Gevo has entered into a partner agreement with Google Cloud to measure and verify the efficacy of next-generation biofuels across the supply chain via full lifecycle sustainability data tracking. Utilizing technology developed by Verity Tracking , a division of Gevo, the collaboration is expected to enable users to track and... Read more →

As part of a broader initiative to accelerate the use of sustainable technologies in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, Bridgestone Americas (Bridgestone) announced plans to debut Firestone Firehawk race tires made with guayule natural rubber grown and extracted at the company’s guayule R&D; facilities in Arizona. (Earlier post.) The guayule race... Read more →

Aston Martin announced its new sustainability strategy, Racing.Green. Launched on Earth Day, Racing.Green. formalizes core principles, aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, that reflect Aston Martin’s established approach to sustainability and sets new targets across all aspects of the business. The company is joining a list of companies committing... Read more →

Teijin Frontier Co., Ltd., the Teijin Group’s fibers and products converting company, has developed an eco-friendly staple polyester nanofiber that offers excellent performance to reinforce rubber uses in products including automotive tires, hoses and belts. Staple fibers—textile fibers of discrete length—are used to strengthen rubber in products required to withstand... Read more →

A study by three French institutes—Ifremer, the University of Bordeaux and the IRD (a public research institution)—has found that the surface water of the Atlantic Ocean is twice as polluted by cellulose fibers as it is by microplastics. This study, based on measurements taken from an offshore race boat, also... Read more →

An EIT RawMaterials-supported vanadium recovery joint venture in Finland between two Australian project development companies—Critical Metals Ltd and Neometals Ltd—plans to increase high-purity vanadium production in Europe for use in grid-scale vanadium redox flow batteries (VRFBs), specialty steel applications and next-generation lithium vanadium cells. The Vanadium Recovery Project (VRP) is... Read more →

ResponsibleSteel has awarded its first certification to a steelmaking site in Latin America: ArcelorMittal Tubarão. ArcelorMittal Tubarão is the third-largest Brazilian producer of rolled flat steels. The company manufactures flat steel products—primarily hot-rolled plates and coils—for both domestic and international markets. ArcelorMittal Tubarão Launched in 2015, ResponsibleSteel sets global standards... Read more →

The Audi Environmental Foundation is developing filters for urban runoff in conjunction with the Technical University of Berlin (TUB). The filters prevent tire wear particles and other environmentally harmful substances from being washed into sewers and bodies of water along with rainwater. Initial field and lab tests have now demonstrated... Read more →

The International Lithium Association (ILiA), the not-for-profit industry association representing the global lithium value chain, announced a wide-ranging agreement with TDi Sustainability to explore standards and environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues in the lithium industry. The transition to lower-carbon transport and power will require a vast quantity of lithium... Read more →

The Volkswagen Group has joined the Initiative for Responsible Mining Assurance (IRMA), an alliance of enterprises, mining companies and non-profit organizations developing standards for responsible extraction of raw materials in mining. These standards cover a range of issues, including working health and safety and environmental protection. With its electrification strategy,... Read more →

Canada-based Rock Tech Lithium will collaborate with the Fraunhofer Institute for Environmental, Safety and Energy Technology UMSICHT and Circulor, the UK-based sustainable supply chain traceability provider, to achieve comprehensive CO2 transparency of Rock Tech’s lithium value chain—from the raw material, spodumene, to the end product, lithium hydroxide. Rock Tech, which... Read more →

The BMW Group has joined the cross-sector “Responsible Lithium Partnership” project. The aim of the project is to reach a shared understanding of responsible management of natural resources with local interest groups and develop a vision for the future of the Salar de Atacama salt flat in Chile. The “Responsible... Read more →

Some of the world’s leading automotive industry suppliers, including SSAB steel, Hydro renewable energy, ZF electric powertrains, ZKW control systems and Autoliv safety equipment, are joining forces with intent to collaborate on the Polestar 0 Project, which aims to develop a truly climate-neutral car by 2030 (earlier post). Polestar has... Read more →

FREYR Battery announced that the Research Council of Norway, Innovation Norway, and Siva have granted $11 million (NOK 100 million) through the Norwegian Green Platform initiative to a consortium of companies, including FREYR. The initiative is intended to provide a platform to establish sustainable battery production. The consortium of companies... Read more →

The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company has released a demonstration tire with 70% sustainable-material content. The 70% sustainable-material tire includes 13 featured ingredients across nine different tire components, including: Carbon black is included in tires for compound reinforcement and to help increase their life and has traditionally been made by... Read more →

Deutsche Post DHL Group is introducing a global DHL Green Carrier Certification to reward road transport subcontractors for their efforts to become more sustainable. As part of its sustainability roadmap, Deutsche Post DHL Group aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to below 29 million tons by 2030 and net-zero by... Read more →

