ELECTRIC CARS AND SUSTAINABILITY
Electric Car Sustainability: Innovation Inspired by Nature
As part of our vision to provide sustainable mobility, we are committed to achieving carbon neutrality by 2045 through three core activities: Sustainable Mobility for our products and services, Sustainable Energy for our production and ecosystem, and, finally, Sustainable Planet for our participation in society.
Are electric cars sustainable? Kia's ongoing commitment to sustainability
We know that electric cars provide a greener, more environmentally beneficial alternative to their petrol and diesel counterparts. However, we believe that building sustainable cars goes beyond providing planet-friendly driving experiences.
Our commitment to sustainability is threefold, and transcends the life span of every electric vehicle, from manufacture to end-of-life.
Sustainable Mobility
We are on our way to an all-electric future, with a plan to have no less than 15 full electric vehicles in our range by 2027. The Kia Concept EV9 encapsulates our vision of sustainable mobility, with a design inspired by our ‘Bold For Nature’ philosophy.
The concept showcases a responsible manufacturing approach, with sustainable materials – like vegan leather and recycled plastics – chosen by our team of designers and engineers. As a corporation, we are planning for 20% of all our vehicles’ plastic parts to stem from recycling by 2030.
Sustainable Energy
We are taking a holistic approach, with the goal of ensuring our whole operation and recycling is sustainable. All electric energy used at our manufacturing sites will be 100% renewable energy by 2040 and we are collaborating with our many partners and suppliers to drive their carbon emissions down.
We will establish solar-energy systems at our manufacturing plants in Korea, China, the United States, and India. Longer term, we are planning to introduce hydrogen as a power source for our manufacturing.
We are intensifying our efforts to guarantee the recycling of our vehicles and batteries. Our vehicles observe the Design for Recycling (DIR) guidelines, which means that a vehicle like the EV6 is entirely recyclable. We are also focused on ensuring end-of-life batteries get either recycled or re-used for energy storage.
Sustainable Planet
In the UK, we are partners with the Surrey Wildlife Trust to support the conservation of 100 acres of rare chalk grassland in Surrey. We’re helping young people with reserves management training essential for conservation. Kia UK staff are taking part in practical conservation efforts to raise awareness of biodiversity and its importance.
Our Blue Carbon programme looks at protecting and restoring key marine environments. We began efforts to restore the tidal mudflats in our home country of Korea, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. These mudflats capture 260,000 tons of harmful carbon emissions annually.
We have also struck a long-term partnership with The Ocean Cleanup, a non-profit organisation that is innovating to prevent waste from reaching oceans and to collect waste already present in oceans. As part of this partnership, we are providing not only funding but also operational support.
Why are electric cars better for the environment?
As zero-emission vehicles, the negative environmental impact and carbon footprint of electric cars are far lower than that of petrol and diesel cars.
The key environmental benefit of electric cars is that they don't release any harmful emissions like CO2. This helps reduce air pollution and contributes to cleaning the air quality both on our roads and in towns in cities.
