The “Eastern Data and Western Computing” Initiative in China Contributes to Its Net-Zero Target
Ning Zhang, Huabo Duan, Yuru Guan, Ruichang Mao, Guanghan Song, Jiakuan Yang, Yuli Shan
Abstract
As the world’s largest digital economy, China has a significant demand for data centers, which are energy-intensive. With an annual growth rate of 28% in installed capacity, these centers are primarily located in the developed eastern region, where land and energy resources are limited. This localization poses a major challenge to the industry’s net-zero goal. To address this, China has launched a bold initiative to relocate data centers to the western region, leveraging natural cooling, clean energy, and cost-effective resources. By 2030, this move is expected to reduce emissions from the data center sector by 16%–20%, generating direct economic benefits of approximately 53 USD billion. The success of this initiative can serve as a model for other countries to develop their internet infrastructure.