BMW bets on solar aluminium made in UAE

German carmaker BMW AG (ETR:BMW) will be sourcing aluminium produced using solar power generated in the UAE under a new contract with current supplier Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA).

Specifically, EGA will deliver 43,000 tonnes of aluminium in 2021, made using electricity from the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, the huge ongoing solar project in Dubai that once fully completed will have a total power generating capacity of 5,000 MW.

BMW will process the solar aluminium in the light metal foundry at the BMW Group Plant Landshut. The volume to be sourced under the new contract will supply nearly half the annual requirements of the facility.

According to the announcement, EGA is the first company in the world to also use solar electricity for the commercial production of aluminium and will initially supply exclusively to the BMW Group.

The contract, valued in the three-digit million euros range, reflects the strategy of the car manufacturer to lower carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in its supplier network by 20% from 2019 levels by 2030.

Andreas Wendt, member of BMW’s management board, is confident that the group will be able to meet more than 50% of its CO2 targets for the supplier network just through the use of green power.

Committing to solar aluminium in the long term will eliminate about 2.5 million tonnes of CO2 emissions over the next ten years. The group has also agreed with suppliers to only use green power in the production process for its current fifth-generation battery cells. Moreover, it has pledged to increase the percentage of recycled raw materials substantially and has set carbon footprint as a new contract award criterion for its supply chain.

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