Southeast Asian Mobile Network Emissions Climb 20% Amid Green Energy Hurdles

Mobile operators across Southeast Asia have seen operational emissions surge by 20 per cent since 2019, according to the GSMA Mobile Net Zero Asia Pacific 2026 report. While regional connectivity continues to expand, the industry is struggling to offset its carbon footprint, largely due to persistent challenges in accessing affordable and reliable renewable energy sources.

The data, unveiled at the M360 ASEAN conference in Kuala Lumpur, outlines a difficult landscape for telecommunications firms attempting to meet climate targets. Between 2019 and 2024, regional data traffic spiked by 350 per cent, while total mobile connections grew by 6 per cent. This massive surge in digital activity has placed significant strain on energy consumption across the region's network infrastructure.

The report, as noted by the original publisher, indicates that while total operational emissions for Asia Pacific reached 23 MtCO2e in 2024—a 6 per cent rise over five years—the impact is uneven. Mature markets, including Japan and parts of Oceania, managed to cut operational emissions by over 30 per cent by integrating renewable power more aggressively. In contrast, emerging markets in Southeast Asia, including Malaysia, have recorded sharp emission increases due to their continued dependence on fossil-fuel-heavy power grids.

Efforts toward decarbonisation have not been entirely stagnant. Asia Pacific telcos successfully generated or purchased 7 TWh of renewable electricity in 2024. This accounts for 15 per cent of their total power requirements, a notable jump from the 1 per cent recorded in 2019. However, this progress remains insufficient to keep pace with the energy demands of expanding networks.

For Malaysian consumers and businesses, this trend signals a potential shift in how telecommunications services are priced and operated. As major telcos—such as CelcomDigi, Maxis, and U Mobile—face pressure to meet environmental standards, the cost of transitioning to greener energy could eventually influence operating expenditures. For the Malaysian SME, this may lead to more scrutiny on the digital supply chain, as corporate clients increasingly demand sustainable connectivity solutions.

Furthermore, the environmental cost of digital growth is becoming a central theme in the national economic conversation. With Malaysia currently experiencing a robust real GDP growth of 6.0 per cent, the digital economy is a primary engine for this momentum. However, the inability to decouple data growth from carbon emissions could pose a long-term challenge for the nation’s sustainability pledges, especially as energy-intensive activities like cloud computing and 5G network expansion become standard.

The industry landscape is further complicated by Malaysia’s broader economic environment, where inflation remains at 1.8 per cent and fuel prices fluctuate—with unsubsidised RON95 currently at RM4.02 per litre. While these figures impact general business operations, the specific challenge for telcos is the availability and cost of green energy certificates and direct renewable access, which remain a bottleneck for net-zero goals.

What remains uncertain is the timeline for when regional power grids will reach the level of maturity required to support telcos in fully transitioning to clean energy. Whether Malaysian operators will opt for large-scale onsite renewable investments or rely on government-led green energy initiatives is not yet disclosed. As demand for mobile data continues to scale, stakeholders will be watching to see if the gap between connectivity growth and emission reductions can be bridged in the coming years.