Telco sustainability has been based on hefty goals in the past. For example, Microsoft pledged to utilize at least 70% renewable energy by 2023. Are these companies keeping on track with environmental promises? Let’s dive into recent telco goals for environmental impact.
In a recent IBM survey, more than half of the telco CEOs stated that sustainability is a critical priority for their respective companies for the next few years.
Telecom Companies Making Moves Towards a Sustainable Future
The goal of carbon neutrality or Net Zero has been a hot topic in the telecom industry for some time now. When broken down, this concept simply means to offset any carbon outputs by implementing reduction strategies or engaging in carbon removal projects at a larger scale. The International Telecom Union has made urged those in the industry to pledge to Net Zero by 2040 and has even posted guidelines to assist in doing so.
In more recent news, a handful of companies have provided updates on their telco sustainability status and the technologies being utilized to meet goals.
Vodafone Group has reduced its energy consumption even though its data traffic has continued to rise. To accompany this new release was the increased renewable energy standard for the company of 77%, compared to just 55% in 2021. The greenhouse moves have been implemented at all levels of operations, from the consumer sales point through the supply chain. On top of its carbon footprint reduction, the company is also reducing electronic waste. Of the 8,800 tons of waste produced in 2022, it has already been recycled 95%.
Telefonica has joined the pledge of Net Zero by 2040. Within the past year, the company reduced its own emissions by 70%. Telefonica CEO, Jose Maria Alvarez-Pallete, went on to claim that digital technologies have the ability to reduce carbon emissions globally by up to 35% in 8 eight years.
Zain Group, an African and Middle Eastern entity, released a substantial report addressing the climate crisis and its pledge to reach Net Zero by 2040 as well. The report went into detail on items such as, “What Net-Zero Means for the Mobile Communications Sector?”
Comba Telecom has recently unveiled its 4G/5G Green Initiative. “To support the low-carbon deployment of 5G networks, Comba Telecom has launched a high-end 4G/5G (8TR) integrated Base Station Antenna (BSA), which meets the capacity and coverage requirements, and has become the mainstream tower-top antenna solution for global 5G network construction.”
GeoTel and Greener Moves
GeoTel employs a Green Future Initiative, by reducing its carbon footprint year over year. The company has reduced all paper copies and moved daily operations onto the cloud. The CEO pledges to reach Net Zero by 2040 by improving internal technologies and partnering with companies with the same goals. Be sure to subscribe to the GeoTel newsletter to stay updated on all this telecom and support a greener future.
Written by: Valerie Stephen
