The partnership, which was announced last week, has now been ended
Mercedes have announced that they have mutually agreed to end their F1 partnership with Kingspan after receiving criticism for the deal.
Just last week, Mercedes announced a deal with Kingspan – a company which made some of the insulation that was used on Grenfell Tower.
The tower block in West London caught fire in 2017, killing 72 people.
Kingspan’s logo was seen on Mercedes’ cars for the first time at last Sunday’s Saudi Arabian GP – a race that was won by Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton.
F1’s current world champions have since released a statement announcing that they have mutually agreed to end their partnership.
The statement read: “The Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team and Kingspan today announced that they have mutually agreed to end their partnership.
“Announced last week, the new partnership included Kingspan chairing a new Sustainability Working Group for the team, and aimed to deliver carbon reductions through their leading-edge environmentally sustainable solutions for the team’s future campus.
“However, both parties have subsequently concluded that it is not appropriate for the partnership to move forward at the current point in time, notwithstanding its intended positive impact, and we have therefore agreed that it will be discontinued with immediate effect.”
The Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team and Kingspan today announced that they have mutually agreed to end their partnership with immediate effect. pic.twitter.com/NiQjvX5BIh
— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) December 8, 2021
Grenfell United – a group that represents survivors and bereaved families – heavily criticised the deal, insisting that the relationship was “truly shocking” and demanded that it was cancelled.
After receiving a letter from Grenfell United, Mercedes team principal and co-owner Toto Wolff apologised for the “additional hurt that this announcement has caused” and has agreed to meet with the group.
The secretary of state for levelling up, housing and communities, Michael Gove, also criticised the deal after it was announced.
Kingspan released a statement on Wednesday (8 December), which said: “We are deeply aware of the sensitivities raised in recent days, and so we have jointly agreed that it’s not appropriate to move forward at the current point in time.
“Much has been written about this over the past few days, and out of consideration for our customers and all the great people who work for us, we believe we must respond.
“We had no role in the Grenfell Tower refurbishment. However, our Kingspan Insulation UK business is a core participant in the Grenfell Tower Inquiry and fully supports the Inquiry’s important work.
“We understand that this is a complex topic, but there are some important facts that we would like to explain: 1. We did not make the exterior cladding on Grenfell Tower. The Inquiry itself has stated that “the principal reason” for rapid fire spread on Grenfell was the Polyethylene cored ACM cladding used on the exterior of the building.
“No facade system using this PE ACM cladding, regardless of the insulation used, would have passed the necessary large-scale system fire test. Our K15 insulation board was misused in this unsafe and non-compliant system.
“2. We did not supply or recommend K15 to Grenfell Tower. K15 made up approximately 5% of the insulation layer of the façade system. It was substituted without our knowledge. 3. We have completed new tests which support the previous fire safety claims of the three historical K15 large-scale system tests which came into question during the Inquiry process.
“We condemn in the strongest possible terms the wholly unacceptable historical conduct and emails which emerged throughout the course of the Inquiry discovery process. We have sincerely apologised for these actions by a small group of employees at our Kingspan Insulation UK business. This in no way reflects Kingspan’s culture or values.”
After strong criticism, Mercedes and Kingspan have ended their partnership that was announced last week with immediate effect.
"Both parties have subsequently concluded that it is not appropriate for the partnership to move forward at the current point in time" #F1
— Chris Medland (@ChrisMedlandF1) December 8, 2021
Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton recently faced protests from survivors of the Grenfell disaster over the sponsorship deal.
The Briton heads into the final race of the season knowing that if he finishes above Max Verstappen, he will secure his eighth World Drivers’ Championship and overtake the legendary Michael Schumacher, who won the title seven times.
Related links:
- Lewis Hamilton facing protests from Grenfell survivors over car sponsorship deal
- No More ‘Mr Nice Guy’: Lando Norris gunning for Hamilton and Verstappen
- Formula 1 is “duty-bound” to raise awareness of human rights issues in Qatar, claims Hamilton
