Data centres account for 0.5 per cent of global carbon emissions.
In recent years, AI has been driving the indirect emissions of data centres, and those emissions are now projected to rise from roughly 180 Mt to between 300 and 500 million metric tons annually by 2035, according to Carbon Brief.
Earlier today, Antonio Guterres, the UN Secretary-General, called on AI enterprises to disclose their environmental impacts in addition to asking them to commit to powering all data centres with renewable energy by 2030 as part of a new initiative.
The UN Secretary-General launched the UN's AI Environmental Transparency Initiative at London Climate Action Week on Tuesday [June 23, 2026].
“If AI is to help build a better future, it must be honest about what it costs us now,” he noted at the conference.
Guterres drew from up-to-date scientific insights depicting that the root cause of the magnifying climate crisis and rising energy insecurity continues to be the reliance on fossil fuels.
He laid out a plan to “accelerate the transition to a more secure, resilient and sustainable energy future: one powered by renewable energy, strengthened international cooperation, and science-based action,” the UN statement noted.
Also Watch: The Future of Data Centres Energy
AI Hidden Cost: Data Centres To Outpower Most Nations
Underscoring the hidden costs of AI and its impact on climate change, the UN Secretary-General acknowledged that while AI can accelerate climate solutions, the data centres bearing its energy demands could soon consume more power than all but five nations on Earth.
“By 2030, they could use more power than all but five countries – and enough water to meet the basic needs of all 1.3 billion residents of sub‑Saharan Africa for an entire year,” the U.N. Secretary-General stated.
He added that a lot of the environmental costs were a “hidden cost” thus far but cautioned clearly on the environmental footprint of data centres becoming a priority.
UN's AI Environmental Transparency Initiative hopes to ensure that AI firms will reduce their carbon footprint generated from AI energy costs.
As part of the strategy, the AI firms have been called to reveal the cost of their water, carbon and land use impacts. Guterres also pushed for data centres to be entirely fuelled by renewable energy by 2030.
“I think it is possible and perfectly reasonable to expect the industry to meet this”, he stated.
Also Read: How AI Growth is Impacting Data Centre Demand
AI Firms ‘Voluntary’ Net-Zero Commitments
According to the IEA, electricity demand from data centres is set to more than double, rising from 460 TWh in 2024 to over 1,000 TWh by 2030 and reaching 1,300 TWh by 2035. Coal currently supplies the largest share of this power at 30 per cent, with renewables close behind at 27 per cent, while natural gas and nuclear make up the rest of the mix.
It seems that AI companies are more adherent to “voluntary” net-zero commitments and renewable electricity targets to decarbonise their operations, according to Reuters. However, many turn to gas or nuclear power sources for new initiatives.
Guterres scrutinised those voices asking for more reliance on fossil fuels. He said that the world remains off track to meet global climate goals, and deploying more renewable power projects and using those to electrify transport, buildings and industry is among the fastest ways to cut emissions and break reliance on imported fossil fuels.
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