SP Member News Roundup – August 2022

SP provides a forum for global automotive manufacturers, their large and small suppliers, the US EPA and other government entities from around the world to work together toward a shared vision of an automotive industry with positive environmental impact.

This monthly series collects recent news and updates through August 2022 highlighting efforts of SP member companies and partners to advance initiatives with positive environmental impact.

• Bolder Industries and Liberty Tire Formalize Partnership to Advance Circularity in the U.S. Market. Bolder Industries, Inc. and Liberty Tire completed a formal agreement outlining their North American partnership. This agreement secures feedstock for the Bolder Industries Terre Haute facility, currently in development, which will process over 3 million end-of-life tires per annum once fully commissioned in 2023. Read more.
• Cirba Solutions President & CEO Accepts Appointment to New Energy Tech Advisory Committee for Argonne National Laboratory. Cirba Solutions President & CEO David Klanecky has accepted an appointment to the External Advisory Committee for the Advanced Energy Technologies Directorate (AET) of the Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory. The newly chartered committee will focus on helping AET fulfill its mission of a country with a sustainable, secure, equitable and prosperous energy future. Read more.
• DENSO Announces Solar Energy Commitment in Partnership with City of Maryville Electric, TVA, and Silicon Ranch. DENSO will participate in a portfolio of solar projects that will help power operations at its Maryville, Tennessee, facility. Through an innovative collaboration with local utility City of Maryville Electric Department, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), and Silicon Ranch Corporation, DENSO will receive a portion of the renewable energy generated by four solar power plants, starting with one located on DENSO’s Maryville campus. Read more.
• DENSO Donates $100K to American Red Cross to Assist Kentucky Flood Recovery. The DENSO North America Foundation (DNAF) has donated $100,000 to the American Red Cross to support flood recovery efforts in Kentucky. DENSO’s donation will help the aid organization deliver its vital shelter, food and health services to people in need. Read more.
• Ford Motor Company And DTE Energy Announce The Largest Renewable Energy Purchase From A Utility In U.S. History. Through a new clean energy agreement with DTE Energy, Ford Motor Company will soon be able to attribute all its electricity supply in Michigan to clean energy, a major step toward Ford’s goal to reach carbon neutrality. As part of the new agreement, DTE will add 650 megawatts of new solar energy capacity in Michigan for Ford by 2025. Read more.
• Ford Releases New Battery Capacity Plan, Raw Materials Details To Scale EVs. As Ford creates a new EV supply chain that upholds its commitments to sustainability and human rights, the company continues to plan for more than half its global production to be EVs by 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality globally no later than 2050. Read more.
• General Motors and Livent Enter Long-Term Lithium Hydroxide Supply Agreement.  Livent and General Motors Co. announced a significant multi-year sourcing agreement in which Livent will supply GM with battery-grade lithium hydroxide made primarily from lithium extracted at Livent’s brine-based operations in South America. Read more.
• LG Chem and General Motors Reach Agreement for Long-Term Supply of Cathode Active Material to Support EV Growth.  LG Chem and General Motors Co. announced a binding agreement for the supply of Cathode Active Material (CAM) from LG Chem to GM. Read more.
• LG Energy Solution and Honda to Form Joint Venture for EV Battery Production in the U.S. LG Energy Solution and Honda Motor Co., Ltd. announced an agreement to establish a joint venture (JV) company to produce lithium-ion batteries in the U.S. to power Honda and Acura EV models for the North American market. With this agreement, LGES and Honda will invest a total of USD $4.4 billion and establish a new JV plant in the U.S. Read more.
• Lear Joins Climate Group’s RE100 Initiative, Committing to 100% Renewable Electricity for its Global Sites by 2030. Lear Corporation announced it has joined Climate Group’s RE100. RE100 members commit to sourcing 100% of the electricity used across their global operations with electricity produced from renewable sources. Read more.
• RACER Trust Honors Lear Corporation for Successful Reuse of Former Buick City Property. RACER Trust announced that Lear Corporation is the winner of a 2022 RACER’s Edge Award for Manufacturing, in recognition of its successful redevelopment and reuse of a portion of the former GM Buick City property in Flint, Mich. Read more.
• Magna Publishes 2021 Sustainability Report. By doing the right things today to ensure a better planet for current and future generations, Magna embraces its ongoing commitment to sustainability. Learn more in its latest sustainability report.
• The Blueprint for Sustainable Automotive Packaging. Magna’s Bridget Grewal speaks to her work with the Suppliers Partnership for the Environment to develop newly updated guidelines for sourcing sustainable packaging designs for automotive manufacturing. Read more.
• Monolith Raises More Than $300 Million in Latest Funding Round Led by TPG Rise Climate, Decarbonization Partners.  Monolith announced its latest investment round of more than $300 million.  Led by TPG Rise Climate, the dedicated climate investing strategy of TPG’s global impact investing platform TPG Rise, with Decarbonization Partners, a partnership between BlackRock and Temasek, as co-lead, the investment marks the latest milestone in the company’s global decarbonization efforts. Read more.
• Toyota, NREL Collaborate to Advance Megawatt-Scale Fuel Cell Systems. Toyota Motor North America is collaborating with the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to build, install and evaluate a 1-megawatt (MW) proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell power generation system at NREL’s Flatirons Campus in Arvada, Colorado. Read more.
• Toyota Responds to Critical Needs Following Unprecedented Kentucky Flooding. Toyota announced $750,000 in donations to assist with immediate needs and long-term recovery efforts following catastrophic flooding in Eastern Kentucky. Toyota employees are also rallying to support immediate needs through donation drives. Read more.
• Yamaha Motor Expediting Carbon Neutrality Goal for Company Factories to 2035. Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. announced that the Company is accelerating its carbon neutrality goal for its factories–including those overseas–to 2035. This represents a 15-year jump as the original target year to achieve carbon neutrality in the revised Yamaha Motor Group Environmental Plan 2050 announced in July 2021 was 2050. Read more.

SP members may send their environmental sustainability news to info@supplierspartnership.org for consideration in future news roundups. And, be sure to follow us on LinkedIn to keep up with the latest SP news and updates.