BT Group — full event log

BT Group tracks customer-enabled carbon savings cumulatively since FY22, reaching 5,539,059 tCO2e by FY25 (up from 3,777,844 tCO2e in FY24), primarily through full fibre broadband reducing personal and work-related travel. Associated revenues from carbon-saving products amounted to £6bn in FY25. BT expects avoided emissions to grow as IoT and AI products expand.

sustainability_report p.9

BT Group updated its SBTi-validated emissions reduction targets. Target is to cut absolute operational carbon (Scopes 1&2, LBM) by 90% vs FY17 baseline by 31 March 2031, and reduce supply chain Scope 3 upstream + operational emissions by 42% vs FY17 baseline by 31 March 2031.

sustainability_report p.11

BT Group targets net zero carbon business for Scopes 1 and 2 GHG emissions by 31 March 2031, now measured using location-based methodology instead of previously used market-based methodology.

sustainability_report p.5

BT Group published its disability pay gap for the first time in FY25, expanding pay gap transparency beyond gender (reported annually) and ethnicity (reported since 2021).

sustainability_report p.15

ESG reporting including environmental data independently assured by LRQA Group Limited to a high level of assurance in accordance with AccountAbility AA1000ASv3 standard.

sustainability_report p.11

Openreach continued its Business Conservation Partnership with the RSPB to plan and implement nature-positive actions as part of its overall fibre build programme, tracking protected species and invasive species on site.

sustainability_report p.8

From FY25, BT Group stopped purchasing unbundled renewable energy attribute certificates (REACs) and now sources renewable electricity exclusively through PPAs and contractual agreements. BT reports 53% of total energy consumption as renewable electricity in FY25 per SASB disclosure. The group maintains ISO 50001 energy management certification in the UK and Germany, and has installed over 3,000 EV charge points to support fleet electrification, with >5,500 EVs representing 18% of total fleet.

sustainability_report p.11

BT Group targets a 90% absolute reduction in Scopes 1 and 2 GHG emissions (LBM) by 31 March 2031 vs FY17 baseline. By FY25, 52% reduction has been achieved. Key actions include rolling out over 5,500 EVs (18% of fleet) with over 3,000 charge points installed, managing ~6,500 diesel generator fuel storage tanks, and operating ISO 14001-certified EMS and ISO 50001-certified energy management in key markets.

sustainability_report p.5

BT Group has an SBTi-validated target to reduce Scope 3 upstream + operational emissions (GHG Categories 1–8) by 42% vs FY17 baseline by 31 March 2031. By FY25, a 25% reduction has been achieved (2,425 kt vs 3,217 kt baseline). BT spends £9.6bn annually with UK-based suppliers and extends its ESG expectations through supplier policies and standards.

sustainability_report p.11

BT Group collected over 3.1m devices from consumers and businesses through returns and take-back in FY25. 95% of collected mobile devices went for reuse, with a 4.8% take-back rate targeted to reach 20% by FY30. CPE return rate was 66% with 50% refurbished/reused. BT also fed 5,600 tonnes of recovered copper cable back into the global supply chain and recovered 1,750 tonnes of end-of-life network kit.

sustainability_report p.9

BT published its first Climate Transition Plan setting out objectives, strategy and governance to reduce emissions. All near-term and net zero targets approved by SBTi as aligned with 1.5°C pathway.

sustainability_report p.7

At end of 2024 BT placed the largest ever UK commercial EV fleet order of nearly 3,500 new EVs.

sustainability_report p.7

BT wants to put zero waste into landfill by 2030, become a circular business by 2030 and build towards a circular tech ecosystem by 2040.

sustainability_report p.8

Over the last eight years, BT cut global energy consumption by 20%, achieved mainly through rationalising and upgrading buildings and networks and reducing use of electricity and gas. BT is building more energy-efficient fixed and mobile networks while switching off old ones. Full fibre networks also better absorb physical climate change risks like flooding and higher temperatures.

sustainability_report p.7

BT operates over 30,000 vehicles — the fleet is the second biggest source of operational emissions after consumed electricity. It has over 5,500 EVs (18% of total fleet) and placed an order for nearly 3,500 additional EVs at end of 2024, which will create one of the UK's largest EV fleets.

