify its own opportunities. The day also included an introduction to the circular economy and case studies from other network operators (Alliander, Teréga, Rte).

Results

26 circular solutions identified on the market across GRDF’s 5 material categories

More than 100 suppliers, buyers, and specifiers from GRDF brought together for the launch day

20 circular opportunities qualified and prioritized during the co-creation workshops

The day closed with Laurence Poirier-Dietz, GRDF’s CEO, officially launching the “circular and innovative materials” initiative