Aluminium from Rio Tinto's hydro-powered operations in Canada will be trucked to BMW's vehicle production plant in Spartanburg, South Carolina, for use in body components from 2024.

Low-carbon primary aluminium combined with recycled content, could reduce carbon dioxide emissions by up to 70%, compared to BMW's benchmark for aluminium.

To produce the low-carbon product Rio Tinto uses Elysis, a carbon free smelting technology that instead emits pure oxygen.

Under the terms of a signed memorandum of understanding the parties will work together to embed low-carbon solutions into BMW's supply chain.

Rio Tinto chief commercial officer Alf Barrios said automakers were increasingly looking to partner with suppliers who shared their commitment to traceability and sustainability.

"Rio Tinto is proud to play a role in helping to drive a greener future in the premium car industry through this partnership with the BMW Group and we look forward to deepening our ties with the automotive industry in the years ahead," he said.

BMW manager Joachim Post said the company had clear goals for lowering CO2 emissions in the supply chain.

"By using innovative materials, we can reduce our vehicles' carbon footprint - even before handing them over to customers," he said.

"The agreement to supply low-carbon aluminium is based on several pillars; in addition to hydroelectric power and secondary material, we also want to lead the automotive industry by ramping up our use of aluminium with no direct CO2 emissions from the smelting process."

The new deal follows Rio Tinto's recent deal with Japan's Marubeni Corporation, to supply aluminium to a Japanese motorcycle company.