Vodafone to reach net-zero carbon emissions in UK by 2027

Vodafone plans to eliminate carbon emissions from its entire UK operations by 2027, as part of a sweeping set of commitments that will see the technology giant invest in electric vehicles (EVs) and update supplier contracts based on environmental credentials.


Vodafone to reach net-zero carbon emissions in UK by 2027

The 2027 target for UK operations will assist with a global net-zero target for 2040

Vodafone committed to reducing its carbon emissions to net-zero globally by 2040 back in November 2020 and will eliminate emissions from its activities and energy and halve scope 3 emissions by 2030.

For the UK, Vodafone confirmed this week that it will eliminate carbon emissions from its operations by 2027. As of July 2021, the company’s European network will be powered by 100% renewable electricity.

Vodafone has worked with facilities management firm Mitie to reduce its UK carbon footprint by 25,000 tonnes over a three-year period, with improvements to building-based energy use saving the technology firm around £10m. By working with Mitie, Vodafone UK has saved 100GWh of energy over the three-year period, which is equivalent to powering the homes of 65,000 people for a year.

The company’s fleet of cars and vans will also transition to EVs by 2027. Vodafone will also update its supplier contracting process to examine whether organisations in the supply chain have introduced environmental policies for areas such as carbon emissions, renewable energy, plastics reduction and product lifecycles.

The announcement was made at Vodafone’s Reinvent conference, where the organisation also unveiled a new flexible mobile offering and a commitment to connecting one million people living in digital poverty by the end of 2022.

Globally, Vodafone has science-based targets to eliminate carbon emissions from Scopes 1 (operations) and 2 (power-related) and halve Scope 3 (indirect) emissions, including joint ventures, supply chain purchases, the use of sold products and business travel.

After joining the Climate Group’s RE100 initiative in 2018 and pledging to source 100% renewable electricity for its global operations by 2025, Vodafone revealed that it is on track to reach the 100% milestone in Europe by July 2021.

Around four-fifths of the energy used by Vodafone’s networks by July 2021 will be sourced through power purchase agreements (PPAs) and renewable tariffs. The majority of the remaining procurement will be covered by renewable energy guarantees of origin (REGO) certificates, as it is supplied to facilities let by landlords. Onsite generation arrays, predominantly solar, will be used to account for the rest.

Matt Mace

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