SKT Takes on Campus Greenhouse Gas Reduction... Contributing to Carbon Neutrality by 2050

Choi Jin-hwan, Head of SKT Enterprise CIC (left), and Kang Seong-jong, President of the Korea Sustainable Campus Association, pose for a commemorative photo after signing the agreement. Photo by SKT

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Su-yeon] SK Telecom announced on the 7th that it has signed a business agreement with the Korea Sustainable Campus Association, a corporation under the Ministry of Environment, and Shinhan University to establish a ‘Carbon Neutral Smart Energy Campus.’

This collaboration was made with the purpose of jointly practicing the nationally promoted ‘2050 Carbon Neutrality’ by building an AI-based smart energy campus infrastructure amid the transition of campus life from non-face-to-face to face-to-face in the endemic era.

The signing ceremony took place on the afternoon of the 6th at the Mideum Hall of Shinhan University in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi Province, attended by Choi Jin-hwan, Head of SKT Enterprise CIC, Kang Seong-jong, President of the Korea Sustainable Campus Association (President of Shinhan University), and others.

Through this agreement, the three organizations plan to cooperate in various fields for carbon neutrality, including ▲establishing a carbon-neutral smart energy campus ▲building a smart energy platform ▲developing energy infrastructure. They will also jointly conduct research and development in discovering eco-friendly energy business models and sustainable development.

In particular, SKT and Shinhan University plan to focus on reducing energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions on campus by replacing energy management equipment in campus buildings with high-efficiency devices and applying AI deep learning-based optimal energy algorithms.

Since Kang Seong-jong’s inauguration as president in 2019, Shinhan University has been actively building a participatory smart university campus through digital innovation policies. To this end, it has established and operates the ‘ICT/IoT Campus Committee’ and the ‘Smart Campus Construction Team.’

SKT has been participating in energy efficiency by developing intelligent metering infrastructure (AMI) that improves electricity usage efficiency, virtual power plant (VPP) services that integrate renewable energy management, energy efficiency services for buildings and factories, energy-saving solutions specialized for data centers and communication stations with high energy consumption, and integrated management solutions (DCIM, Data Center Integrated Management).

Additionally, after joining RE100 (100% renewable energy use) at the end of 2020, SKT became the first domestic telecom company this year to pass the verification of greenhouse gas reduction targets under the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). It is actively practicing greenhouse gas reduction through various eco-friendly infrastructure technologies such as single LAN, AI-based network cooling, and low-power design.

Choi Jin-hwan, Head of SKT Enterprise CIC, stated, “This carbon-neutral smart energy campus project will bring new digital innovation to campuses, the cradle of industry and technological innovation, through various ICT infrastructures including AI energy solutions owned by SKT, 5G, AI, metaverse, blockchain, and IoT.”

Kang Seong-jong, President of the Korea Sustainable Campus Association, said, “We are pleased to build a ‘Smart Energy Campus’ in cooperation with SKT,” adding, “We will promote sustainable development through digital innovation in various fields such as education, research, and administration at universities in the endemic era by collecting, analyzing, and utilizing data generated on campus.”