4 _195 2023 UNIVERSAL REGISTRATION DOCUMENT_MICHELIN 4 NON-FINANCIAL STATEMENT Sustainable Development Report 4.1.1.2 c) Broadening the use of life cycle assessments (LCAs) Since 2022, around 5,000 people have been trained in first-level LCA practices that they can then use to guide their design choices. Since 2012, Michelin has been involved with ten other international corporations in the International Research Consortium on Life Cycle Assessment and Sustainable Transition, the primary research unit of the International Reference Center for the Life Cycle of Products, Processes and Services (CIRAIG). Michelin is also a member of SCORELCA, a French association that conducts research commissioned by its 18 active members and partners. Complementing those pursued by the International Reference Centre for the Life Cycle of Products, Processes and Services (CIRAIG), its research programs are enhancing the methodological skills of the Group’s LCA expertise unit. Similarly, Michelin has worked for several years with other tiremakers in the Tire Industry Project (TIP)(1) to draft world-class product category rules (PCRs) capable of supporting consistent, seamless assessments of a tire’s environmental impact based on a set of industry-specific, ISO 14025-compliant guidelines. 4.1.1.2 d) The Michelin 4R circular economy process LCAs have shown that production phases, from raw materials to finished product, can account for up to 30% of a tire’s environmental impact. This poses a variety of challenges, such as reducing the impact of mobility on ecosystems, natural resources and human health, limiting its effects on climate change and securing supply. To ensure that natural resources are used more wisely, Michelin is simultaneously rolling out four initiatives under the Michelin 4R banner, for Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Renew. This 4R strategy is grounded in the following four principles: Reduce In addition to its initiatives to improve tire energy efficiency to reduce the CO2 released during the in-use phase(2), the Michelin Group is also leading research and development programs focused on reducing resource consumption and harmful pollution from the use of its products. Reducing resource consumption The Group’s research and development is guided by a commitment to designing and manufacturing new tires with less material, but without sacrificing any other performance factors. On the contrary, Michelin is constantly lengthening the service lives of its tires and enabling them to deliver the same safe driving experience and ever-improved performance. Michelin is also committed to delivering performance over time by extensively testing worn tires, to demonstrate that tires can and should deliver very high performance until the tread wear indicators appear. If motorists were confident that their tires would remain safe throughout their useful lives, they would be encouraged to use them until they reached the legal minimum tread depth – of 1.6 mm in Europe – which would avoid the unnecessary use of 400 million tires a year worldwide and reduce both raw materials consumption and cut CO2 emissions by up to 35 million tonnes a year (estimates based on calculations for Europe). In 2019, the European Union approved the introduction of wet grip performance standards for worn tires, which will come into force in July 2024 for new tire product approvals and in July 2026 for all tires. (1) Tire Industry Project: Launched in 2005, the Tire Industry Project is a voluntary initiative dedicated to addressing the tire industry’s sustainability challenges and issues. It currently comprises 10 of the world’s leading tiremakers: Bridgestone Corporation, Continental AG, The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, Hankook Tire Company, Kumho Tire Company, Inc., Michelin Group, Pirelli Tyre SpA., Sumitomo Rubber Industries, Ltd., Toyo Tire & Rubber Company Ltd., and Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd. The TIP operates under the auspices of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD). (2) See section 4.1.1.1 b) Transition plan: Company strategy/Designing ultra-energy efficient products.
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