Vodafone UK has reduced its energy usage by 100 gigawatt hours in three years, preventing 25,000 tonnes of CO2 from entering the atmosphere and saving the company £10m.
The amount of energy saved could power a town with a population of 65,000 people for a whole year.
Changes to lighting, heating and air conditioning operations have been implemented across 90 Vodafone UK sites, including offices, call centres, data centres amd mobile telephone exchanges.
A number of Vodafone’s sites, including network operations centres, must be powered 24 hours-a-day to keep the network running. As the network accounts for about 90% of Vodafone UK’s total electricity cost, improving energy efficiency is crucial for the company.
By managing temperatures using sensors that inform natural air flow heating and cooling systems in real time, Vodafone has been able to reduce energy usage significantly.
Scott Petty, Chief Technology Officer, Vodafone UK, said: “Not everything we’ve done here is revolutionary; we’ve achieved these staggering savings by doing the basics well and making energy reduction something we think about each and every day.
“Combined with our commitment to power our network with 100% renewable electricity by 2021 – and help our customers reduce their own carbon footprints with our connectivity and Internet of Things technology – this will ensure we are helping to build a more sustainable future.”
Third-party energy auditor, Energy Efficiency Verification Specialists (EEVS), validated Vodafone’s energy savings, which were achieved with the help of facilities management firm, Mitie.
Vodafone recently announced that it was going to halve its environmental impact by 2025, as well as power its network using 100% renewable electricity by July 2021.
