Partnering up for the green aluminium transition
Aluminium has unique properties making it a key enabler for the green transition, but before it can fully step into the role as a more sustainable material for the future, we need to decarbonize the entire value chain. With like minded partners, Hydro intends to do exactly that.
Marijn Rietveld, Head of Innovation and Strategic Partnerships in Hydro Aluminium Metal, explains why and how Hydro is partnering up with key customers to shape the market for low-carbon solutions and taking the lead in the green aluminium transition.
“Our goals are very ambitious. We want to drive sustainability in our industry and become a net-zero company by 2050, bringing the carbon footprint of our aluminium down to zero. At the same time, our customers need to decarbonize their value chains in the face of growing consumer awareness and regulatory demand. We saw an opportunity to accelerate change by joining forces with select customers, going beyond our company borders to shape the market and develop optimal solutions across industries,” says Marijn, who is a marketing professional with more than 15 years of experience in the aluminium business.
Over the last couple of years, Marijn has overseen the closing of strategic partnership agreements with several key customers, household names like Mercedes-Benz, Porsche and Volvo Group, as well as niche companies like Brompton Bicycles with their iconic folding bikes and the Dutch premium sailing yacht builder Vaan. They all see Hydro’s low-carbon range as a means to reduce the climate footprint and ensure the recyclability of their end products.
“All our partners are best in class, innovative frontrunners pursuing ambitious sustainability goals, but in need of long-term partners to help realize them. That’s where we come in. They are a perfect match for Hydro along our own path to zero,” he says.
Accelerating change with like-minded partners
Shared values and a mutual understanding of the need to take climate action create common ground for collaboration beyond a traditional customer relationship. When Hydro and Porsche signed a letter of intent in April 2023, they took aim at the sports car manufacturer’s ambitious goal to achieve a net carbon-neutral value chain of newly produced vehicles in 2030.
These goals led to a follow-up agreement that opens for reserving production capacity of low-carbon and recycled aluminium for Porsche’s supply chain. The two companies will also collaborate on alloy research and development to bring more recycled content in automotive components.
“Hydro offers unique, long-term agreements between our company and like-minded third parties. When we signed the new agreement with Porsche, we basically put our best people, resources and our best available technologies on the table, a unique offering from all parts of our company to ensure Porsche gets the best of Hydro,” says Marijn, who oversaw the negotiations with Porsche before joining Hydro CEO Eivind Kallevik in Stuttgart to sign the agreement in July 2024.
“By combining Hydro’s low-carbon offerings with customers’ willingness to actively work on decarbonizing their supply chains, we are going beyond commercial transactions to drive sustainability and transparency in the automotive industry. We want to demonstrate what can happen when big industry names take steps together as early movers,” he says.
Offering transparency from mine to metal
Hydro’s activity in the entire aluminium value chain, from bauxite mining and primary production, to extrusion and a rapidly expanding recycling portfolio, is what puts the company in a unique position to offer full transparency throughout all production steps.
The company’s bauxite mining and alumina refining operations are in the state of Pará in Northern Brazil. Operations in such a sensitive, complex and diverse region requires full commitment toward minimizing the environmental footprint and managing social impacts. Reforestation, wildlife management and the development of viable local societies are core elements of Hydro’s sustainability strategy.
“Harvesting resources from nature comes with great responsibility. It matters where and how raw materials are produced. We work continuously to manage our impacts while creating value for our end users, local communities and society. It’s the only possible way of doing business in a vulnerable region like the Brazilian Amazon,” says Marijn.
This work has not gone unnoticed. Mercedes-Benz representatives assessed Hydro’s bauxite and alumina operations in Brazil as part of the strategic partnership negotiations in 2023, and subsequently presented Hydro with its Mercedes-Benz Supplier Award in the sustainability category. At Climate Week 2024 in New York, the two companies continued their collaboration by launching a long-term program to promote positive impacts for people and nature in the Brazilian Amazon.
“The collaboration with Mercedes-Benz is an important recognition of our commitment to decarbonize and minimize environmental impact. At the same time, we have been deeply impressed by Mercedes-Benz’ efforts to secure transparency and traceability throughout their own supply chain. We are proud that Mercedes-Benz sees us as part of the solution,” says Marijn.
Less is more
Closer collaboration across the value chain is crucial toward accelerating technology developments and fulfilling our collective responsibility to cut emissions and reduce environmental impact.
“By entering strategic partnerships with similarly dedicated early movers, we aim to pioneer new business models, and speed up innovation and development of low-carbon solutions. This includes working closely with early adopters of low-carbon technologies to identify the specific capabilities required and invest in the product chain to meet the unique needs of our business partners,” says Marijn.
The Dutch sailing yacht builder Vaan serves as an example of how determined partners with niche products can help change how we think about the circular economy and sustainable living. Motivated by the lack of an adequate mechanism for the responsible scrapping and recycling of recreational boats, Vaan set out to create premium sailing yachts with an uncompromising approach to recyclability. The application of Hydro’s low-carbon sheet ingot material for building catamaran hulls is helping Vaan to realize the vision of a circular product line.
“Our collaboration with Vaan demonstrates that less is more. First, a low-carbon footprint is good for the climate and makes a good selling point, no matter how big or small the volume. Second, after having established multiple, long-term partnerships with a handful of companies we are now deepening our collaboration with them without spreading resources too thinly. That’s when we can increase the impact of our efforts, bring meaningful change and inspire others to follow our example,” Marijn concludes.
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