Dearborn, Michigan, USA and Shanghai, China, April 30, 2024 – Ford Motor Company today released its 2024 Integrated Sustainability and Financial Report, marking the 25th consecutive year that Ford Motor Co., Ltd. has released its Corporate Sustainability Annual Report. With a vision of "Creating a Better World for Everyone to Move Freely and Pursue Their Dreams," Ford has been promoting its business while fulfilling its corporate social responsibility to contribute to the sustainable development of its communities.
"The automotive industry is undergoing change at breakneck speed and scale, and Ford is seizing the opportunity to help build a better world. Bill Ford, Executive Chairman of Ford Motor Company, and Jim Farley, President and CEO of Ford Motor Company, said, "We remain steadfast in our goal and commitment to achieve full carbon neutrality of our products, operations and supply chain by 2050. ”
Electrification drives the future
In this year's annual report, Ford highlighted initiatives related to the electrification of its products. Ford will provide customers around the world with a wide range of powertrains, including gasoline, hybrid and electric models, with the appropriate software and services to meet the diverse needs of different customers and build long-term, long-lasting customer relationships to drive the company's electrification transformation into a new journey.
First, Ford is committed to expanding its electric vehicle portfolio and building a profitable and efficient electric vehicle business segment. In 2023, Ford's hybrid vehicle sales increased by 20%, and the company's iconic electric models currently on sale include the Ford Electric Horse, F-150 Lightning and E-Transit. In 2024, Ford also plans to launch the all-electric Explorer in the European market, becoming the latest member of Ford's global family of electric vehicles.
Second, Ford will remove a major barrier to EV adoption by expanding the charging network. In North America, Ford has more than 15,000 Tesla Superchargers connected to the network, doubling the number of charging stations available to Ford customers.
In addition, Ford continues to improve its gasoline powertrains, such as the highly innovative 3.5-liter EcoBoost engine and PowerBoost hybrid system, to achieve better fuel economy while meeting increasingly stringent emissions standards.
In China, under the guidance of the company's new China strategy, Ford is accelerating the electrification transition by deepening cooperation with partners in China, especially in the research and development of new energy products, and the local team will make full use of all resources to develop more competitive new energy products that are more suitable for the Chinese market based on the needs of Chinese consumers. At the same time, Ford Motor has also accelerated the launch of hybrid products in the Chinese market, and has launched a total of five hybrid models in the Ford Mondeo, Ford Edge L, Lincoln Z, Lincoln Adventurer and Lincoln Navigator.
Sustainable manufacturing
For Ford, it is important to maintain the harmony between manufacturing and the environment, and to improve the well-being of employees and communities. According to the report, Ford is improving its environmental quality through a range of initiatives such as conserving water, reducing industrial waste, and shifting the entire company to zero-carbon electricity. Thereinto:
Water Resources: Between 2019 and 2023, Ford's absolute use of fresh water decreased by 19.4%. Since 2000, more than 199 billion gallons of water have been saved.
Waste: Currently, Ford has zero waste to landfill at 86 sites around the world. Among them, all of Ford's factories in China have achieved zero waste to landfill.
Energy: In 2023, Ford will use 50.8% renewable electricity and 70.5% of its zero-carbon electricity across its global manufacturing operations, and plans to use 100% zero-carbon electricity in every vehicle manufactured in Michigan by 2026. In China, Ford and its partners, Changan Ford and Jiangling Ford, have installed solar photovoltaic panels at five factories with a total annual installed capacity of 113 megawatts.
In addition, Ford Motor Co., Ltd. is also making breakthroughs in research and innovation in sustainable materials. For example, the development and application of sustainable materials such as seat fabrics made from recycled plastic bottles, soundproofing materials made from denim waste, trunk covers made from bamboo fibres, underbody covers made from waste tires, and wiring harnesses made from rice husks will help reduce dependence on petrochemical materials and reduce environmental impact.
Responsible supply chain
In the area of supply chain management, Ford's goal is to ensure that its global supply chain meets environmental and labor rights standards.
Among them, in terms of electric vehicle and battery procurement, Ford has hundreds of suppliers around the world, providing stable supply of power batteries to them. At present, Ford has applied the Responsible Sourcing Standard to the entire value chain and is leading the way in supply chain mapping and auditing. To date, Ford has mapped five suppliers that supply batteries for Ford vehicles. At the same time, 24% of the 146 upstream suppliers that supply raw materials and components to battery suppliers were audited by Ford. In the future, Ford will audit more upstream suppliers.
In February 2024, Lead the Charge, the world's leading climate coalition, released its second annual automotive supply chain ranking and report. The organization evaluates companies based on the sustainability and fairness of the electric vehicle supply chain, and Ford tops the list for its progress in decarbonizing steel and aluminum, as well as its outstanding performance in responsible sourcing of minerals.
"The global supply chain is a critical part of our efforts to achieve carbon neutrality across the board, and partnering with trusted third parties helps us drive continuous improvement on a global scale. "We are honored to be recognized as the World's Best Automaker by the Lead the Charge Alliance, not only for our efforts to build a supply chain that is good for people and the planet, but also for Ford's purpose to create a better world." ”
Empowering the community
The Ford Philanthropy Center works on the ground with nonprofits and communities around the world where Ford Motor operates to provide financial support and solutions to meet the needs of differentiated communities. In 2023, Ford Motor and Ford Philanthropy Centers donated more than $73.7 million to help strengthen communities in four areas: basic services, education for the future of work, entrepreneurship support and mobility.
In China, since 2000, Ford has been committed to environmental protection, community volunteering, and supporting youth innovation as an important part of building a "better world", and has successively launched the "Ford Environmental Protection Award", "Ford Employee Volunteer Action" and "Ford Mobility Innovation Challenge", which have been integrated into Ford's "Better World" public welfare program. To date, the Ford Environmental Award has funded more than 500 outstanding environmental organizations or projects, with a total of nearly RMB 35 million. More than 20,000 Ford employees and their families participated in community support and other public welfare activities, accumulating more than 120,000 hours of service and raising more than 7 million yuan for charitable organizations. The Ford Uber Innovation Challenge supported more than 660 youth innovation projects from 165 universities around the world, and nearly 4,000 youth received nearly 10,000 hours of mentoring.
The road to a better world
The Road to a Better World is Ford's unwavering commitment to sustainability journey. The company will take a long-term view and invest in our people, communities, and innovation to create a better, brighter future for everyone.