The BMW Group will change its procurement strategy for raw materials for electric vehicles. In the procurement of important materials such as lithium and cobalt, middlemen will disappear from the supply chain.
According to foreign media reports, the BMW Group will change its procurement strategy for raw materials for electric vehicles. In the procurement of important materials such as lithium and cobalt, middlemen will disappear from the supply chain.
"We have restructured our supply chain and will directly purchase cobalt and lithium from 2020," BMW Chief Procurement Officer Andres Wendt told German media. BMW had previously indirectly sourced raw materials through suppliers. Wendt said that BMW hopes to increase the transparency of raw material sources through new procurement methods.
In addition, BMW will continue to implement its plan to not purchase cobalt from the Congo, the company's cobalt raw materials will come from Australia and Morocco. The BMW Council states: "Respect for human rights is our most important task."
Wendt said that although the company uses a new supply chain architecture, its supply security is still guaranteed. "Our supply contract guarantees supply security through 2025 and beyond," he said. After all, with the supply side, BMW is working with a large company: the operator of Australian mine Murrin Murrin, and mining giant Glencore. In the future, some of the cobalt raw materials purchased by BMW will come from Murrin Murrin.
However, BMW has not completely bid farewell to Congo: BMW will continue to participate in the pilot project of sustainable cobalt mining in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, together with BASF Samsung SDI and Samsung Electronics. The German International Cooperation Association (GIZ) will act as coordinator on behalf of the four companies. The project promotes small-scale, artisanal-structured mining activities in accordance with human rights.