Indian data centre provider Nxtra by Airtel has joined the RE100 initiative and said it has committed to sourcing 100% renewable energy.
RE100 is a flagship global initiative led by Climate Group, a non-profit organisation with a mission to drive climate action, fast, and achieve a world of net zero carbon emissions by 2050, with greater prosperity for all, in partnership with environmental disclosure system CDP.
Nxtra says it is the fourteenth Indian company to have pledged to RE100 but the only data centre organisation in India to have done so.
The company says it has contracted 422,000MWh of renewable energy to date. In the 2023-24 financial year, it says it saved nearly 156,595 tCO2e emissions by sourcing renewable energy through Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) and captive solar rooftop plants.
Nxtra by Airtel has a footprint of 12 large and 120 edge data centres across the country. Nxtra says it has adopted multiple interventions to reduce absolute scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across its operations and become net zero by the 2031 financial year.
It’s a laudable aim, although it’s also arguably the case that data centre firms need to take a lead before legislators do.
As law firm Bird & Bird points out, data centres represent 3% of the energy consumption in the world (416 TWh). In 2030, it says, they could represent more than 10% – if nothing is done. The growth of the sector shows the necessity for a big change regarding the energy sources fuelling these data centres. However, it adds, European and US legislators have already imposed regulatory compliance.
As new data centre developments are announced almost daily in areas as diverse as Malaysia and South Africa, how long could it be before legislators in these and other regions follow the example of Europe and the US?