sustainability_report p.7

BT encourages key suppliers to report to CDP to improve visibility and action on emissions. Suppliers representing more than 65% of supply chain emissions are reporting to CDP. BT collaborates with major Openreach partners through workshops and webinars, and works with the 1.5°C Supply Chain Leaders initiative and SME Climate Hub to drive climate action across global supply chains.

sustainability_report p.7

BT collected over 3.1m devices from consumers and businesses through returns and take-back. Through Consumer and Business trade-in services it collected 140,000 mobile devices. EE repair service (Apple, Samsung, Google approved) fixed 57,000 devices in FY25. BT launched sale of refurbished devices and expanded eSIM use to reduce physical SIM manufacturing.

sustainability_report p.8

BT achieved a 97% recycling, reuse and recovery rate in the UK and globally. In FY25 it recovered 1,750 tonnes of old/end-of-life network kit and reused 1,548 items back into the network. As customers switch to full fibre, BT recycled over 5,600 tonnes of extracted old copper cable back into the global supply chain.

sustainability_report p.8

BT Group updated its SBTi-approved emissions reduction targets to be based on the GHG location-based method (LBM) rather than market-based method (MBM). A new Scope 1 and Scope 2 LBM line was added and previous years' numbers restated. Carbon intensity now uses LBM against adjusted revenue instead of MBM against GVA.

sustainability_report p.11

From FY25, BT Group stopped purchasing unbundled renewable energy attribute certificates (REACs) to achieve 100% renewable electricity. MBM renewable declarations are now only from PPAs and contractual agreements. This changes the MBM Scope 2 figures significantly.

sustainability_report p.11

BT Group confirmed its net zero targets: operational net zero (Scopes 1 and 2 market-based) by end of March 2031, and full value chain (all Scope 3) net zero by end of March 2041. Science-based target to cut Scope 1&2 intensity by 87% vs FY17 by March 2031, and supply chain emissions (Scope 3 cat 1-8) by 42% vs FY17 by March 2031.

sustainability_report p.34

Philip Jansen stepped down as Chief Executive at end of January 2024. Allison Kirkby was appointed as Chief Executive from 1 February 2024, having served as Non-Executive Director since March 2019. This leadership change is expected to accelerate BT's transformation strategy.

sustainability_report p.6

BT completed disposal of Pelipod Limited (secure collection point service), BT Enia (regional Italian telecommunications business), and certain city fibre networks in Germany. Net profit on disposal after tax was £25m recognised as specific items.

sustainability_report p.28

Collected nearly 2.6m devices via returns and take-back. EE Trade-In collected 166,000 mobile devices (>1m cumulative since launch). EE repair service (Apple, Samsung, Google approved) fixed 58,000 devices (up 94% on FY23). Piloted the Circular Transition Indicator Tool on own-brand consumer devices. UK recycling/reuse/recovery rate 92.1% (90.4% global); recovered 3,300 tonnes of end-of-life network equipment via Exchange Clearance Operations; deal with EMR for copper cable recycling until 2028.

sustainability_report p.15

BT Group achieved a 61% reduction in carbon emissions intensity (tCO2e per £m value added) versus FY17 baseline, against its science-based target of 87% reduction by March 2031. Progress driven by renewable electricity procurement (PPAs, RECs), fleet electrification and network rationalisation.

sustainability_report p.49

BT refreshed its Carbon Reduction Plan providing stakeholders with updated view of decarbonisation actions. Also published new carbon abatement methodology to improve transparency on how customer avoided emissions savings are calculated.

sustainability_report p.37

Climate data and TCFD section reviewed to a high level of assurance by LRQA Group Limited against AccountAbility's AA1000AS v3 assurance standard, representing reasonable assurance level.

sustainability_report p.71

Building more energy-efficient fixed and 4G/5G networks while switching off legacy networks (e.g. PSTN, copper). Full fibre networks are more resilient to physical climate risks like flooding and higher temperatures, reducing faults and engineering visits.

sustainability_report p.14

Requires suppliers to conduct climate risk assessments, set 1.5C aligned science-based targets and report annually. Over 300 suppliers now report to CDP. Collaborates with the 1.5C Supply Chain Leaders initiative, SME Climate Hub and UK Business Climate Hub. Joined the JAC (Joint Alliance for CSR) Board, an association of 27 communications providers transforming ICT supply chains.

