Toronto, Ontario — Volvo says it has secured access to near-zero emission primary and recycled sheet metal and plans to use it in an upcoming car program.
Volvo will be sourcing its steel from Swedish company SSAB and plans to begin using the steel it has acquired in one of its car programs by 2026.
One downside of near-emission steel is that it is more expensive to produce and acquire. However, the OEM aims to reduce its carbon emissions by 75 percent per car by 2030 (compared to a 2018 baseline) and will be producing its last ICE vehicle early next year.
This future application presents a parallel stance from Volvo’s previous policies in which the automaker took strong disapproval of recycled parts being used in its vehicles. Specifically, while Volvo is planning to use recycled manufacturing materials, and has done so in the past, it still does not encourage the use of recycled parts by consumers.
In a statement issued in 2018, Volvo commented that it “cannot ensure a safe repair utilizing anything other than Genuine Volvo Car Replacement Parts.”
Consumers will have to wait a couple of years to see how Volvo’s future use of recycled sheet metal may impact policy stances concerning the repair potential of their vehicles.
