From the first sketch to recycling:
The holistic sustainability approach of the BMW Group.

A vehicle’s sustainability is shaped long before it reaches the road – and continues long after its use phase. It begins with design decisions that enable reuse and recycling, continues with responsible material choices and production processes, and extends to the quality of the environment occupants experience inside the vehicle. Four examples show how the BMW Group applies its holistic sustainability approach across the entire vehicle lifecycle: from dismantling expertise and direct battery recycling to interior air quality and the new BMW X5, where many of these measures come together in a series vehicle.

Conventional processes break used battery cells down into their basic constituents using energy-intensive chemical or thermal treatment. At the Cell Recycling Competence Center in Salching, Lower Bavaria, the materials are processed mechanically instead and returned directly to cell production. The center handles residues from cell manufacturing as well as complete cells from pilot production and, at full capacity, will recover tens of tonnes of cell material a year.

That material goes straight back to the Cell Manufacturing Competence Center in Parsdorf. Three Bavarian sites now build on one another: cells are developed in Munich, piloted and scaled in Parsdorf, and returned to the material cycle in Salching. The center is operated by Encory, a joint venture between the BMW Group and the Interzero Group, while the intellectual property for the direct recycling method remains with the BMW Group – with the longer-term prospect of cell manufacturers adopting the process in series production.

With the new BMW X5, the BMW Group is systematically extending its holistic approach to sustainability to additional vehicle derivatives. This approach applies across all X5 drivetrain variants and aims to further optimise the entire vehicle lifecycle and minimise the vehicle’s carbon footprint – from the supply chain and production through to the use phase and, ultimately, recycling. Key levers include targeted decarbonisation throughout the supply chain, improved efficiency, renewable energy, secondary materials, and product and process innovations. The impact is reflected in the CO₂e reductions achieved during the product development process: Supply chain CO₂e emissions of the BMW X5 were reduced by around 40 percent.

The approach is also reflected in the systematic use of CO₂e-reduced and secondary materials. Around 50 percent of the flat steel used in the BMW X5 is electric arc furnace steel with a high proportion of secondary material, produced using renewable energy. The new BMW X5 also uses secondary raw materials in heavy-duty components, including aluminium suspension components manufactured with renewable energy for both electrolysis and production. The aluminium used for the doors contains 35 percent recycled and closed-loop material from BMW Group Plant Spartanburg’s press shop, while the yarn of the headliner fabric is based on 100 percent recycled PET. In the battery-electric BMW iX5 60 xDrive, around one third of the total vehicle is made up of secondary raw materials, equivalent to 940 kilograms. The Gen6 battery cells used in the high-voltage battery contain secondary cobalt, lithium and nickel; compared with the Gen5 cells used in the BMW iX, their CO₂e emissions are reduced by around 28 percent per watt-hour. To accompany the series launch, the BMW Group will publish a TÜV-validated Product Carbon Footprint for the BMW X5, including the underlying calculation methodology.

Taken together, the four examples describe one shift: away from isolated sustainability measures towards a holistic approach across the entire vehicle lifecycle. The Recycling and Dismantling Center supplies the practical knowledge for reuse, repair and recycling, direct battery recycling closes the loop for valuable cell materials, the odour laboratory safeguards health, wellbeing and premium quality inside the vehicle, and the new BMW X5 shows how many of these measures come together in a series vehicle.

Not everything is solved. High-quality material loops require suitable infrastructure, viable business models and processes that meet automotive quality standards. That is why dismantling knowledge is shared with recycling partners worldwide, direct battery recycling is being developed for future series application, interior air quality is systematically tested, and the new BMW X5 demonstrates how these approaches come together in a series vehicle. Today’s vehicles already reflect sustainability considerations across development, production, use phase and recycling; future generations will continue to build on this approach.