sustainability_report p.16

BT Group purchases 100% certified renewable electricity worldwide (99.9% of global electricity). Long-term renewable PPAs met 24% of UK electricity demand in FY24, supporting additional renewable electricity infrastructure across the UK grid. Where BT does not control supply or cannot guarantee origin, additional RECs are purchased. BT participates in RE100 and the UK Electric Fleets Coalition, exploring 5-10 year PPA and virtual PPA (vPPA) contracts. The energy demand hedging target is at least 80% hedged one quarter before each financial year.

sustainability_report p.37

Nearly 80% of BT's operational Scope 1 and 2 emissions come from its commercial fleet of over 33,000 vehicles. BT is investing to convert the majority to electric or zero-emission vehicles by end of FY31. Over 4,100 EVs were on the fleet as of FY24, including more than 1,700 added in the year. BT is a founding member of the UK Electric Fleets Coalition and introduced a salary-sacrifice EV scheme for UK colleagues. In India, EVs are being introduced for transport and shuttle passenger services.

sustainability_report p.37

BT is retiring legacy copper and 3G networks and replacing them with full fibre and 4G/5G infrastructure that is substantially more energy efficient. Full fibre is 80% more energy-efficient than copper and is more passive (no electronics between exchanges and premises), reducing fault rates and engineering visits. In FY24, 15,613 fixed legacy network elements were switched off, saving roughly 27 GWh of power and reducing emissions by 56,162 tCO2e at end state. Total global energy consumption was cut by approximately 140 GWh (4%) in FY24. BT's UK networks energy consumption fell 5.1% vs FY23.

sustainability_report p.23

Helped customers avoid >1.5m tCO2e in FY24 (3.78m cumulative since 2021), mainly via full fibre broadband reducing personal/work travel. Published a new carbon abatement methodology, expanded the Digital Carbon Calculator to include compute and endpoint devices (showing 15% average CO2e savings), and enhanced the Carbon Network Dashboard with energy optimisation recommendations. Target: help customers avoid 60m tCO2e cumulatively by FY30.

sustainability_report p.16

BT's Better Workplace Programme is consolidating hundreds of buildings to approximately 30 modern facilities. New builds meet BREEAM-Excellent standard. Since the programme started, 746 older buildings have been closed and over 22,000 colleagues moved to new facilities. Investments of ~£3m in cooling upgrades at core metronode sites and £5m on local exchange cooling systems ensure network sites can operate at up to 45°C. Adiabatic cooling units reduce reliance on refrigerant gases.

sustainability_report p.37

Scope 3 supply chain emissions account for approximately 95% of BT's total emissions. BT has cut supply chain (Scope 3 cat 1-8) emissions by 25% since FY17 against a 42% reduction target by March 2031. BT refreshed its climate change policy requiring suppliers to conduct climate risk assessments, set 1.5°C-aligned science-based targets and report progress annually. Over 300 suppliers now report to CDP. BT launched a new supplier engagement campaign in FY24 asking suppliers to set public SBTs, and joined the JAC (Joint Alliance for CSR) Board.

sustainability_report p.38

BT aims to help customers avoid 60 million tonnes of CO2e by end of March 2030 through its products and services including full fibre broadband, mobile solutions and cloud computing. In FY24, customers avoided more than 1.5 million tonnes (3.8m cumulatively since FY21), mainly through full fibre rollout enabling reductions in personal and work-related travel. BT expanded its Digital Carbon Calculator to include compute and endpoints, and launched AI-powered edge computing solutions with QiO and real-time carbon dashboards to help customers cut emissions.

sustainability_report p.38

BT Group reiterates SBTi-validated 1.5C aligned targets: 87% cut in carbon emissions intensity vs FY17 by FY31; 42% supply chain reduction by FY31; net zero Scope 1+2 by FY31 and Scope 3 by FY41.

sustainability_report p.12

Annual historic changes to Scope 3 supply chain emission calculations are a consequence mainly of a switch from a CPI-modelled approach to an 'actual' data approach.

sustainability_report p.13

Build towards a circular BT Group by 31 March 2030 and circular tech and telco ecosystem by 31 March 2040, while protecting nature and biodiversity. Zero waste to landfill by 2030.

