Digital Realty Earns Nareit's Data Center Sustainability Award for Fourth Consecutive Year

SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 17, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Digital Realty (NYSE: DLR), a leading global provider of cloud- and carrier-neutral data center, colocation and interconnection solutions, announced today it has earned the National Association of Real Estate Investments Trusts (Nareit) "Leader in the Light" award for data center sustainability for the fourth consecutive year.  The award honors Nareit member companies that have produced superior, measurable results from the implementation of sustainable business practices. 

"We are proud to recognize our members who demonstrate leadership in the REIT and publicly traded commercial real estate industry with their vision, innovation and strategy in addressing ESG issues," said Fulya Kocak, senior vice president, ESG issues, Nareit. 

In 2020, Digital Realty added 154 megawatts of renewable energy contracts across its U.S. portfolio, bringing the total executed under long-term contracts to 556 megawatts of renewable energy.  Last year, the company's renewable energy efforts resulted in 1.25 million metric tons of avoided carbon emissions, the equivalent of taking 271,000 cars off the road each year, or the electricity needs of more than 212,000 homes per year. 

"Accelerating digital transformation has driven rapid growth in data center demand, underscoring the importance of environmental stewardship," said Digital Realty Chief Executive Officer A. William Stein.  "We're honored to be recognized by Nareit for the fourth consecutive year, a testament to our consistent track record of setting the standard for responsible business practices.  Looking forward, we remain committed to accelerating and expanding our sustainability initiatives and making progress towards our recently announced carbon reduction goals." 

In April, Digital Realty became the first data center provider to receive an EPA ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year award for superior energy efficiency achievements across its global portfolio, and achieved EPA ENERGY STAR® certifications for an industry-leading 31 data centers in 2020.  Digital Realty also received sustainable building certifications for new development projects encompassing 139 megawatts of IT capacity and 1.9 million square feet in 2020.  Most recently, Digital Realty announced its French subsidiary is on target to achieve a carbon neutral footprint for its existing data centers in France by year-end, and projects it will remain carbon neutral through 2030 for existing facilities as well as future expansion, based on scope 1 and 2 emissions. 

"Data centers have become the central nervous system of the digital economy, and we remain focused on driving sustainable innovation while supporting the evolving needs of our global customer base," added Digital Realty Senior Director of Sustainability Aaron Binkley.  "We have reduced our Scope 2 carbon emissions across our portfolio by 26% since 2017 even as total energy use has risen by 25%.  We're proud to have expanded our climate commitments while delivering reduced carbon emissions, adding renewable energy, achieving ENERGY STAR certifications and developing sustainable data centers."  

Digital Realty recently committed to a carbon emissions reduction target with the Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi), a global consortium of more than 1,000 organizations committed to setting carbon emission reduction targets backed by climate science rather than internally self-defined parameters.  As part of the pledge, Digital Realty has committed to reducing direct emissions by 68% and indirect emissions by 24% by 2030.  

About Digital Realty

Digital Realty supports the world's leading enterprises and service providers by delivering the full spectrum of data center, colocation and interconnection solutions.  PlatformDIGITAL®, the company's global data center platform, provides customers a trusted foundation and proven Pervasive Datacenter Architecture PDx™ solution methodology for scaling digital business and efficiently managing data gravity challenges.  Digital Realty's global data center footprint gives customers access to the connected communities that matter to them with more than 280 facilities in 49 metros across 24 countries on six continents.  To learn more about Digital Realty, please visit digitalrealty.com or follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.  

Investor Relations
John J. Stewart / Jim Huseby
Investor Relations
Digital Realty
(415) 738-6500
[email protected]

Media & Industry Analyst Inquiries
Marc Musgrove
Digital Realty
(415) 508-2812
[email protected]

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements based on current expectations, forecasts and assumptions that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially, including statements related to the Leader in the Light award, our sustainability program and achievements and our sustainability goals.  For a list and description of such risks and uncertainties, see the company's reports and other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.  The company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. 

SOURCE Digital Realty