GSMA: Mobile Net Zero Report 2024

GSMA releases 'Mobile Net Zero Report 2024'. Climate action remains a key priority for the mobile industry. In 2019, the mobile industry set a target of achieving net zero emissions by 2050, becoming one of the first industries in the world to set such an ambitious goal.

In 2023, additional mobile network operators joined the GSMA Climate Action Task Force.

Mobile operators are leaders in proactively committing to voluntary climate targets. In the past year, eight operators submitted new near-term targets to the Science Based Targets initiative, bringing the total to 70 operators, representing nearly half of global mobile connections. 53 operators have also committed to net zero emissions targets.

The 70 mobile network operators that disclosed to CDP in 2023 accounted for more than half of the world's mobile connections, compared to 67 in 2022. In addition, data collected from the sustainability reports of nine large operators showed that the total disclosure coverage reached 80%.

The quality of disclosures has also improved: a record 19 operators received an A rating in 2023. More than a quarter of operators disclosing to CDP received an A rating; in 2023, this proportion was just 1.5%.

Three quarters of the mobile industry’s carbon emissions come from its value chain, highlighting the importance of engaging the supply chain and customers.

Operational emissions fell in most regions between 2019 and 2022, with Europe posting a 50% drop. In North America, Latin America and the Middle East and North Africa, operators reduced emissions by 20-30%.

Despite a surge in demand for data and connectivity, operational emissions have fallen thanks to advances in energy efficiency and renewable energy. Global internet traffic more than doubled between 2019 and 2022, with mobile connections growing 7%.

Information provided by operators shows that the energy intensity of data transmission will decrease by an average of 10%-20% per year between 2019 and 2022.

Renewable energy has already played a major role in reducing mobile operators’ emissions, accounting for one-third of the reductions expected between 2021 and 2022. Operators disclosing to CDP purchased 50 TWh of renewable electricity in 2022, accounting for one-third of their purchased electricity, up from 14% in 2019. Without this renewable energy, operational carbon emissions in 2022 would have been an estimated 15 million tonnes higher.