Vale’s Long Harbour nickel two-thirds less CO2 intensive than industry average

Nickel is a crucial ingredient for the lithium-ion rechargeable batteries used to power electric vehicles, which form an important plank of the energy transition away from carbon.

London-based Intertek Group, an inspection, product testing and certification company, has lent independent third-party assurance for the carbon footprint of nickel produced at Long Harbour, Vale said.

Long Harbour had a carbon footprint of 4.4 tonnes of CO2 per tonne of nickel in 2020, compared with an industry average of 13 tonnes for high-quality or Class 1 nickel and 45 tonnes for Class 2 or lower-quality nickel.

Vale has pledged up to $6 billion to cut Scope 1 and Scope 2 carbon emissions by 33% by 2030 and Scope 3 emissions by 15% by 2035, as part of efforts to reach net zero emissions by 2050.

Scope 1 emissions are those from a company’s direct operations, Scope 2 relates to the power a company uses for its operations, and Scope 3 emissions are from the products it sells.