Polestar is joining forces with some of the world’s leading automotive industry suppliers, including SSAB, Hydro, ZF, ZKW and Autoliv, to collaborate for the development of a truly climate-neutral car. The project will unite companies across the auto supply chain to help the transport sector play its part in reducing climate impact.
Polestar, a Swedish electric performance car company, has signed letters of intent to collaborate with a selection of strategic partners in metals, safety, driving systems and electronics, to focus on Polestar’s Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs) of its current vehicles’ carbon footprints.
The LCAs have helped pinpoint the components and processes involved in producing cars that need to be reimagined to reduce and ultimately eliminate carbon emissions.
Polestar and its partners will focus their attention on the Polestar 0 project. Announced in 2021, this is Polestar’s industry-leading initiative with the goal to create a truly climate-neutral car by 2030 by eliminating emissions from the supply chain and changing the way that cars are made, rather than planting trees to offset CO2 emissions.
Polestar decided to commit to this target for the simple reason that the transport sector is the fastest-growing greenhouse gas (GHG) emitting sector, expected to reach a share of more than 30 percent of total GHG emissions in the future.
Nordic steel and metals producer SSAB intends to collaborate with Polestar on the project for fossil-free steel. This could potentially replace not only conventional steel in a car but also other materials with significant carbon footprints.
Norwegian aluminium and renewable energy company Hydro intends to collaborate on zero-carbon aluminium. The automotive systems supplier ZF intends to explore how their innovation in electric powertrain and overall systems competence could eliminate carbon emissions and save resources.
Automotive safety supplier Autoliv will partner on safety equipment like airbags and seatbelts with zero emissions, while automotive lighting manufacturer ZKW will focus on climate-neutral electrical control systems and wiring.
Thomas Ingenlath, Polestar CEO, said: “It was clear from the start that this is not a solo mission and we are very excited to present such a strong line-up of interested partners, all leaders within their fields. We are leveraging innovation and collaboration to address the climate crisis.”
Polestar has announced an invitation to other suppliers, researchers, universities, entrepreneurs, investors and governmental and non-governmental organisations, for possible collaboration.
On top of the open call, Polestar will be reaching out to researchers from across the globe through the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), the world’s largest academic network, working in support of the sustainable development goals and the Paris Agreement.
Hans Pehrson, Polestar 0 Project leader, said: “We believe in the exponential development of climate solution technologies. For this project, we must tap into solutions that are still in the innovation stage.
“Even more exciting is that the solutions we develop will not only benefit the automotive industry overall but help decarbonise manufacturing and society more widely as well.
“Wherever we look in the world we see materials like steel, aluminium, electronics and rubber. Imagine when we can make these materials climate-neutral to produce. Together, we can make the seemingly impossible possible.”
