Kia Corporation today announced its commitment to go carbon neutral by 2045 and also plans for a fully electric product lineup. By 2045, Kia plans to reduce 97% of the company’s 2019 level of carbon emissions. Kia also previewed the Concept EV9 ahead of its AutoMobility LA reveal. The manufacturer is committing full electrification in major markets by 2040.
“For us, it is not only about setting goals and reaching targets. It is about setting a vision that will inspire others to join the movement to benefit humanity and protect the environment,” said Hosung Song, President and CEO of Kia. “In line with our vision of becoming a sustainable mobility solutions provider, we commit to achieving carbon neutrality by 2045.”
Kia aims to fully electrify its vehicle line-up in Europe by 2035. From 2040, Kia’s line-up in key markets around the globe will also exclusively consist of electrified models.
Kia has also today revealed the first official images of the Concept EV9 which is an important milestone of Kia’s commitment to sustainable mobility solutions. The Concept EV9 hints at Kia’s next model in the dedicated BEV line-up based on the Electric Global Modular Platform (E-GMP) architecture, following in the footsteps of the Kia EV6.
Kia is also working with its suppliers to reduce carbon emissions from the parts supply stage. Kia aims to create a carbon emissions monitoring system for its partner companies by 2022 and will provide solutions to its suppliers based on the resulting data. A key element to this plan is the use of ‘green steel’, as the steel industry has traditionally been one of the biggest global carbon emitters.
In an effort to build a sustainable future, Kia will also work with ‘The Ocean Cleanup’, the non-profit organisation developing and scaling technologies to rid the world’s oceans of plastic. To effectively rid the oceans of plastic, plastic waste currently in ocean needs to be cleaned and new plastic should be stopped from entering the oceans. ‘The Ocean Cleanup’ to this aim developed ‘Interceptor’ to be deployed in rivers around the world to prevent plastic trash from entering the oceans.
Kia is planning to increase the company’s percentage of plastic re-use to 20% by 2030. The company also plans to implement plastic recycling processes during the vehicle disposal stage. Once established, the process will increase the re-use percentage of used batteries and plastic. Furthermore, Kia is planning to conduct pilot projects on second-life battery energy storage systems (SLBESS) with external partners from 2022.
Kia aims to achieve zero emissions across all aspects of its business – including all production sites – by 2045 after Hyundai Motor Group and its key subsidiaries announced their plan to join the RE100 initiative in July. Climate Group’s RE100 is an initiative to transition to 100% renewable energy in electricity generation.
For Kia’s overseas sites, all electricity will be sourced from renewable energy by 2030; and by 2040 that transition will be complete for all of Kia’s domestic business sites. In line with Kia’s RE100 commitment, Kia’s Slovakia production facility has already turned to 100% green energy in electricity generation.
To help accomplish this goal, Kia will actively transition to solar energy electricity generation for business sites in Korea, US, China, and India.
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