SP Member News Roundup – August 2023

SP provides a forum for global automotive manufacturers and their large and small suppliers 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 2023 highlighting efforts of SP member companies and partners to advance initiatives with positive environmental impact.

• American Battery Technology Company and TechMet-Mercuria Initiate Strategic Partnership for Marketing and Sales of Recycled Battery Metal Products, American Battery Technology Company and TechMet-Mercuria announced the initiation of their strategic partnership. Learn More.
• American Battery Technology Company Finalizes Purchase of Commercial-Scale Battery Recycling Facility, American Battery Technology Company has finalized the purchase of its commercial-scale battery recycling facility located in the Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center at 2500 Peru Drive, McCarran, Nevada. Learn More.
• Call2Recycle’s Innovative EV Battery Tracking Software Powers Logistics for Ascend Elements, Call2Recycle, Inc. and Ascend Elements have entered into a strategic partnership to safely manage EV batteries at end-of-life. The partnership will facilitate efforts to establish a circular supply chain through Call2Recycle’s dynamic GreenTraxEV platform. Learn More.
• Startups Converge on The Heritage Group Accelerator to Advance Sustainable Solutions in Hardtech, The Heritage Group Accelerator announced the selection of nine groundbreaking companies in its 2023 Hardtech Accelerator program at The Heritage Group’s cutting-edge innovation hub in Indianapolis. Learn More.
• Cummins and Chevron Advance Strategic Collaboration, Cummins Inc. and Chevron U.S.A. Inc., a subsidiary of Chevron Corporation, announced a memorandum of understanding to leverage complementary positioning in hydrogen, natural gas and other lower carbon fuel value chains. Learn More.
• Cummins Reports Progress On Key ESG Goals In 20th Annual Sustainability Progress Report, Cummins has posted its 20th annual Sustainability Progress Report, disclosing reductions in greenhouse gases (GHGs) and water consumption while establishing the foundation for progress on other 2030 environmental goals. Learn More.
• DENSO Sets Scope 3 as a New Target to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Acquires SBT Certification, DENSO Corporation announced that it has set Scope 3 as a new target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and has acquired SBT certification from the Science Based Targets initiative, an international initiative, in addition to the targets of Scope 1 and Scope 2. Learn More.
• Eaton invests more than $500 million in North American manufacturing to support electrification, energy transition and digitalization across industries, Intelligent power management company Eaton has announced significant investments in its North American manufacturing and operations to support rapidly growing demand for its electrical solutions. Learn More.
• Ford Launches Home Charging Pilot Program with Duke Energy for EV Customers to Save Money and Support Grid Sustainability, Ford announced a pilot program with Duke Energy to provide electric vehicle customers in their service area with a chance to save money, increase the use of renewable energy and support electric grid resiliency while charging at home. Learn More.
• EcoProBM, SK ON, Ford Investing in Quebec; Building Cathode Plant To Solidify EV Supply Chain in North America, SK On, EcoProBM and Ford are announcing an investment of C$1.2 billion to build a cathode manufacturing facility that will provide materials that ultimately supply batteries for Ford’s future electric vehicles. Once production begins in the first half of 2026, the site will have the capacity to produce up to 45,000 tonnes of CAM per year. Learn More.
• GM Invests in AI and Battery Materials Innovator Mitra Chem, General Motors is leading a $60 million Series B financing round in Mitra Chem, a Silicon Valley-based, AI-enabled battery materials innovator. The company’s AI-powered platform and advanced research and development facility in Mountain View, California, will help accelerate GM’s commercialization of affordable electric vehicle batteries. Learn More.
• Huntsman Receives Supplier Award from Toyota Boshoku Europe for its Sustainability Improvement Support, Huntsman announced that its automotive team has been given a special Supplier Award by Toyota Boshoku Europe, the European HQ of the Japanese automotive component manufacturer. The award recognizes the contribution that Huntsman’s polyurethanes team makes in supporting Toyota Boshoku’s sustainability improvement efforts. Learn More.
• Hankook Tire receives Korean tire industry’s first SBTi approval for its GHG emission reduction target, Hankook Tire & Technology has received approval from the Science Based Targets initiative for its near-term 2030 greenhouse gas reduction goals and net-zero target by 2050, helping the company gain momentum in the realization of its ‘2050 Carbon Neutrality Roadmap. Learn More.
• From Shirts to Insulators: Recycled Honda Uniforms Find New Utility in Vehicles, Honda associates put a lot into the products they make, now including the shirts right off their backs. Honda is advancing a recycling initiative that takes uniforms worn by associates at its U.S. manufacturing and R&D facilities and transforms them into sound-absorbing insulation for use in Honda and Acura automobiles. Learn More.
• Li-Cycle Starts Operations at its First European Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Facility, One of the Largest on the Continent, Li-Cycle Holdings Corp., a lithium-ion battery resource recovery company, is pleased to announce the start of commercial operations at its first Spoke recycling facility in Europe, located in Magdeburg, Germany. Learn More.
• Magna Commits to Achieve Net-Zero by 2050, Magna is taking a significant step forward in its commitment to sustainability and environmental stewardship by submitting net-zero emissions targets for validation by the Science Based Targets initiative, the widely-accepted benchmark for decarbonization targets in line with the Paris Climate Agreement. Learn More.
• SBTi validates Norican’s near-term and net-zero targets, The Science-Based Targets initiative – a partnership between the UN Global Compact, CDP, World Resources Institute and World Wide Fund for Nature – has validated Norican Group’s near-term science-based emissions reduction target. Learn More.
• Stellantis Invests in CTR to Strengthen Low Emissions U.S. Lithium Production, Stellantis N.V. and Controlled Thermal Resources Holdings Inc. announced a major investment of over $100 million from Stellantis to advance the development of CTR’s Hell’s Kitchen project, the world’s largest geothermal lithium project with a total resource capacity to produce up to 300,000 metric tons of lithium carbonate equivalent each year. Learn More.
• Environmental Icon Dr. Jane Goodall’s Roots & Shoots Youth Program Sustainability Supported by Toyota, Jane Goodall’s Roots & Shoots youth program, created by Dr. Jane Goodall, DBE, founder of the Jane Goodall Institute, and UN Messenger of Peace will be supported by a new initiative and partnership in alignment with Toyota Motor North America’s sustainability goals. Learn More.
• Toyota West Virginia Never Sheepish on Ren-EWE-able Energy, Sheer genius. That’s the phrase being used to describe Toyota West Virginia’s newest environmental initiative. To maintain the area around the facility’s 5-acre solar array, a herd of 20 sheep has been called in to perform some important “lambscaping.” Learn More.
• New White Paper Illustrates How the Automotive Industry Can Employ Nature-Based Solutions to Prevent Pollution, WHC (Wildlife Habitat Council) offers a new white paper available for download, Nature-based Solutions to Prevent Pollution and Support Biodiversity | Opportunities for the Automotive Industry. This white paper is sponsored by General Motors and is available for free on their website. Learn 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.