Microsoft to cut its carbon emissions by 75 percent by 2030

Back in 2009, Microsoft announced its goal to reduce its carbon emissions per unit of revenue by at least 30% compared with 2007 levels by 2012. In 2012, Microsoft announced that they are carbon neutral across all their direct operations including data centers, software development labs, air travel, and office buildings. To create carbon awareness among their business around the world, they even introduced internal carbon fee within Microsoft. Last year, Microsoft announced that they are setting target to use 100% clean energy for their datacenters in the coming years.

Today, Microsoft announced that they are planning to reduce their operational carbon emissions 75 percent by 2030, against a 2013 baseline. Microsoft believes this move will help avoid more than 10 million metric tons of carbon emissions by 2030.

As we expand our global cloud infrastructure, we will increasingly turn to renewable energy because it is a clean power source and gives us better financial predictability. It’s good for the environment, our customers and our business. Our cloud-based programs to reduce resource consumption have already cut energy consumption at our main campus in Redmond, Washington by nearly 20 percent, reducing emissions and our power bill. The data we’ve collected on our energy consumption laid the groundwork for us to now buy our own clean energy at market rates, and we’ll soon be powering our Puget Sound campus with 100 percent carbon-free energy.

Read the full blog post from Brad Smith, President and Chief Legal Officer at Microsoft regarding this announcement here.