GSMA: ICT Industry Agrees Landmark Science-based Pathway to Reach Net Zero Emissions

The ICT industry is today taking an unprecedented step forward in tackling climate change

with the release of the first-ever science-based pathway to reduce Greenhouse Gas (GHG)

emissions across the telecoms sector. This supports the GSMA’s commitment to helping the

mobile industry achieve Net Zero carbon emissions by 2050.

 

The new Science-Based Target (SBT) is the result of a collaboration between the ITU, GeSI,

the GSMA, and SBTi to develop a sector-specific decarbonisation pathway that allows ICT

companies to set targets in line with the latest climate science. It includes emissions

reductions trajectories for mobile, fixed and data centre operators to meet the ambitious

Paris Agreement goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°c, designed to substantially reduce

 

the risks and effects of climate change.

 

Twenty nine operator groups representing 30 per cent of global mobile connections are

already committed to SBTs. These include America Movil, AT&T, BT, Bharti Airtel, Deutsche Telekom, Elisa, Far Eastone, KPN, Magyar Telekom, NTT DOCOMO, Orange, Proximus,

Reliance JioInfocomm, Safaricom, Singtel, SK Telecom, STC, Swisscom, T Mobile USA,

 

Taiwan Mobile, TDC, Tele2, Telefónica, Telekom Austria, Telenor, Telia, Telstra, Verizon, and Vodafone.

Many more will now be able to set targets by applying the trajectory recommendations

released today.

“Today’s landmark agreement underlines how the ICT sector is taking urgent and

unprecedented action in response to the climate emergency,” said Mats Granryd, Director

General, GSMA. “The mobile industry is one of the first major sectors in the world to

 

voluntarily set an SBT for emissions reductions. Our sector will form the backbone to the

future global economy and has a unique role to play in reaching a Net Zero economy. A

decarbonised world will be a digital world, so we must show leadership and take

responsibility for driving positive climate action.”

 

The GSMA is also launching a Climate Toolkit for operators today which includes company

guidance for setting science-based targets. Further information is available at: 

 

Renewable energy to drive emissions reductions

 

The SBT sets emissions trajectory reductions over the decade (2020-2030) for each ICT

sub- sector. For example, mobile network operators adopting the SBT are required to

reduce emissions by at least 45 per cent over this period. Companies are required to set

one target for their combined Scope 1 and 2 emissions, with additional guidance provided

for managing Scope 3 emissions¹.

 

The switch to renewable and low-carbon electricity is expected to account for the bulk of

reductions over this period, alongside efforts by operators to become more energy efficient. Access to renewable energy, which can vary widely depending on an operator’s geographic

location is, therefore, a key factor determining an operator’s ability to meet the SBT.

 

The ICT sector pathway SBT was approved by the Science-Based Target Initiative (SBTi)

this month following a consultation period. Full details are provided in the official ITU

standard: GHG emissions trajectories for the ICT sector compatible with the UNFCCC Paris

Agreement (Ref: Recommendation ITU L.1470).

 

Mobile industry demonstrating leadership on climate action

 

Today’s announcement forms part of the GSMA’s climate action roadmap for the mobile

industry, which has already seen operators disclose their climate impacts, energy, and emissions via the internationally recognised CDP global disclosure system.²

 

The GSMA is working with participating operators and partnering with the international

community, climate experts and third-party organisations to advance industry progress, establish best practices, and support disclosure and target setting. The work forms part of

the industry’s journey to support the delivery of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals

(SDGs), specifically SDG #13 on Climate Action.

The industry is also committed to advancing mobile technology innovations in areas such as

big data and IoT that can enable energy efficient and environmental solutions across

multiple sectors, including transport, manufacturing, agriculture, building, and energy. A

recent report produced by the GSMA and the Carbon Trust calculated that the use of mobile

technology enabled a global reduction in emissions of around 2,135 million tonnes CO₂e in

2018³. These emissions savings were almost ten times greater than the global carbon

footprint of the mobile industry itself.