Tele2 Group staked a claim as a climate neutrality pioneer for its operations in the Nordics and the Baltics, and mapped out sustainability efforts to become the first in the regions to achieve net-zero emissions in its value chain.

In a statement, the operator said it now used 100 per cent renewable electricity in its own operations and was offsetting remaining greenhouse gas emissions.

As a result, the company stated the carbon dioxide emissions it produced on a group level have dropped by more than 90 per cent, or a total of 45,000 tonnes per year.

Anders Nilsson, CEO and president, noted the operator’s services “have always enabled smarter and more energy-efficient societies, but we should never stop looking for ways to decrease our own carbon footprint”.

He added the climate milestone will serve as “a great foundation for the rollout of our 5G network later this year”.

As part of its sustainability efforts, Tele2 expressed ambitions to become the first climate neutral operator in all of its markets.

The operator described mobile and fixed connectivity as the underpinning for new technologies which help in emissions reduction, pointing to a recent survey by the GSMA and the Carbon Trust which found the level of avoided emissions enabled by mobile communications technologies to be up to ten-times greater.