Digital decarbonisation Belgium

Digital technologies are a key enabler of the green and digital transition – and the digital sector is supporting all major sectors of the economy to decarbonise.

The report looks closer at the Belgian situation and highlights digital business solutions in Belgium that enable and accelerate decarbonisation of the wider economy and society.

Key findings of the study

The report reviews the Belgian climate policies and digital transformation efforts. The report finds that existing digital solutions can help enable important parts of the journey towards Belgium’s net-zero goal in 2050.

Digital decarbonisation

• 25-30% of the greenhouse gas reductions needed for Belgium to achieve net zero emissions in 2050 require digital enablement to work at scale and at socially acceptable cost

Decarbonising digital

• The other part of the report focuses on the energy use and carbon emissions related to the operation of data centres. The report points to 24/7 carbon-free energy as the most efficient way to progress towards a fully carbon-free digital sector. As an example, Google achieved a carbon-free energy score of 80% in 2022 for its data centre in Belgium.