Limited access to renewable energy is emerging as a major constraint to mobile operators’ efforts to meet net-zero targets in Asia Pacific, the GSMA has warned.
The industry association said progress in reducing carbon emissions across the region would depend on greater investment in renewable energy and stronger cooperation between operators, suppliers and governments.
In its latest Mobile Net Zero report, the GSMA said 21 operators had validated near-term science-based targets as of July 2026, covering 55% of mobile connections in the region, while 13 operators had validated net-zero targets.
GSMA head of climate action Steven Moore said greater access to renewable electricity was essential to sustaining progress on emissions reductions.
“Progress on reducing emissions will be difficult without greater access to renewable electricity,” Moore said, noting that the region’s growing demand for connectivity and energy made the issue urgent.
The GSMA called on operators to improve network energy efficiency, retire legacy networks and incorporate eco-friendly design into network architectures.
It also urged policymakers to reform energy and electricity markets, speed up approvals for renewable energy and grid projects, accelerate coal phase-outs and support renewable energy procurement and aggregation for distributed telecom loads.
The association further called on governments to recognise mobile networks as critical infrastructure in climate resilience planning.
Emissions rise despite efficiency efforts
The report, which examined the period from 2019 to 2024, found that operational emissions from mobile operators across Asia Pacific increased by 6%, reaching about 23 million tonnes of CO2e in 2024.
The increase came as mobile data traffic across the region surged by 350% and mobile connections grew by 6% during the same period.
However, emissions trends varied significantly across markets.
Operators in Japan and Oceania reduced emissions by 30%, while Southeast Asia recorded an increase of around 20%, driven by rising demand.
The GSMA attributed much of the difference to access to renewable energy.
Mobile operators across Asia Pacific purchased or generated 7TWh of renewable electricity in 2024, representing about 15% of their total electricity consumption.
That remained below the global average of 24%, with Europe recording 70% and North America 50%.
Operators in Japan and Australia sourced more than half of their electricity from renewable sources, while operators in Southeast Asia matched only 4% of their electricity consumption with renewables.
Energy costs add pressure
Rising energy costs are also adding to the challenge facing the region’s mobile operators.
The sector spent about $7 billion on energy in Asia Pacific in 2024, consuming nearly 50TWh of electricity and 350 million litres of diesel and gasoline.
The GSMA said expanding renewable energy access, improving network efficiency and reforming energy markets would therefore be critical to enabling operators to meet their climate commitments while supporting the region’s growing connectivity needs.
