BHP has signed an agreement with Chinese automotive think tank, Automotive Data of China Co., Ltd. (ADC), to support its research on the future electrification of transport in China. ADC is a subsidiary of China Automotive Technology and Research Center (CATARC), a globally prominent automobile technological research institute.

The two-year partnership will focus on the key drivers for the development of energy-saving and new energy vehicles in China, such as: the manufacturing value-chain, efficiency, consumer attitudes and products development, battery chemistry, technical performance, the policy environment and the long-range outlook for electrification.

The outcomes and insights identified will be shared with companies across the value chain in the next two years.

Nickel makes a vital contribution to the lithium-ion batteries that power electric vehicles (EVs), and Chinese demand for high-quality nickel sulphate is expected to surge as the trend towards EVs accelerates further.

BHP Nickel West is a fully integrated mine-to-market nickel business that produces some of the highest quality and lowest carbon nickel in the world, with over 75 per cent of BHP’s nickel sold to electric battery material suppliers. BHP is investing in expanding its nickel operations and exploration activities as global demand is expected to grow.

BHP’s Vice President Market Analysis & Economics, Huw McKay, said as China’s electric car revolution continues to unfold, BHP will be supporting ADC’s cutting edge research on this mega-trend.

“We are confident about the outlook for EVs in China, with a world-leading policy-manufacturing-infrastructure-consumer eco-system in place to support rapid adoption. As one of the major global suppliers of nickel, BHP is well-positioned to help EVs thrive in the world’s largest auto market,” McKay said.

ADC General Manager, Feng Yi, noted that profound change is underway in the automotive industry, as energy-saving and new energy vehicles continue to be a priority for the strategic development of the Chinese automotive industry over the next few years, playing a key role in achieving carbon neutrality in the sector.

“We are pleased that BHP and ADC have agreed to partner on ‘The Development of Energy Saving and New Energy Vehicles’ research project to jointly promote the high-quality development of the automotive industry,” Yi said.

“ADC has been actively conducting in-depth research in energy saving, low-carbon and green development strategies for the automotive industry by leveraging big data, models and algorithms. Our research continuously provides support to the industry as well as relevant government agencies for their strategic planning and decision-making. I believe the collaboration between ADC and BHP will contribute significantly to promote energy-saving and the development of new energy vehicles, and we are confident that our partnership will benefit the industry immensely.”

BHP is committed to reducing emissions and has a company-wide target to reduce operational greenhouse gas emissions (Scope 1 & 2) by at least 30 per cent (relative to FY2020 levels) by FY2030. Longer-term, BHP’s goal is to achieve net-zero operational emissions by 2050.