Progress in Carbon Neutrality
Our targets
VNET is facing the global challenge of climate change by setting ambitious carbon reduction targets to advance the Group's low-carbon transition.
Our strategies
We have developed a "4C" pathway toward carbon neutrality, comprising carbon reduction, carbon removal, carbon offset, and carbon empowerment, to drive the achievement of our carbon neutrality goals. This pathway leverages energy-efficient technologies, renewable energy transitions, carbon trading mechanisms, and value chain collaboration to deliver measurable progress.
GHG emissions verification
VNET conducts an annual inventory of greenhouse gas emissions within the organizational and reporting boundaries, covering Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3 emissions. This inventory is verified by a qualified independent third-party in accordance with the ISO 14064-3:2019 Specification with Guidance for the Verification and Validation of Greenhouse Gas Statements.
We remain committed to enhancing energy efficiency, increasing the proportion of renewable energy, and adopting carbon offsets to strengthen corporate decarbonization efforts. Amid continued business expansion in 2024, the Group achieved a 2% year-on-year reduction in greenhouse gas emissions (scope 1 and 2) with a 9% decrease in emissions intensity.
Stimulating Green Productivity
VNET is committed to actively exploring innovative energy paths and promoting the sustainable operation of the enterprise. Entering the second 25-year of our entrepreneurial journey, pursuing the mission of "bring green direct-current electricity from data centers to millions of households", VNET fully responds to the national goal of accelerating the construction of a new power system centered on renewable energy. We are dedicated to building a new municipal energy system that is green, low-carbon, cost-effective, flexible, and adaptable. By transforming new digital infrastructure into an important flexible resource of the new energy system, we aim to strongly support the vigorous development of green computing power and contribute to create a green, intelligent, and efficient industrial system.
Renewable Energy
·Build a New Ecosystem of "Green Power + Computing Power"
VNET continues to innovate in converting green electricity into green computing power. We are deploying new computing infrastructure around the "Eastern Data, Western Computing" hub nodes to provide sustainable power support for computing power. At the same time, we are actively promoting the consumption of wind and solar green power resources, improving the utilization efficiency of green energy, and innovatively building a new ecosystem of "green power + computing power."
In October 2024, the integrated source-grid-load-storage computing center of the Ulanqab IDC Campus was officially approved. The project includes 200MW of wind power generation and 100MW of photovoltaic power generation, with a total power generation capacity of 300MW. It is also equipped with 45MW of energy storage facilities and will construct a direct green electricity connection, which is expected to transmit about 700 million kWh of green energy annually. This project will provide long-term and stable green energy guarantees for the Ulanqab data center and create a benchmark for green energy utilization solutions for data centers.
·Distributed Photovoltaic Deployment
VNET fully utilizes the existing space and resources of its data centers to actively deploy distributed clean energy, enhancing the self-sufficiency rate of renewable energy in data centers and achieving economic benefits in improving clean energy consumption and optimizing power distribution infrastructure.
By the end of 2024, we have built and operated self-built photovoltaic systems on the rooftops or in the carports of three projects: the Foshan Smart City Data Center, the Beijing Yizhuang Boxing Data Center, and the Taicang IDC Campus. In 2024, the total power generation of these systems reached 318,647 kWh, which represented a reduction of carbon dioxide emissions by approximately 175 tonnes and saved about RMB300,000 in electricity costs in total.
·Renewable Energy Procurement
VNET accelerates its energy transition by procuring renewable energy to substitute traditional energy sources. In 2024, the Group’s purchased renewable energy was over 360,560 MWh, effectively reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 265,000 tonnes. The percentage of renewable energy reached nearly 18%, with the percentage of green electricity of multiple data centers in regions such as Beijing and Xi'an exceeding 80%.
We effectively allocate green power resources and ensure a stable supply of green power by signing long-term framework agreements for green power procurement and engaging in cross-provincial green power trading. For example, in 2024, we signed a three-year green power procurement plan with Datang Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Energy Marketing Co., Ltd. for the period from 2025 to 2027. Furthermore, we encourage and drive downstream partners of data centers to actively utilize green power. In 2024, the greenhouse gas emissions from the value chain (Scope 3) were reduced by approximately 262,000 tonnes.
In addition, the Group attaches great importance to low-carbon transformation and renewable energy deployment. We have established a dedicated team responsible for green power initiatives to ensure that the Group achieves 100% renewable energy by 2030. In 2024, we were awarded two honors, including "2023 Beijing Green Power Consumption Leader" and "2023 Top 10 in Cumulative Green Power Trading Volume in Beijing".
Carbon Market Trading
VNET actively participates in carbon market trading in Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangdong. This year, we managed to save carbon allowances by offsetting carbon emissions with green power for the first time, which helped the Group more accurately quantify the effectiveness of carbon management and fully explore the potential for improving energy and carbon efficiency. In 2024, the Group traded a total of 71,100 tonnes of carbon allowances in the carbon market.
Full-Lifecycle Management of Green Data Centers
VNET actively aligns with the policy of the green development of the digital industry. We integrate the green management philosophy into the entire life cycle of data center site selection, design, construction, and operation. Focusing on "building standardization, electromechanical modularization, and power line bus integration", we drive the transformation of data centers toward energy-saving, low-carbon, flexible, and efficient operations.
By the end of 2024, VNET has obtained 10 green data center certifications. Multiple operational sites of the Group have obtained Environmental Management System (ISO 14001) certification, which covers all business types of the Group.
