BMW is stepping up its sustainability efforts and has partnered with UAE-based Emirates Global Aluminum on a deal that provides solar-produced aluminum to the automaker. The move comes as BMW enhances the production of its fleet of electric vehicles and looks to have at least 25 models by 2023.
Aluminum is used to make body frames more lightweight and has extensive use throughout a car including wiring, wheels, and even engine parts. Nadine Philipp, head of sustainability at BMW, told Cheddar the goal is to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) output.
"For a year, we save more than 220,000 tonnes [243,000 tons] of CO2 by this production and we can cover half of the demands of our plant back in Landshut [Germany] where we produce drive trains, for example, and body components," Philipp said. "So we are really happy that we have the set up there and that we can go on with the green aluminum."
With the EGA partnership, BMW expects to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 2.8 million tons by 2030. The German car manufacturer joins a number of other automakers making an effort to bring down their carbon footprint within the first half of this century.
"We believe that this is key to the future of society, like committing to the Paris Climate Agreement targets. That's a key role, and we are part of this. We have a responsibility there and we have responsibility towards, of course, our own business, our customers, but [also] society," she added.
Though the luxury brand is making significant changes to production, Philipp said the quality of vehicles will not be compromised. For BMW, she said, efforts in sustainability are just as important as incorporating the latest technology into cars and is even demanded by the customer base.
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A Michigan judge is putting sponges in the hands of shoplifters and ordering them to wash cars in a Walmart parking lot when spring weather arrives. Genesee County Judge Jeffrey Clothier hopes the unusual form of community service discourages people from stealing from Walmart. The judge also wants to reward shoppers with free car washes. Clothier says he began ordering “Walmart wash” sentences this week for shoplifting at the store in Grand Blanc Township. He believes 75 to 100 people eventually will be ordered to wash cars this spring. Clothier says he will be washing cars alongside them when the time comes.
The State Department had been in talks with Elon Musk’s Tesla company to buy armored electric vehicles, but the plans have been put on hold by the Trump administration after reports emerged about a potential $400 million purchase. A State Department spokesperson said the electric car company owned by Musk was the only one that expressed interest back in May 2024. The deal with Tesla was only in its planning phases but it was forecast to be the largest contract of the year. It shows how some of his wealth has come and was still expected to come from taxpayers.
At 100 years old, the Goodyear Blimp is an ageless star in the sky. The 246-foot-long airship will be in the background of the Daytona 500 — flying roughly 1,500 feet above Daytona International Speedway, actually — to celebrate its greatest anniversary tour. Even though remote camera technologies are improving regularly and changing the landscape of aerial footage, the blimp continues to carve out a niche. At Daytona, with the usual 40-car field racing around a 2½-mile superspeedway, views from the blimp aptly provide the scope of the event.
