Data centres are the backbone of our digital economy, but their environmental impact is coming under greater scrutiny. Structure Research’s newly released Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Report offers a comprehensive view of how data centre providers and hyperscale platforms are balancing rapid growth with sustainability, based on data from 26 data centre operators and 9 hyperscale cloud platforms worldwide.

Energy Use Is Rising—But So Is Efficiency

According to the report, global data centre energy usage has surged from 178.5 TWh in 2019 to 310.6 TWh in 2024, now accounting for more than 1.1% of global energy consumption. However, the carbon emissions intensity of that energy has declined from 366.9 mtCO2e/GWh to 312.7 mtCO2e/GWh. This trend points to growing adoption of renewable and carbon-free energy sources across the sector.

Philbert Shih, Managing Director at Structure Research, emphasizes that this shift represents meaningful progress: “While energy consumption continues to climb, providers are making strides in efficiency and renewable adoption. The industry is moving in the right direction—but transparency and accountability remain essential.”

A Look at Sustainability Leaders

The report identifies that ESG Leaders—those at the forefront of sustainable practices—increased their renewable energy consumption by nearly 28% over the past five years. Hyperscalers now rely on renewable sources for approximately 91% of their energy needs, while data centre operators overall have reached a 62% adoption rate.

Carbon-free energy, including nuclear, is also becoming more prominent, particularly in Tier 1 markets facing power constraints. These shifts reflect a broader trend toward environmentally responsible growth, even as digital demands accelerate.

Improved PUE and Water Efficiency

Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) continues to improve. The average PUE for data centre providers dropped from 1.44 to 1.38 since 2019, while hyperscale providers remain at a leading 1.22. Water usage has risen by 9.6% over five years, a side effect of increased demand for liquid cooling systems supporting AI workloads and high-density deployments.

New Sustainability Benchmarking Framework

A standout addition to this year’s report is the introduction of the Structure Research Sustainability Quadrant (SRSQ). This new benchmarking tool ranks providers based on transparency, operational efficiency, and renewable energy use—aiming to encourage higher disclosure standards and highlight leaders in environmental performance.

The report finds that while ESG reporting is becoming more common, inconsistencies remain. Many providers still lack region-specific disclosures, making it difficult to assess true environmental impact. The SRSQ aims to address these gaps and foster industry-wide accountability.

Looking Ahead

As the data centre industry scales to meet growing demands from AI, cloud, and edge computing, sustainability will remain a top priority. Structure Research’s 2025 ESG Report serves as a critical resource for enterprises, cloud providers, and policymakers navigating the evolving environmental landscape.

To access the full report or learn more about Structure Research, visit www.structureresearch.io.

To register for the infra/Structure Summit 2025 where the topic of sustainability will be covered, click HERE.