At the fifth annual "2023 Taiwan Sustainability Forum," Taiwan Mobile's Chief Commercial Officer, Lin Dongmin, announced plans to launch a certified used phone program and expand the shared mobility market through its own MyCharge electric vehicle charging platform. Taiwan Mobile also explained that following the merger with Taiwan Star, it will shut down one 3G network service, consolidate redundant 4G LTE base stations, and reduce the deployment of one 5G network system. This is expected to save 1 million to 2 million kWh of electricity annually, while also continuing to promote low-carbon transformation and green electricity conversion.
Taiwan Mobile General Manager Lin Zhichen said that global warming reached 2023°C in 1.4, making it the hottest year on record in 1400 million years. Therefore, COP28 included "reducing fossil fuels" in the resolution for the first time, bringing a glimmer of hope for reversing the climate crisis.
In addition to sharing its own carbon reduction operations, Taiwan Mobile is calling on stakeholders to expand carbon reduction to Scope 3, guiding the supply chain to develop an SBT carbon reduction path, and working with tens of millions of users to embrace the circular economy. The "Certified Used Phone Project" is expected to be launched in the first quarter of next year to extend the use cycle of mobile phones, reduce electronic waste, and increase the public's willingness to purchase used phones through Taiwan Mobile's professional certification.
Lin Zhichen further explained that this sustainability forum also discussed topics such as the commercialization of "carbon sinks" in the carbon rights market and "carbon sink methodology." Taiwan Mobile believes that "natural carbon sinks" are one of the important strategies to accelerate net zero, and is currently undergoing internal evaluation and research. It hopes that through the forum, exchanges can be held to help blue carbon restoration and enhance the capacity of "natural carbon sinks."
Lin Dongmin, Chief Business Officer of Taiwan's Large Consumer Business Group, spoke on the topic of "Telco+Tech: Building a New Energy-Saving and Sustainable Lifestyle from the Consumer End" and cited statistics showing that global mobile phone sales reached 2022 billion units in 11.65, with a mobile phone recycling rate of less than 15%. Because mobile phones contain a variety of precious metals, discarded mobile phones often result in high carbon emissions.
According to Taiwan Mobile's internal statistics, the number of used phones recycled in 2023 reached 40059, four times the number in 2022. iPhones accounted for the largest portion of recycled phones, nearly 8%. To increase the recycling rate of mobile phones, Taiwan Mobile is implementing a circular economy and reducing the burden on consumers. It plans to launch a "Certified Used Phone Project" in its online store in the first quarter of next year. This contract-based project will initially include iPhone 12 to 14 series models, accompanied by professionally certified packaging and brand-new accessories. It also comes with a first-of-its-kind 12-month Taiwan Warranty, encouraging users to embrace the circular economy and extend the life of their phones.
Lin Dongmin also stated that Taiwan Mobile will develop the "Taiwan Mobility" strategy and expand its carbon reduction efforts to the shared mobility market. Following last year's investment in USPACE, it will provide parking space sharing and UDRIVE electric vehicle sharing, combining Tesla Supercharger stations with Ucharging services to solve the problem of idle parking spaces and increase consumers' willingness to drive electric vehicles. It will also build its own MyCharge platform and establish electric vehicle charging station facilities across Taiwan to provide charging services.
In addition, Taiwan Mobile's Chief Technology Officer Kuo Yu-tai spoke on the topic of "Taiwan Mobile's Net Zero Strategy," emphasizing that Taiwan Mobile uses AI big data to analyze energy-consuming equipment and introduces diverse power-saving solutions to make base stations, cloud data centers, etc. more energy-efficient and carbon-reducing. From 2016 to 2022, carbon reduction will reach 42,133 metric tons, and the carbon reduction effect is equivalent to the annual carbon absorption of nearly 110 Daan Forest Parks.
Taiwan Mobile is currently developing green power, initially focusing on solar photovoltaics and transitioning to wind power in the medium term. The company is also co-sponsoring the Academia Sinica "Net Zero Technology R&D Industry-R&D Collaboration" project with Fubon Financial Holdings, exploring geothermal energy, ocean energy, and decarbonized hydrogen combustion technologies. A breakthrough in decarbonized hydrogen combustion technology will transform natural gas power generation into a truly zero-carbon power source, generating high-value solid carbon revenue, balancing sustainability with economic benefits.