Site Selection and Planning
VNET attaches great importance to the sustainable impact of data centers and comprehensively considers factors such as local environmental conditions, resource supply, and ecological environment during the site selection and planning phase. For example, the accessibility of renewable energy is one of the important evaluation items in data center site selection. We plan our business layout in regions such as Ulanqab and Huailai, which are rich in green energy and have advantages in natural cooling. Furthermore, we consider the renewable energy supply capacity of the locations to continuously optimize the energy structure.
We comply with the requirements of relevant laws and regulations such as the Law of the People's Republic of China on Environmental Impact Assessment and the Regulations on the Administration of Construction Project Environmental Protection. We conduct an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) before project development to comprehensively evaluate the project's impacts on pollutant discharge, resource use, ecological risks, and other aspects in the proposed site selection area. We abide by the Convention on Biological Diversity of the United Nations and other biodiversity-related regulations and principles, and assess the impacts on nature reserves, water source protection areas, wildlife, and plants, and other relevant aspects in the project's environmental impact report, and strive to mitigate the impact of our operational footprint on biodiversity to our best efforts. Currently, none of the Group's operating locations are situated in or adjacent to protected areas or areas with rich biodiversity outside protected areas.
R&D and Design
We rigorously adhere to the requirements of the Code for Design of Data Centers (GB 50174-2017) and benchmark our procedures against the reliability and flexibility standards of international data centers, such as the Uptime Tier-Ready III certification, to conduct data center planning and design work. We fully implement the green design while ensuring that the computing power demands are met.
The efficiency of water resource utilization in data centers is one of the key performance indicators for measuring the degree of greenness of data centers. We fully consider maximizing the intensive use of water resources during the project planning and design phase. We conduct a comprehensive assessment of water resources at the project location and analyze and forecast the current and future water supply capacity so as to design solutions according to local conditions. In areas that may face water shortages, we adopt designs such as water-free or water-saving HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning) architectures to reduce water resource consumption while preparing for extreme situations of water scarcity or absence. We also consider the recycling of water resources. In the water supply and drainage links, we design a water reuse system to provide water sources for outdoor greening and road cleaning, further enhancing water resource utilization efficiency.
In the planning of the IDC Campuses, we make a reasonable layout and consider the utilization of natural conditions such as ventilation and sunshine to save energy and reduce consumption. In architectural design, we give full play to the thermal performance of the building envelope, such as roofs and exterior walls, to achieve thermal insulation and energy saving. In addition, we optimize the arrangement based on the operating characteristics of the equipment to improve equipment operating efficiency. Particularly, we prioritize the use of green and energy-saving equipment to support the industry in achieving a win-win situation for both economic and environmental benefits.
Project Construction
From the very beginning of data center construction, we strive to integrate environmental protection principles throughout the entire process. We have established an environmental management system for construction sites and adopted a series of measures in multiple dimensions such as dust control, noise reduction, waste emissions management, resource management, and building materials selection to minimize the negative impact of construction activities on the surrounding environment.
At the same time, we promote prefabrication technologies such as prefabricated power modules and prefabricated pumping station products. This helps reduce dust and waste pollution, as well as water and electricity consumption at the construction site, while effectively reducing construction risks for personnel. We have applied prefabrication technologies in data centers in multiple locations nationwide, achieving simplified delivery processes, precise quality control, and low-carbon environmental protection.
Project Operations
VNET is committed to building efficient and intensive data centers, enhancing operational efficiency through innovation, and contributing to the sustainable development of data centers. In 2024, the average annual PUE of our data centers with stabilized operations was 1.27.
We regularly organize training activities for employees on topics, such as energy efficiency, waste management, and water efficiency, through thematic sharing sessions, forums, and publicity campaigns. These efforts aim to enhance employees' environmental awareness and jointly promote energy conservation and emissions reduction.
·Energy management
VNET continuously explores and innovates in energy management practices. By strengthening the construction of energy-saving management systems, promoting the application of green energy-saving technologies, and building intelligent platforms, it continuously improves the O&M efficiency of data centers. The Group has formulated and implemented the Energy Management System, Energy Metering Management System and other policies to regulate and guide energy conservation, consumption reduction, and cooling efficiency improvement in data centers. Multiple sites involved in the main business have been certified with the Energy Management System (ISO 50001).
The Group comprehensively improves the overall energy efficiency of data centers and reduces energy consumption during operations by implementing diversified measures, including technological transformation, equipment upgrades, waste heat recovery, and energy consumption platform management. We apply intelligent technologies in energy efficiency management and predictive maintenance of data centers, effectively reducing energy consumption and improving O&M efficiency. Meanwhile, through accurate fault prediction, potential equipment failures are reduced, significantly extending the service life of equipment and reducing resource waste caused by equipment replacement.
·Water Resources Management
VNET places a high value on the management and usage efficiency of water resources and adopts multiple measures to achieve the rational utilization of water resources. We develop and apply water-free cooling technologies, reclaimed water recycling technologies and actively explore rainwater collection and reutilization technologies. We continuously enhance the water-use efficiency of existing water-cooling systems and effectively reduce the dependence on natural water resources.
In our self-built campuses in Beijing, Langfang, Huailai, and Ulanqab, we fullypromote the comprehensive utilization of municipal reclaimed water. Through careful planning and design of reclaimed water treatment facilities and pipeline systems, we ensure that the production water in the campuses can be recycled through the reclaimed water system after the projects are put into production, contributing to green and sustainable development.
·Waste Management
The waste generated by VNET mainly includes electronic waste and general waste from data centers and offices. We strictly follow applicable laws and regulations to standardize the entire chain of waste storage, transportation, and disposal. In the daily operation and management of data centers, we actively promote waste classification, practice resource recycling, strictly prevent environmental pollution, and ensure the implementation of environmental protection measures.