General Motors has joined the Initiative for Responsible Mining Assurance (IRMA), adding another element to company programs that support the sustainability and human rights of the EV supply chain. IRMA advances responsible mining practice through a comprehensive set of standards covering the four principles of Business Integrity, Planning for Positive... Read more →

FREYR Battery, a developer of clean, next-generation battery cell production capacity, has become a member of the Fair Cobalt Alliance (FCA) to underscore FREYR’s commitment to developing a sustainable global battery industry. The FCA is a multi-stakeholder action platform committed to developing responsible and fair supply of artisanal mined cobalt... Read more →

FREYR Battery, a developer of clean, next-generation battery cell production capacity and Glencore International AG, one of the world’s largest global diversified natural resource companies, have signed a contract for the supply of up to 1,500 metric tons of high-grade, sustainably-sourced cobalt metal cut cathodes made from partially recycled cobalt... Read more →

At its recent “Kia Sustainability Movement” virtual presentation, Kia Corporation announced a commitment to achieve carbon neutrality throughout its value chain by 2045. Achieving carbon neutrality will be based on three key pillars: Sustainable Mobility; Sustainable Planet; and Sustainable Energy. The pillars will guide Kia in its efforts to reduce... Read more →

The first automaker to collaborate with dairy farms on renewable energy projects, BMW of North America and California Bioenergy (CalBio) announced an expanded partnership to include Bar 20 Dairy, a farm based in Kerman, CA. The collaboration aims to power EVs in California with clean energy, and generate cleaner air... Read more →

Mercedes-Benz Vans has unveiled the SUSTAINEER (SUSTAINability pionEER) to give an impression of how sustainability in urban delivery operations may look in the future. The fully electric van—based on the Mercedes-Benz eSprinter—combines a variety of innovative solutions designed to improve the quality of life in cities; to conserve resources and... Read more →

Urbix Inc., a US-based processor of battery-grade graphite, and Circulor, a leading sustainable supply chain traceability provider, announced a strategic partnership for transparency and accountability in sourcing and processing graphite that is used in advanced batteries. Urbix will utilize Circulor’s technology to track and trace its graphite as it changes... Read more →

The Second UN Global Sustainable Transport Conference concluded with a call to accelerate progress towards achieving sustainable transport that would result in major reductions in greenhouse gas emissions and in improving the lives of millions of people. The Conference participants agreed that without a profound shift to sustainable mobility, achieving... Read more →

With demand for lithium set to rise over the next decade, Roskill has examined the various ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) concerns that downstream investors and customers face in sourcing lithium products. As sustainability has been brought to the forefront of the lithium debate, producers have sought to underscore their... Read more →

Re|Source, a solution to trace responsibly produced cobalt from the mine to the electric vehicle (earlier post), acknowledged the progress made by Tesla in implementing the pilot project across its supply chain. Tesla has been a key partner in designing and implementing the solution, which was officially announced on 20... Read more →

A region of the central Pacific—the Clarion Clipperton Fracture Zone (CCFZ)—is estimated to contain vast reserves of polymetallic nodules that are rich in nickel and cobalt—minerals that are commonly mined on land for the production of lithium-ion batteries in electric vehicles, laptops, and mobile phones. Deep-sea-mining schemes propose sending down... Read more →

BHP will supply Tesla Inc. with nickel from BHP’s Nickel West asset in Western Australia; BHP says that Nickel West is one of the most sustainable and lowest carbon emission nickel producers in the world. Nickel is a key metal used in Tesla’s battery technology. Demand for nickel in batteries... Read more →

A new study from WCS (Wildlife Conservation Society) and WWF finds that nearly 20% of tropical Intact Forest Landscapes (IFLs) overlap with concessions for extractive industries such as mining, oil and gas. The total area of overlap is 376,449 square miles (975,000 square kilometers), about the size of Egypt. The... Read more →

In an open-access study published in the journal Sustainable Cities and Society, Francesco Orsi, of the Landscape Architecture and Spatial Planning Group, Wageningen University & Research, the Netherlands, suggests that widespread adoption of electric vehicles may have a negative impact on land use. Electric vehicles (EVs) are widely regarded as... Read more →

BMW i Ventures has invested in Natural Fiber Welding, Inc. (NFW), a creator of all-natural, plastic-free alternatives to animal- or petrochemical-based materials such as leathers, foams, and textiles. The financing round will enable the company to scale from the batch processing of materials to commercial roll-to-roll production. NFW has developed... Read more →

Several companies have initiated a “Responsible Lithium Partnership” aiming to work towards responsible natural resource management, including lithium, in Chile’s Salar de Atacama. This cross-industry partnership is funded at its inception by BASF, Daimler AG, Fairphone, and Volkswagen Group. The partnership intends to foster a dialogue among local stakeholders, generating—and... Read more →