sustainability_report p.15

Ran an impact assessment of operations and procurement aligned with the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures framework. Partnered with Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts; Openreach Business Conservation Partnership with RSPB.

sustainability_report p.15

BT Group aims to convert the majority of its commercial fleet to electric or zero emission vehicles by 2030. In FY24 added >1,700 EVs, taking the total to >4,100. Developed a street-cabinet-based EV charging unit and is exploring converting up to 60k cabinets into EV charging points. Founding member of the UK Electric Fleets Coalition.

sustainability_report p.14

Cut global energy consumption by ~140GWh in FY24 (4% drop on FY23) through rationalising and upgrading buildings and networks. The Better Workplace Programme consolidates hundreds of BT Group buildings to around 30, with new builds meeting BREEAM Excellent standard.

sustainability_report p.14

FY23 carbon emissions intensity KPI was restated from 56% (as presented in FY23 Annual Report) to 55% following review of carbon emissions data. Noted in footnote d to the operational KPIs page.

sustainability_report p.49

Completion of transaction forming 50:50 Sports JV (TNT Sports) with Warner Bros. Discovery, combining BT Sport and Eurosport UK. BT no longer consolidates BT Sport; accounts for 50% ordinary equity interest under equity method. This removed approximately £238m of adjusted revenue and added £71m EBITDA on a pro forma basis.

sustainability_report p.53

BT Group, one of the UK's largest private electricity consumers, achieved 100% renewable electricity globally in November 2020 and maintains this annually. In FY23, 23.3% of worldwide electricity demand was met via corporate Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) — 25.3% of UK total — including a new 10-year PPA with TRIG from a 35MW Scottish wind farm. The remainder is sourced through green tariffs or unbundled EACs (REGOs, GOs, I-RECs). BT also purchased 2,500 GWh of renewable electricity and continues to seek new PPA and direct-wire opportunities to drive additionality. BT has been a RE100 member since 2014.

sustainability_report p.32

BT states that its operational net-zero target (Scope 1&2 by 2031) is dependent on external factors including EV infrastructure availability and viable low-carbon building heating options. As investigations develop, BT acknowledges that 'some form of carbon offsetting will be required to achieve net zero', but has not yet committed to a specific removals strategy. No project-based carbon credits were cancelled in FY23. The firm's approach is currently unsure on whether permanent carbon removals (e.g. DAC, BECCS) will be used at target year.

sustainability_report p.33

BT is consolidating its UK estate from ~270 office buildings to ~30 modern locations under the Better Workplace Programme. New buildings must achieve BREEAM Excellent or WELL rating. In FY23, the new Bristol Assembly Building was fitted with electric rather than gas heating (saving ~140 tCO2e initially, rising to 500 tCO2e as the estate reduces). Electric boilers were refitted across 19 buildings saving ~193 tCO2e in FY23. Oil and gas heating systems in retained exchange buildings are being replaced with low-carbon alternatives including heat pumps.

sustainability_report p.34

LRQA provided annual independent reasonable assurance (high assurance) against AA1000AS v3 for BT Group's Scope 1, 2 and Scope 3 (cats 1-8, 11, 12) emissions data as reported in CDP submission and Annual Report.

sustainability_report p.116

The commercial fleet (34,000 vehicles) accounts for ~80% of BT Group's Scope 1 emissions. BT is an EV100 member committed to converting the majority of its fleet to electric or zero-emission vehicles by 2030 where technically and economically viable. In FY23, over 1,000 new EVs were added bringing the total to 2,400 EVs which travelled 7.9 million miles saving 2,200 tCO2e. Openreach is targeting ~4,000 EVs by March 2024. BT engages with UK government via the UK Electric Fleets Coalition to advocate for EV infrastructure and incentives.

sustainability_report p.34

73% of BT's end-to-end carbon emissions come from the upstream supply chain. BT has an SBTi-validated target to cut supply chain (Scope 3 cat 1-8) emissions by 42% by March 2031 vs FY17 baseline; currently 20% cut achieved. Key mechanisms include: climate clauses in 11 key supplier contracts, mandatory net-zero SBTi targets for new contracts >£25m, CDP supply chain programme (200+ suppliers reporting), supplier engagement campaigns (140+ suppliers in FY23), and joint operator engagement with Deutsche Telekom, Swisscom and Telefonica on common suppliers.

