Globe Telecom Inc. is ramping up its sustainability efforts by transitioning more than 3,000 cell sites and other low-energy utilization facilities to renewable energy, with a target completion date of 2028.

The Ayala-led telecommunications giant announced that it has begun the process of transitioning some of its cell sites to clean energy within its coverage areas in Metro Manila and Calabarzon.

Globe said this is part of the company’s commitment as the first telco in the country to adopt the Retail Aggregation Program (RAP) of the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC).

Under RAP, businesses are enabled to aggregate their electricity-consuming facilities within a distribution utility’s franchise area.

It also allows firms to negotiate with licensed retail electricity suppliers (RES).

In the case of Globe, it has tapped the services of ACEN Renewable Energy Solutions (ACEN RES), which is the retail arm of Ayala-led ACEN Corp.

Through power purchase agreements, ACEN RES currently supports 22 of Globe’s high-energy utilization facilities that have previously switched to renewable energy.

Globe Chief Sustainability and Corporate Communications Officer Yoly Crisanto said the telco can expedite the reduction of its emissions through RAP.

“By expanding our sourcing of renewable energy to thousands of additional sites, we are taking deliberate steps toward our Net Zero goals and proving that clean energy is not only viable but necessary across all operational levels,” she said.

Once completed, the transition to clean energy is expected to avoid an estimated 5.5 million kilograms of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO₂e) greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) per year.

This is expected to significantly reduce Globe’s GHG emissions by 2030, particularly a 42 percent reduction in direct and indirect emissions and a 25 percent decrease in value chain emissions, based on a 2021 baseline.

By 2050, the company aims to shrink its total carbon footprint by 90 percent.

ACEN Corp. said enabling the shift of over 3,000 Globe sites further advances the collective net-zero ambition of the Ayala Group.

The company said its partnership with the telco giant supports the government’s goal of increasing the share of renewables in the country’s energy mix to 35 percent by 2030 and to 50 percent by 2040.

“This collaboration with Globe reflects the strength of synergies across the Ayala group in driving meaningful climate action,” said ACEN Senior Vice President Irene Maranan.