GKN Automotive reduces direct CO2e emissions in 2023

The company says its sustainability strategy is aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)1 and embedded across the business. Accelerating progress in its Climate Action pillar, the company says it has reduced its total direct CO2e emissions (scope 1 and 2) by 10.5% in 2023, compared to the previous year. The company notes that energy savings through initiatives such as replacing energy intensive production equipment and implementing upgrades to air conditioning and heat systems, contributed the majority of on-site emissions reductions

This supports the company’s long-term carbon emissions reduction target to be net-zero across its value chain by 2045, which was approved by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) in 2023.

In an interview with AMS earlier this year GKN Automotive’s director of sustainability, Tom Salisbury explained the importance of SBTi: “It helps set our ‘north star’ of where we need to get to. I think the real benefit of SBTi is that it is a thorough vetting process in terms of making sure you have a good baseline, and that your ambition is in line with what’s needed to reach the Paris Agreement targets.”

The report also highlights the important contribution of locally led initiatives, something that Salisbury also commented on: “Our plant at Bruneck in Italy, is one of the sites where we’ve done a lot of work, such as using groundwater cooling, which is saved energy. We’ve recently installed an on-site solar array there as well.

“Then also across some of our other Asian sites, but in India particularly, like our Pune site, for example, they have done a lot of work on on-site solar or purchasing, and there’s some good regulatory incentives in India that support the financial viability of these projects.

“Also, the work that we’ve done on encouraging a positive culture around sustainability projects has helped with these projects. For example, last year at our Vigo site in Spain we had a sustainability competition for employees to propose ideas to reduce the environmental impact of the site. One of the winning ideas helped reduce gas consumption by 2% a year.”

Further highlights in the report include:

• 10% of electricity consumed was certified renewable, up from 7% in 2022. This included purchasing 100% renewable electricity at three sites in Europe.

• 87% of R&D expenditure was on products that contribute to the decarbonisation of the industry, exceeding the 50% target for 2023. In 2024, GKN Automotive increased this target to 90%.

• 74% of new business across its Driveline and ePowertrain product groups was awarded to GKN Automotive on EV platforms.

Dr. Clare Wyatt, Chief People, Communications & Sustainability Officer at GKN Automotive, comments: “We have spent the last three years carving out a clear pathway to meet our targets and embedding this strategy across our global operations, so I’m delighted to see the progress we’ve made across our targets in 2023…”