sustainability_report p.28

BT's network consumes ~95% of its electricity (c.2.29 TWh UK annually). Key levers include: retiring the analogue PSTN (equivalent to powering 175,000 homes), shutting down the 3G network from early 2024 (3G uses 35% of RAN energy despite <2% of data), and upgrading >12,000 cooling units to Adiabatic systems (saving 329 GWh/year and eliminating F-gas). In FY23, global energy consumption fell 77.7 GWh (2.85%) to 2,645 GWh. 5G is up to 90% more energy efficient than 3G per unit of data.

sustainability_report p.17

BT has set a target to help customers avoid 60 million tonnes of CO2 by March 2030 through full fibre broadband (FTTP), 4G/5G, cloud computing, IoT and related technologies. In FY23, customers avoided over 935,000 tCO2e. Carbon-saving products generated ~£5.754bn revenue (28% of total); BT aims to grow this to 45% by 2030. New tools launched in FY23 include a Digital Carbon Calculator and Carbon Network Dashboard to help business customers baseline and reduce their ICT carbon footprint.

sustainability_report p.15

BT set a new target to help customers avoid 60 million tonnes of CO2e by end of March 2030 through FTTP, 5G, Cloud and IoT. This is a demand-side avoided emissions commitment.

sustainability_report p.3

In FY23, DEFRA started providing carbon factors to calculate employee commuting emissions, representing a methodological improvement for Scope 3 Category 7.

sustainability_report p.40

LRQA provided high (reasonable) assurance on BT's Scope 1, 2 (market-based), and key Scope 3 categories (Cat 1-8, 11, 12) per AA1000AS v3 and ISAE 3000/3410. Annual process, complete for FY22.

sustainability_report p.90

BT is one of the UK's largest private electricity consumers (~2.6 TWh/annum) and is a founding RE100 member. It achieved 100% renewable electricity globally (where markets allow) in November 2020 and maintained this in FY22. The UK supply (99% of total) is delivered through bundled green tariffs backed by REGOs and five wind/solar PPAs supplying approximately 17% of UK electricity. Unbundled EACs (I-RECs, GOs, REGOs) cover consumption in 80+ countries. BT is actively exploring additional PPAs to manage REGO price risk and provide market additionality signals.

sustainability_report p.11

BT is replacing conventional gas and oil-fired heating at telephone exchanges, data centres and offices with electric heating and air-source heat pumps as part of the Better Workplace Programme. In FY22, 31 exchanges were converted (58 total since 2019), saving ~600 tCO2e/annum. Three newly acquired buildings (One Braham HQ, Warrington, Three Snow Hill) selected electric-only heating, saving ~298 tCO2e/annum. Heat pump technology and low-carbon alternatives to natural gas are being assessed for retained exchange buildings. These investments support the goal to decarbonise operations (Scope 1) by 87% by FY31.

sustainability_report p.23

BT has not yet committed to specific carbon removal mechanisms. For both net zero targets (NZ1 for Scopes 1&2 by 2031 and NZ2 for full value chain by 2041), BT states it is 'unsure' whether permanent carbon removals will be required to neutralise unabated emissions. BT tracks voluntary carbon offset market pricing (£7.34–£63/tCO2e including Woodland Carbon Code) to inform strategy. No project-based carbon credits were originated or purchased in FY22. The company will clarify its removal and offsetting approach as its transition plan develops and as UK government transition plan frameworks are finalised.

sustainability_report p.22

In December 2021, BT launched the BT Group Manifesto, bringing forward its net zero commitment for Scopes 1 & 2 by 15 years from 2045 to 31 March 2031. This is SBTi-approved and linked to Int1 intensity target.

sustainability_report p.1

In FY22, BT brought forward and expanded NZ2: the net zero Scope 3 target now covers GHGP categories 1-8, 11 and 12 (adding downstream use-of-sold and end-of-life), not just upstream categories 1-8.

sustainability_report p.22

BT and Openreach operate the UK's second-largest commercial fleet (~33,000 vehicles), representing approximately 70% of direct Scope 1 emissions. Openreach has committed to an all-green fleet by 2030 and had over 1,000 EVs as of March 2022 (700 acquired in FY22). Over 600 home-charging units were provided to engineers. Company-car colleagues have been offered fully electric options since FY19; non-engineer role colleagues can choose from 6 EVs or 4 hybrid EVs since April 2021. BT participates in the UK EV Fleet Accelerator to advocate for supporting infrastructure and policy.

