Mobile Net Zero 2024
State of the Industry on Climate Action
1. Net Zero Ambition
In 2019, the mobile industry set an ambitious goal to reach net zero by 2050. This report is the fourth annual assessment of the industry's progress towards this goal.
Climate action continues to be a key priority for the mobile industry
In 2019, the mobile industry set a goal to reach net zero by 2050, becoming one of the first sectors in the world to set such an ambitious target. This report is the fourth annual assessment of the industry’s progress towards this goal and provides key recommendations for how mobile network operators, suppliers, and governments can work together to accelerate progress across the sector.
Progress towards net zero has been strengthened and accelerated through collaboration between operators across the sector. To provide a forum for this collaboration, the GSMA created a Climate Action Taskforce in 2019. The Taskforce has grown rapidly over the last three years and now has 66 members, with networks in most countries around the world.
Mobile network operators have been leaders in proactively committing to voluntary climate targets
A growing number of mobile network operators worldwide have committed to rapidly reduce their carbon emissions, taking responsibility for their operational emissions as well as their indirect emissions up and down their value chains.
Over the past year, eight operators submitted new near-term science-based targets to the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi), bringing the global total to 70 operators as of January 2024. These operators represent nearly half of all mobile connections globally and two-thirds of revenue. Nearly three-quarters of these targets have been validated by the SBTi.
In addition to these near-term targets, 53 operators have also committed to longer-term targets to achieve net zero. Twelve net zero targets were validated over the past year, bringing the industry total to 16.
For information explaining how to set science-based targets for mobile network operators, see the GSMA’s step-by-step guide on Setting Climate Targets.
