Tencent and Partners Form Alliance to Reduce Carbon Emissions through Digitalization and Licensing Patents
The Carbon Neutrality Professional Committee and Global Carbon Neutral Technology Alliance of Internet+ Development Association of China (IDAC) are established
Tencent and a group of key industry players jointly announced that they will form the Carbon Neutrality Professional Committee and Global Carbon Neutral Technology Alliance to help break down technological barriers to addressing the climate crisis. As part of the new alliance, the companies or their affiliates pledged to license 189 carbon neutrality related patents and technologies for free, with the aim of helping China achieve the goal of carbon peaking in 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060.
The alliance was formed during the Carbon Neutral Patent Technology and Application Sub-Forum of the China Industrial Internet Summit that was held in Jiangmen, Guangdong on August 23, 2022.
The alliance will be led by Tencent and include a public-interest patent pool with nine other leading enterprises including Microsoft (China), Alibaba, Baidu, JD.com, Kuaishou, Ant Group, Meituan, Vanke, and Willfar Information Tech. The parties or their affiliates will license patents free of charge to organizations for specific uses that will advance carbon neutrality.
The patents cover technologies designed to advance energy savings and efficiencies through various software and hardware solutions. They include optimization algorithms, storage and network resources, data centers, energy monitoring, energy conservation, and reducing emissions in transportation and buildings.
"It is becoming imminent for us to address the climate change and facilitate the transition into low-carbon economy," said Xu Hao, head of Tencent’s Carbon Neutrality Lab. "We at Tencent hope to help the traditional industries and those with relatively high carbon emissions, such as steel, cement, electricity, and chemicals, to move to a low-carbon model through our digital capabilities. Digitalization can significantly improve the production efficiency of these companies, which consequentially could boost energy efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions."
To cite an example, Liang Jiaqi, who’s leading the zero carbon project for Tencent’s data centers, said the company is using its latest T-Block technology, AI and micro-grids to improve the PUE (power usage effectiveness) of the data centers and make them greener. Tencent is also using novel technologies such as CCUS (carbon capture, utilisation and storage), virtual electric fields, new refrigeration coatings, and fuel cells to reduce carbon emissions. Tencent hopes to empower the industry and contribute to the cause of carbon neutrality.
In 2020, Tencent officially began development of distributed renewable energy projects for data centers. The annual power generation of these projects is expected to exceed 80 GWh and can effectively reduce energy costs for data centers. In January 2021, Tencent announced it would start making its carbon neutrality plan, becoming one of the first leading internet companies in China to launch such an initiative. Tencent has later pledged to achieve carbon neutrality in its own operations and supply chain and to use renewable power for 100 percent of all electricity consumed by 2030.
In addition to achieving its own carbon neutrality goals, Tencent intends to play a constructive role as a partner and connector across the industry. The establishment of the carbon neutrality alliance and disclosure of patents is an initial step by Tencent and the alliance companies to reduce technical barriers in the industry and use technology to help society meet this critical challenge.
In the future, the Carbon Neutrality Professional Committee will guide the Global Carbon Neutral Technology Alliance to attract additional participants, including scientific research institutions, related enterprises, and international organizations. By innovating and developing low-carbon technology and accelerating the use of digital information technology, the alliance can help Chinese society achieve its goal of carbon neutrality.