sustainability_report p.17

BT has a science-based target to cut supply chain (Scope 3 Cat 1-8) emissions 42% by 2031 vs FY17; in FY22 a 28% reduction had been achieved. All supplier contracts include a mandatory climate change standard. For new contracts over £25m (covering ~67% of procurement spend), suppliers must have a net zero SBT in place or commit to one within six months. BT sent engagement letters to 400+ key suppliers representing 73% of supplier Scope 3 emissions; 84% had set or planned a net zero target and 73% purchase or plan to purchase renewable electricity. BT also participates in the CDP Supply Chain programme.

sustainability_report p.93

BT's BT Group Manifesto introduced a new target to achieve net zero for supply chain and customer carbon emissions by 31 March 2041, extending the prior 2041 supply-chain-only target to include downstream customer use (Cat 11, 12). SBTi-approved under NZ2.

sustainability_report p.22

Gross Scope 1+2 (market) increased approximately 5% in FY22 (from ~171,684 tCO2e in FY21 to ~180,934 tCO2e) due to rebound from pandemic and increased commercial fleet vehicle use to support FTTP rollout. Fugitive emissions also increased by 1,005 tCO2e.

sustainability_report p.37

BT invested £102m to upgrade over 8,000 refrigerant-based cooling systems to adiabatic units, expected to save 295 GWh of electricity per year and eliminate F-gas fugitive emissions. The Better Workplace Programme consolidates the UK estate from ~270 offices to ~30 modern locations. Closing legacy networks (e.g. Featurenet in FY22) saves ~£1.8m/annum in run-rate energy costs. FTTP migration will further reduce the number of active network sites. Total energy fell to 3,311 GWh in FY22 from 3,320 GWh in FY21 despite the fibre rollout.

sustainability_report p.13

BT's low-carbon products and services generated £5bn (25% of group revenue) in FY22. Carbon-abating solutions include FTTP broadband (enabling remote work and dematerialisation), unified communications, cloud networking, and IoT/telematics. BT's Green Tech Innovation Platform (GTIP) incubates scale-ups such as iOpt (building energy monitoring for social housing) and EverImpact (urban CO2 sensors). BT has set a new target to help customers avoid 60 million tCO2e by end of March 2030 through these technology shifts. The company works with the Carbon Trust to develop use cases measuring customer carbon savings.

sustainability_report p.12

In May 2021, BT increased the supply chain (Scope 3 cat 1-8) reduction target from 29% (previously SBTi-validated) to 42% absolute reduction by end March 2031 against FY17 baseline, in line with a well-below 2°C scenario.

sustainability_report p.28

In December 2021, BT launched the BT Group Manifesto, bringing forward the net zero commitment to end of March 2031 for Scopes 1 & 2, and end of March 2041 for supply chain and customer emissions. Also introduced target to help customers avoid 60Mt CO2 by 2030.

sustainability_report p.1

From FY2019/20, and retrospectively updated back to FY16/17, Scope 2 includes all sites and countries where BT consumes electricity, in compliance with UK Government Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting (SECR) requirements. Previously unknown landlord-controlled consumption was estimated.

sustainability_report p.38

In June 2020, BT revised its absolute Scope 3 supply chain target from a 29% reduction to a 42% reduction against FY17 baseline by 31 March 2031, in line with 1.5°C scenarios. SBTi approved.

sustainability_report p.19

In 2017, BT announced a Science-Based Target to reduce the carbon emissions intensity of operations by 87% by end of March 2031 against FY17 baseline, validated by SBTi as 1.5°C aligned. Intensity metric is tCO2e per GBP value-added (EBITDA + employee costs).

sustainability_report p.29

BT committed to source 100% renewable electricity globally by 2020 as part of RE100. Target achieved November 2020. In FY22, 100% maintained (99.9% globally where markets allow).

sustainability_report p.21

BT joined RE100 in 2015 with a target to source 100% renewable electricity globally. This target was achieved in November 2020 and is maintained as an ongoing annual target. 99.9% of global electricity sourced from renewables; 0.1% in markets where sourcing is unavailable.

sustainability_report p.32