The BMW Group has announced plans to start using aluminum wheels produced in a more sustainable way from 2024. The Mini brand will begin this move to production based largely on recycled aluminum, as of next year.
From 2024, the BMW Group will use cast aluminum wheels produced 100% from green energy for its BMW and Mini models. In fact, the use of recycled materials will help avoid the energy-intensive electrolysis process used for primary aluminum production. For the German group, this is another step towards its goal of creating the cleanest and most sustainable supply chain possible.
This notably involves melting down old wheels as part of the circular economy. This means that energy-intensive electrolysis is no longer required to produce the necessary raw material, which is here recycled.
It is the group's Mini brand that will launch the use of these light-alloy wheels, cast from 70% secondary aluminum, in the new generation Countryman in 2023.
Each year, the group buys about 10 million light-alloy wheels. Since 2021, BMW has been sourcing aluminum from the United Arab Emirates that is manufactured exclusively using solar-generated electricity. The use of recycled aluminum is expected to reduce BMW's CO2 emissions by about 500,000 tonnes per year.
Today, wheel production accounts for about 5% of the CO2 emissions in the supply chain. This transition should reduce such emissions by half. Ultimately, BMW's goal is to be able to reduce emissions throughout the supply chain by about 20% by 2030, compared to 2020 levels.
