In 2040, volvo Cars will become a global benchmark for zero-load climates to create a net zero emissions sample for car companies

Reporter Xia Zhibin Shi Yingjing reported from Shanghai

From April 27 to 29, as one of the important warm-up activities of the "Stockholm+50" Global Summit in various countries in the world, the three-day "Stockholm+50" China Stakeholder Dialogue jointly organized by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) was held at the United Nations Building in Beijing.

It is reported that the "Stockholm+50" Chinese stakeholder dialogue will focus on important issues such as the environmental dimension of human development, prosperity and sustainable development goals (SDGs), focusing on financial, technological and business actions for experience exchange and knowledge sharing, aiming to provide a reference for decision-making and enhance the influence of decision-making, thereby accelerating the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals and advancing the environmental agenda of China and the global climate.

The reporter of China Business Daily noted that Volvo Cars, as the only invited representative of automobile manufacturing enterprises, attended the meeting together with representatives of political and business circles, academic circles and youth. In the roundtable on the theme "Innovative Solutions for Equitable and Low-Carbon Transformation for Enterprises", Volvo Cars answered questions based on the important role of automotive companies in the field of net zero emissions, as well as its own forward-looking innovative technologies and experiences.

As we all know, with the implementation of the international climate governance process and the zero-carbon strategy, people will face a profound and extensive technological revolution, energy revolution, production revolution and consumption revolution, ushering in a new ecological civilization and a pioneering new era. Due to the environmental impact of factors such as vehicle exhaust emissions, automotive companies have an obligation to continue to innovate and become an important part of the solution.

(Schwitt, Vice President Strategy & Products, Volvo Cars Asia Pacific)

"Automotive supply chains have their own special complexity and depth, and enterprising companies should take the lead, as our climate action and demand for upstream and downstream of the value chain will cross industrial boundaries and become powerful catalysts for many of the world's economic and industrial transformations, including electrical and electronics, steel, aluminum, plastics and more." David Sweet, Vice President of Strategy and Products, Volvo Cars Asia Pacific, said at the roundtable forum.

"In the whole process, we have seen a strong impetus brought by the industrialization of electric vehicles, especially the important role that China's power battery industry can play. Full electrification will significantly change the way consumers use cars, which will facilitate the evolution and upgrading of our business models accordingly. Schweitt said.

But electrification alone is not enough, automotive companies must innovate across the value chain and take multiple measures at the same time. It is reported that Volvo Cars has taken the lead in implementing an internal carbon price of 1,000 Swedish kronor per ton of carbon dioxide emissions in the enterprise since 2021. Each future model project will be "sustainably value-proven" and a "carbon cost" will be calculated for every tonne of predictable carbon emissions over the life cycle of the vehicle, guiding project, procurement and manufacturing-related decisions in the most sustainable direction.

"We must also focus on the use of carbon-neutral energy sources, as well as the circular economy of cars and so on. These will provide us with more perspectives and solutions for practicing sustainable development. Schweitt added.

The reporter noted that as early as June 5, 1972, when the United Nations held the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment in Stockholm, Sweden, Volvo participated in it and issued the first "environmental declaration" of the automotive industry. In the 50 years since, Volvo Cars' sustainability efforts have never stopped.

In 2017, Volvo Cars pioneered a comprehensive electrification strategy in the industry. In 2019, Volvo Cars announced its 2040 Environment Plan, which aims to become a global climate-neutral benchmark by 2040. As a medium-term goal, Volvo Cars plans to reduce the total life cycle carbon emissions of each vehicle by an average of 40% between 2018 and 2025. Among them, exhaust emissions were reduced by 50%, and supply chain and overall operating emissions were reduced by 25%.

It is worth mentioning that Volvo Cars' carbon emissions in the first quarter of 2022 have decreased by 13.4% compared with 2018, which means that it is one step closer to achieving the goal of reducing carbon emissions by an average of 40% per car throughout its life cycle in 2025.

The reporter learned that in order to reduce carbon emissions, Volvo Cars Asia Pacific combines regional market characteristics and current conditions, paying special attention to building an electrification ecosystem, continuously increasing the energy consumption of the whole vehicle, adopting circular design and innovative manufacturing processes, and continuously reducing the carbon footprint by promoting the application of renewable energy in the whole value chain.

In addition, volvo Cars has also built its first battery and motor test room and battery assembly plant outside Europe; its manufacturing base in China and its headquarters in asia-Pacific have all achieved carbon neutrality of electric energy and continuously improved its own power generation capacity; and it will further explore cutting-edge technologies such as battery recycling through the combination of production, education and research.

In terms of carbon emissions data, Volvo Cars has always paid attention to data disclosure and sharing, and the sustainability report has been incorporated into the company's annual report since 2016. From the third quarter of 2021, Volvo Cars will disclose carbon emissions data on a quarterly basis, and from 2022, it will disclose the financial performance of the electric and non-electric businesses on a quarterly basis.

At the twenty-sixth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP26) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, Volvo Cars signed the Glasgow Declaration on Net Zero Emissions from Vans with industry and government leaders. Volvo Cars said that the signing of the above declaration shows Volvo Cars' support for the "net zero" goal, and hopes that the industry and the government can accelerate the pace of eliminating fossil fuel vehicles.

Volvo Cars also said: "The company is continuing to strengthen the sustainable development capacity building of the upstream and downstream of the industrial chain, and also calls on the automotive industry to form a broad synergy to make rapid and transformative adjustments and changes, and to rethink business operations, consumption and lifestyles through the development of innovative solutions and technologies to curb climate change and protect the ecology." ”

(Editor: Quartzing Proofreader: Yan Jingning)