Sustainability

"Our battery materials complements BASF‘s overall product portfolio delivering solutions to our customers from the automotive industry. While battery electric vehicles have the benefit of zero emission mobility, the battery itself and its raw material value chain require an energy intensive production process. BASF can help keep the carbon footprint of the value chain for electromobility as low as possible. Our cathode active materials will have an industry leading low CO₂ impact thanks to our efficient manufacturing process, the high share of renewable energy, the upstream integration into the key raw materials like Cobalt and Nickel, as well as the short transportation route along the value chain.”

Dr. Peter Schuhmacher, President, Catalysts Division at BASF

“We strongly believe that electromobility should be based on batteries that are produced with the highest possible social and environmental standards. BASF is contributing with lowest-CO₂ cathode active material solutions to relentlessly strive for a unique, reliable and sustainable battery value chain. We practice sustainable raw materials sourcing and leverage recycling solutions without compromising performance and cost competitiveness.”

Dr. Michael Baier, Senior Vice President of Battery Materials, Catalysts Division at BASF

As a leading chemical company, we want to achieve CO_₂-neutral growth from 2019 to 2030. We are determined to provide innovative high-performance products with a minimized CO₂ footprint along the battery value chain.

• Effectively research and develop cathode active materials with a higher energy density leading to less materials consumption for batteries and enabling a longer driving range of cars
• Implement innovative calcination technologies
• Leading production technologies for reaction steps

In Europe, our recent investments will enable us with:

• Efficiency gains through a concentrated value chain combining base metal supply, particularly nickel and cobalt, precursor production, and cathode material production within one region.
• An industry leading energy mix and closed-loop recycling will allow for lower CO₂ footprint compared to the average industry standard.
• Short and reliable access to products in proximity to customers’ European manufacturing facilities will reduce the energy consumption during transportation

Visualisation of the future plant for cathode active materials in Schwarzheide, Germany.

Our new plant in Schwarzheide will use an energy-efficient gas and steam turbine power plant that operates on the principle of combined heat and power generation. It is currently being modernized to further increase its eco-efficiency. Further integration of renewable energies is also planned. The Harjavalta plant will use renewable energy resources, including hydro, wind and biomass-based power.

Through regional production in combination with renewable energy sources as well as use of energy efficient and proprietary process technologies in our new plants in Europe, we are able to reduce the CO_₂ footprint significantly – by around 30% compared to the conventional industry standard on the market.

The production of precursor cathode active materials (PCAM) and cathode active materials (CAM) involves various mineral raw materials such as cobalt, lithium, nickel, aluminum, and manganese.

Sourcing mineral raw materials responsibly is the expectation and a guiding principle of BASF. When sourcing minerals, companies may face challenges in the areas of environment, health and safety, and human rights, e.g. if cobalt is extracted through artisanal mining in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

BASF is committed to foster a responsible and sustainable global supply chain of raw materials, including cobalt. In 2018, BASF and Nornickel had signed a long-term supply agreement for nickel and cobalt from Nornickel’s metal refinery in Finland. The agreement ensures locally sourced and secure supply of raw materials for battery production in Europe.

BASF does not procure cobalt from artisanal mines in DRC and our suppliers confirm that they do not either. We support the cross-industry project Cobalt for Development which aims at sustainably improving the living and working conditions of the people employed in the artisanal cobalt sector and surrounding communities. Besides, BASF actively engages in industry and multi-stakeholder initiatives that promote the development of a responsible Artisanal and Small-scale Mining (ASM) standard.

To effectively respond to risks related to sourcing of minerals, BASF has adopted an enhanced due diligence approach that complements our general corporate sustainability in procurement management system.

For BASF, circular economy is much more than waste management. A smart circular economy concept should integrate product design, development, production processes, use and re-use systems and materials right from the beginning. Our aim is to close loops and use products and resources in the best way possible across the entire value chain.

The combination of battery materials production and recycling closes the production loop and therefore enables a circular economy. To drive electrification, BASF provides solutions for high energy density cathode active materials and high efficiency metal extraction for battery recycling. Together with its partners along the battery value chain, BASF fosters the production and use of responsibly produced recycled raw materials in the battery market.