Ford takes a step closer to achieving its goal of carbon neutrality in Europe by 2035
Ford has announced the signing of several agreements to secure the supply of low-carbon steel for its future vehicles. As a first application, Ford plans to use low-carbon steel for the production, from 2023, of its new all-electric mid-size crossover vehicle, which will be produced in Cologne, Germany.
To this end, Ford has announced the signing of Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) with Tata Steel Nederland B.V., Salzgitter Flachstahl GmbH and ThyssenKrupp Steel Europe AG. These agreements are part of its commitment to use 10% carbon neutral steel by 2030 by joining the First Movers Coalition this year, as well as its European strategy to achieve carbon neutrality by 2035.
The company says that upgrades to the production facilities at the Cologne Electrification Centre (where the crossover will be manufactured) with new energy-efficient solutions will save more than 2,000 tonnes of CO2 and more than 2,600 MWh of electrical energy per year. Ford Motor Company’s director of purchasing, supply chain sustainability, Sue Slaughter, said:
“Our customers, like us, want to take care of our planet, and we are taking the necessary steps along this path by providing the vehicles they need to make a positive contribution against climate change, produced in a more sustainable way.
Improvements within our supply chain are key, and with the use of carbon neutral steel we will take an important step towards reducing the CO2 footprint of our vehicles.”
The use of carbon neutral steel is a key focus in the automotive industry, which we have seen similar agreements to Ford’s before, with Volvo being the first to do so through its partnership with SSAB, who also became the first manufacturer to introduce a vehicle made from fossil-free steel, to deliver a construction machine with fossil-free steel and also to use fossil-free steel in its trucks.
Volvo has been followed by other manufacturers such as Mercedes-Benz who also partnered with SSAB, BMW Group with the Swedish company H2 Green Steel and Salgitter AG, and also Volkswagen Group.
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