Mobile phone operators aim to produce a plan by 2020 to reduce emissions in line with the targets of the Paris Agreement
More than 50 of the world's biggest mobile phone operators have agreed to disclose their climate change impacts to investors, as part of the first phase of an industry-wide push to slash greenhouse has emissions in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement.
The operators, including AT&T, Bharti Airtel, BT Group, China Mobile, Deutsche Telekom, Magyar Telekom, Orange, Spark New Zealand, Taiwan Mobile, Telstra and Vodafone, together account for more than two-thirds of mobile connections globally.
Under the new initiative, which has been organised by the GSMA industry body, the companies have pledged to disclose their climate impacts, energy and greenhouse gas emissions via the CDP global disclosure system, many of them for the first time.
The move will support the GSMA's wider plan to develop an emissions reduction roadmap for the sector by February 2020, which will be aligned with the Science-Based Targets initiative.
The new strategy is expected to include an industry-wide plan to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 in line with the Paris Agreement.
Mats Granryd, director general of the GSMA said: "The mobile industry will form the backbone of the future economy and therefore has a unique opportunity to drive change across multiple sectors in collaboration with our suppliers, investors and customers."
Paul Simpson, chief executive of the CDP, welcomed the move by the mobile sector to disclose its climate impacts, hailing it as "a clear step-up in commitment to providing transparency to its investors and customers".
The timescale at which individual companies intend to meet the new over-arching emissions goal will depend on a number of factors, including their geographic location and their ability to access renewable energy, the GSMA said. However, it said it expects some companies will meet the net zero target significantly ahead of the 2050 deadline.