Europe’s demand for biodiesel for cars and trucks has likely wiped out forests the size of the Netherlands since the introduction of the EU’s green fuels law in 2010, according to a new study by Transport & Environment (T&E;). T&E; is calling on the EU to end support to palm... Read more →

An editorial in the journal Nature calls on policy makers, industry leaders and researchers to mitigate quickly the environmental and human costs of Li-ion batteries. Li-ion batteries currently are the indispensable enabling technology for electric vehicles and the electric grid, the latter due to the need to store energy from... Read more →

Porsche is making further efforts to reduce CO₂ emissions in its supply chain: the sports car manufacturer is calling for its around 1,300 series suppliers to use exclusively renewable energy in the manufacture of Porsche components as of July 2021. It applies to any contracts awarded for providing production material... Read more →

Ford is working with its international nonprofit and grantmaking partners to support and promote a pilot program that will empower women working in the copper and cobalt supply chains in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The region has emerged as a key resource for critical metals that have become... Read more →

The BMW Group has created a closed-loop material cycle for tungsten used in drill and milling bits for industrial machinery used in producing cars; the company is collecting old drill and milling bits at its plants in Germany and Austria for recycling. The secondary tungsten obtained in this way will... Read more →

Fisker aims to produce a climate-neutral vehicle by 2027. In line with its environmental, social, and governance (ESG) strategy announced in May, Fisker will not purchase offsets to achieve this goal. The company seeks to utilize only climate-neutral materials in products and use only climate-neutral services to support the business.... Read more →

A total investment of $8.1 trillion in nature is required over the next three decades to successfully tackle the climate, biodiversity, and land degradation crises, according to the State of Finance for Nature report released by the World Economic Forum, UN Environment Programme (UNEP), and the Economics of Land Degradation... Read more →

The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) is awarding Alcoa of Australia $8.8 million (A$11.3 million) toward testing the potential use of renewable energy in a Mechanical Vapor Recompression (MVR) process for alumina refining. Total project cost is US$21.9 million (A$28.2 million). The development project has the potential to reduce carbon... Read more →

Major metals and mining companies CMOC, Eurasian Resources Group (ERG) and Glencore, in collaboration with battery material supplier Umicore, are piloting Re|Source, a solution to trace responsibly produced cobalt from the mine to the electric car. A global EV pioneer and one of the world’s leading battery makers are also... Read more →

The BMW Group is stepping up its activities in the field of sustainability, becoming the first automotive manufacturer worldwide to equip its cars with tires using certified sustainable natural rubber and rayon, a wood-based material used to strengthen the tires. The company will source 22-inch tires in the first instance... Read more →

Continental is extending its commitment to sustainability in the natural rubber supply chain. The tire manufacturer and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) have agreed on a significant expansion of their project to ensure full traceability of the natural rubber supply chain in the Indonesian province... Read more →

Despite all the restrictions caused by the coronavirus pandemic, Dürr has handed over one of the biggest paint shops in China to SAIC Volkswagen (SVW) on schedule. The new plant in Anting boasts a production capacity twice that of a standard paint shop at 120 bodies per hour, and behind... Read more →

The BMW Group has launched an initiative to protect the deep seas in cooperation with the WWF Germany. In a joint declaration, the BMW Group, WWF and other companies—including the Volvo Group—undertake, as a precautionary measure, not to use deep-ocean minerals or finance deep-sea mining until comprehensive scientific research into... Read more →

To support its accelerated expansion of e-mobility in the coming years, the BMW Group will source lithium from a second leading supplier, US-based Livent. The value of the multi-year contract will total around €285 million. Livent will supply the lithium directly to the BMW Group’s battery cell manufacturers from 2022... Read more →

Mercedes-Benz is expanding its green power portfolio in cooperation with the energy supplier Enovos and the Norwegian energy producer Statkraft. From 2022 onwards, the company will purchase electricity in Germany which comes exclusively from renewable sources. A green power supply contract ensures the purchase of electricity from renewable energy sources... Read more →

As part of a pilot project, Audi is procuring 20-inch wheels for the Audi e-tron GT electric car that are made from low-CO2 emission aluminum supplied by Alcoa to RONAL GROUP, the wheel’s manufacturer. Alcoa is supplying aluminum for Audi’s pilot project from a self-developed, innovative smelting process that emits... Read more →

Deutsche Post DHL Group will invest a total of €7 billion (opex and capex) over the next ten years in measures to reduce its CO2 emissions. The funds will flow in particular into alternative aviation fuels, the expansion of the zero-emission e-vehicle fleet and climate-neutral buildings. For short distances and... Read more →

The US Department of Energy (DOE) is awarding $27.5 million to 16 water infrastructure projects. Modern technology has the potential to reduce energy use in aging water infrastructure, particularly in wastewater treatment, which demands up to 2% of domestic electricity use each year. These projects, operating in 13 states, have... Read more →