Airtel's Nxtra joins RE100, to become 100% renewable energy data centre company

Airtel's data centre arm Nxtra, one of India’s leading data centre companies, has joined the RE100 initiative and committed to sourcing 100 per cent renewable electricity. For the uninitiated, Nxtra is a flagship global initiative led by Climate Group in partnership with CDP (Carbon Disclosure Project).

With this, Nxtra becomes the only data centre organisation in India to have pledged to RE100 and the 14th Indian company to achieve this milestone, underscoring its commitment to environmental sustainability and its aim of becoming net-zero by 2031.

The company has increased its renewable energy use and has contracted 422,000 MWh of renewable energy to date. In FY 2023-24, Nxtra saved ~ 156,595 tCO2e emissions by sourcing renewable energy through Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) and Captive Solar Rooftop Plants. 

 "We are an environmentally responsible brand and have been increasingly adopting clean energy alternatives. We are on a healthy trajectory towards achieving our net-zero goals of 2031 and are happy to become a part of the RE100 initiative with a commitment to 100 per cent renewable electricity," Nxtra by Airtel, CEO, Ashish Arora said in a statement.

According to Nxtra, it has the largest network of data centres in India with 12 large and 120 edge data centres across the country. 

“Despite being highly energy intensive, data centres are overlooked for their emissions. It is inspiring to see Nxtra taking the lead in adopting best practices to reduce their carbon footprint. Nxtra’s initiative to source renewable energy for their operations will be a fitting example for data centre companies to accelerate the journey to a cleaner future. We are delighted to welcome Nxtra by Airtel to RE100,” said Atul Mudaliar, Director of Systems Change – India.