Porsche and Hydro to cooperate on low-carbon aluminum and battery materials recycling

Porsche AG and Norsk Hydro ASA will work together to further reduce the carbon footprint of Porsche’s car models by using low-carbon aluminum and extrusions from Hydro. In addition, the two companies will collaborate on an innovative value chain concept for battery materials and its recycling.

Hydro will deliver to Porsche and several of Porsche’s component suppliers its low-carbon aluminum offering, Hydro Reduxa 4.0 and lower. This primary aluminum alloy has one of the lowest CO₂ footprints on the market today and is produced with renewable energy. The footprint covers the emissions from the mine to the metal.

By 2025 Hydro will enable Porsche to reduce the footprint of the aluminum in future vehicle projects to around 3.5 kilograms of CO₂ per kilogram aluminum used. This is approximately 60% lower than the footprint of the average primary aluminum currently consumed in Europe.

Due to aluminum’s superior properties in pliability, light weight and strength, the ratio of aluminum in Porsche cars has been increasing steadily. Aluminum is one of the key elements in the transformation of an electrical vehicle into a sports car. Already today aluminum constitutes around 30% of the total weight of the Porsche Taycan, the brand’s first fully electric sports car.

As part of the ambitious decarbonization plans of both companies, Hydro aims to supply Porsche and Porsche’s component suppliers with aluminum targeting CO₂-neutrality in 2030. Hydro will do this by increasing the use of renewable energy in aluminum production and recycling post-consumer scrap to increase circularity and reduce the footprint of the aluminum produced.

Another important part of the agreement between the two companies will be the proof of concept for building a sustainable battery value chain in Europe. Porsche and Hydro will cooperate in the development of a roadmap to recycle battery materials in Europe. One of the key elements of this project will be to investigate how to build efficient closed loop solutions for Porsche’s EV-batteries.

Access to sustainably sourced raw materials is a key challenge for the automotive industry. Hydro has extensive experience in the recycling of battery raw materials. At Porsche we have a clear commitment to increase the usage of recycled materials in our vehicles. The principle of a circular economy is something we share with Hydro. We aim to secure our supply chain in the long run and thus expect valuable input from our recycling project with Hydro.

—Barbara Frenkel, Executive Board Member for Procurement at Porsche AG

The European supply chain for materials vital for battery production is still in its early stage. Recycling is expected to play a crucial part in meeting the rising demand for automotive batteries in the future. Collaborations across traditional industries will be required to succeed. Porsche and Hydro are committed to exploring opportunities for joint contributions in this field. Both companies expect the first feasibility results of joint battery recycling in 2025.