Ranking
Comparison
% EV Sales
Total Score
Total Score
Fossil Free & Environment
Human Rights
Share
Array
Summary
Tesla was the biggest mover of the Leaderboard this year, improving across all indicator categories to achieve an overall score increase of 21% and a significant boost up the rankings from 9th to 3rd position.
Nonetheless, there is ample room for improvement. On fossil-free and environmentally sustainable supply chains, Tesla can build on the progress that it has made in 2023 on measuring its supply chain emissions to take targeted action on decarbonizing its steel, aluminum, and battery supply chains. On human rights and responsible sourcing, Tesla should prioritize strengthening policies and processes to ensure the rights of Indigenous Peoples and workers are respected across its supply chain. These areas provide Tesla with the opportunity to continue strengthening its performance at the same rate as it has done this year and become the industry leader on equitable, sustainable, and fossil-free supply chains.
Key Findings
- In 2023, became the first automaker to disclose disaggregated scope 3 emissions for its steel, aluminum, and battery supply chains. However, has not set any emission reduction targets for these supply chains.
- Performs well on fossil-free and environmentally responsible batteries, due to progress on closed loop processes for battery recycling, investments in battery chemistries like LFP batteries that can reduce demand of high intensity minerals, and sourcing significant percentages of its cobalt, nickel and lithium directly from mining suppliers with contracts that include environmental requirements.
- Performs poorly on steel and aluminum - providing no evidence of actions taken to decarbonize these supply chains, with the exception of some progress on aluminum recycling.
- Significant improvements in its human rights due diligence and responsible transition mineral sourcing processes, with a new third-party grievance mechanism and more comprehensive supply chain mapping, human rights priority areas and engagement actions for each of the key transition minerals. Also now encourages its suppliers to undergo IRMA audits, with four mining suppliers agreeing to do so.
- Improved score on Indigenous Peoples’ rights with a full commitment to Free, Prior and Informed Consent for all raw material extraction and processing in its supply chain. However, with a score of just 14% for this category, there is still much more to be done.
- Human rights policy and supplier code of conduct now includes a commitment to respect all five of the ILO Principles, including the right to collective bargaining, but has made no progress beyond this on workers’ rights. This is especially concerning given the criticisms of Tesla in 2023 for not respecting collective bargaining rights of workers in Sweden.
Score Breakdown
Fossil-Free & Environmentally Sustainable Supply Chains
Human Rights & Responsible Resourcing
Supply Chain News & Progress
Latest on Tesla
Supply chain transformation is a risk management imperative and opportunity for a competitive edge. Leading brands are already securing a first-mover advantage and leveraging their power to transform legacy supply chains into a force for good. The revolution is underway.
Illegal rare earth mining in Myanmar linked to supply chain of major automakers
A new report by Global Witness has documented the harmful impacts of illegal rare earth mining in Myanmar, linked to the supply chains of major automakers – including Volkswagen, Toyota, Tesla, Nissan, Ford and Hyundai.
Tesla criticized for not respecting right to collective bargaining in Sweden
Tesla’s gigafactory to use recycled materials in battery cell production
According to TechCrunch, “Panasonic battery cells made at the Gigafactory it operates with Tesla will use more recycled materials by the end of 2022 as part of an expanded partnership with startup Redwood Materials.
Panasonic said Tuesday at the 2022 CES tech trade show that Redwood Materials will start supplying it with copper foil produced from recycled materials, a critical component of the anode side of a battery cell. Redwood will begin producing the copper foil in the first half of the year; the copper foil will then head to Panasonic where it will be used in cell production by the end of the year.”
Allegations of pollution, workers’ rights violations, forced labor and due diligence failings
The Business and Human Rights Resource Centre documents multiple allegations of human rights violations in Tesla’s supply chains, including pollution, forced labor, violations of workers’ rights, and failings to ensure effective human rights diligence. Nickel sourced by Tesla from Indonesia has also been linked to pollution affecting local communities.
Our Vision
01 — Equitably
Respecting and advancing the rights of Indigenous Peoples, workers, and local communities throughout the supply chain.
02 — Sustainably
Preserving and restoring environmental health and biodiversity across supply chains, while reducing primary resource demand through efficient resource use and increased recycled content.
03 — Fossil-free
100% electric and made with a fossil fuel-free supply chain.