AirTrunk paves the way to net zero emissions by 2030

Posted on

Net Zero target and industry-leading approach announced as part of FY22 Sustainability Report release

Sydney, October 27, 2022 – Asia Pacific & Japan (APJ) hyperscale data centre specialist, AirTrunk, has announced its commitment to Net Zero emissions by 2030, with an industry-leading approach to emissions reporting that has been developed specifically for hyperscale data centre environments.

AirTrunk’s 2030 net zero target exceeds the objective set out in the Paris Agreement to limit global warming to 1.5°C by 2050, and covers Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions.

AirTrunk Founder and CEO, Robin Khuda, said: “The climate crisis is one of the most important global challenges of our generation. By taking immediate action to reduce our emissions, we are making an important commitment to our employees, investors, customers, partners and communities, for generations to come.”

“As the pioneer of hyperscale data centres in the region, we are also pioneering a global standard for managing Net Zero emissions in hyperscale data centre environments. It is based on transparency, accountability and customer collaboration, and balances climate ambition with emissions ownership.”

INDUSTRY-LEADING APPROACH FOR MANAGING NET ZERO EMISSIONS IN HYPERSCALE DATA CENTRE ENVIRONMENTS
  • Customer electricity consumption accounts for the majority of carbon emissions associated with AirTrunk data centres.
  • AirTrunk’s customers, some of the world’s leading technology companies, have their own public climate targets and are global leaders in renewable energy procurement.
  • AirTrunk will enable customers to take ownership and responsibility for their electricity consumption within AirTrunk data centres and manage the associated emissions under their own emission reduction targets. In this case, AirTrunk will report these emissions under Scope 3 (AirTrunk value chain emissions).
  • AirTrunk recognises that it has a stewardship role for the electricity consumed in its data centres and will report any emissions that are not managed by customers, under Scope 2. AirTrunk plans to achieve Net Zero for these emissions through the procurement of renewable energy.
  • AirTrunk commits to safeguarding that 100% of electricity consumed at its data centres is covered under a Net Zero target, whether by AirTrunk or its customers.

AirTrunk Chief Technology Officer, Damien Spillane, said: “It remains our goal to set the industry standard in sustainability across the Asia Pacific and Japan region, and our Net Zero approach puts us in a position to pave the way in data centre emissions reporting. The approach leverages the strategies and competencies of our customers while enabling interoperable carbon ledgers and ensuring zero double-counting.”

AirTrunk is continuing to achieve carbon neutrality for its Scope 1 emissions, as well as the Scope 2 emissions from its corporate head offices. The company will continue to monitor, measure and report its Scope 3 emissions, and develop a roadmap to manage these emissions in the future.

AirTrunk’s roadmap to achieve Net Zero by 2030 for Scope 1 and 2 emissions is outlined in its FY22 Sustainability Report, which also details the company’s achievements and commitments against its Planet, People and Progress sustainability pillars.

Highlights from the 100+ page report, covering the period July 2021 to June 2022, include the following:

  • Energy Efficiency: The achievement of 1.35 annual average operating Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE), which is 20 per cent lower than the Asia Pacific region average*, and a year-on-year improvement from 1.37.
  • Water management: A new water management framework that ensures AirTrunk’s data centre water usage is both sustainable and productive. AirTrunk sets Water Usage Effectiveness (WUE) limits in water stressed areas and has established an innovative water productivity threshold that sets minimum energy saving targets per unit of water use, ensuring that water usage delivers significant energy and carbon reductions.
  • Scope 3 emissions: Inclusion, for the first time, of Scope 3 emissions across the value chain including emissions associated with embodied carbon, business travel, employee commuting and employees working from home.
  • Gender diversity: An increase in the representation of women across its employee base to 32.6 per cent, from 27 per cent in FY21.
  • Sustainable financing: The conversion of AirTrunk’s A$2.1bn corporate loan facility into a Sustainability Linked Loan (SLL) which achieved several milestones including being the largest SLL for a data centre globally, the first for a data centre in APJ, and the first to utilise operating PUE as a Key Performance Indicator. AirTrunk met all its SLL KPIs in FY22.

Each year, AirTrunk will respond to new challenges and opportunities and continue to assess its sustainability strategy and redefine its commitments to ensure a long-term climate view.

AirTrunk Chief Operating Officer, Dana Adams, said: “We have made substantial progress on the targets we released in our inaugural Sustainability Report last year, demonstrating our commitment to integrating sustainability across our operations. We will continue to responsibly manage climate risks and opportunities, while engaging with our stakeholders and redefining benchmarks in sustainability.”

KPMG has been engaged to independently assure selected sustainability information including scope 1, 2 and selected scope 3 emissions as well as carbon offsets. The Assurance Report is included in Appendix 3 of the Sustainability Report.

“Together with our stakeholders, we are well-positioned to lead the transformation of our industry to enable a net zero emissions future,” Robin concluded.

To download AirTrunk’s FY22 Sustainability Report, click here.

ENDS