Apple has unveiled its plan to become carbon neutral across its entire business, manufacturing supply chain, and product life cycle by 2030.

The company is already carbon neutral today for its global corporate operations, and this new commitment means that by 2030, every Apple device sold will have net zero climate impact.

Aluminium is a key material in many of Apple’s products, and, for more than 130 years, it has been produced through a carbon-intensive smelting process.

In May 2018, aluminium manufacturers Alcoa Corporation and Rio Tinto Aluminium announced Elysis: A joint venture to commercialise patented technology that eliminates direct greenhouse gas emissions from the traditional smelting process. This is a revolutionary advancement in the manufacturing of one of the world’s most widely used metals.

As part of Apple’s commitment to reducing the environmental impact of the products through innovation, Alcoa helped accelerate the development of this technology at the Alcoa Technical Centre in Pittsburgh, USA.

Apple has partnered with both aluminium companies, and the governments of Canada and Québec, to collectively invest a combined $144 million in future research and development.

In December 2019, Apple announced it had bought the first-ever commercial batch of carbon-free aluminium resulting from this joint venture. This aluminium is currently being used in the manufacturing of the 16-inch MacBook Pro.

Find out more about Apple's Climate Roadmap here