(March 15, 2021) MUNICH, Germany — The BMW Group is systematically implementing its sustainability goals. As announced last week, the company is investing in an innovative method for CO2-free steel production developed by American startup Boston Metal, through its venture capital fund, BMW i Ventures. Over the coming years, Boston Metal plans to expand the new method for steel production on an industrial scale. The investment is part of the BMW Group’s far-reaching sustainability activities aimed at significantly reducing CO2 emissions across the supplier network.

“We systematically identify the raw materials and components in our supplier network with the highest CO2 emissions from production. Steel is one of them, but it is vital to car production. For this reason, we have set ourselves the goal of continuously reducing CO2 emissions in the steel supply chain. By 2030, CO2 emissions should be about two million tonnes lower than today’s figure,” said Dr Andreas Wendt, member of the Board of Management of BMW AG responsible for Purchasing and Supplier Network.

With its versatile properties, steel is one of the most important materials in car production and will be no less important for future vehicle generations. Even with the dynamic ramp-up of electromobility, steel will remain an important building material for car bodies and many components. BMW Group press plants in Europe process more than half a million tonnes of steel per year.
 
The blast furnaces used in conventional steel production generate carbon dioxide. The startup Boston Metal uses electricity for its new technology, which, by means of an electrolysis cell, produces molten iron that is later processed into steel. If electricity from renewable energies is used for this process, then steel production is carbon-free. The young company will build demonstration facilities for this process over the next few years and further develop it for use on an industrial scale.

The BMW Group established close contact with Boston Metal already last year in the context of its own research activities and through the BMW Startup Garage. The company is now investing in the startup as part of its i Ventures activities. Tadeu Carneiro, chairman and CEO of Boston Metal: “Our investors span across the steel value chain, from the upstream mining and iron ore companies to the downstream end customer, and validate Boston Metal’s innovative process to produce high-quality steel, cost-competitively, and at scale.”
 
Investing in new technologies is one of many steps the BMW Group is taking to meet its ambitious targets for the steel supply chain. For example, low-carbon production is an important award criterion for every contract.
“It is important to us that our partners are firmly committed to sustainable action and use production technologies with low -carbon emissions,” added Wendt. “The use of green power also has a major impact. We are already working with suppliers who use only green power for the steel they produce for us.”
 
To safeguard reserves of raw materials, the BMW Group has set itself the goal of further increasing its percentage of recycled raw materials, so-called secondary material, by 2030 and using raw materials multiple times in a circular economy.

All steel waste produced at the press plants — for example, when doors are punched out — is either reused through a direct material cycle or sent back to the steel producer via steel traders and processed into new steel. The use of secondary material reduces CO2 emissions substantially compared to primary material, conserves natural resources and also reduces the amount of energy needed for production.