Carbon emissions flow and inequality embodied in cross-regional computility transfer in China

The substantial energy consumption and associated high emissions from data centers have been a critical issue hindering sustainable development. China’s East Data West Computing (EDWC) Project represents a cross-regional strategy for computility transfer to address it. In this study, we calculated the embodied carbon emissions under the EDWC Project from 2020 to 2060. It is projected that by 2060, carbon emissions from data centers would be reduced by up to 77.6% through the cross-regional computility transfer. Yet the computility transfer is projected to intensify carbon emissions flow from east to west, reaching 41.45 million tons (MT) and 19.01 MT in 2030 and 2060, respectively. We found that by 2060, the power usage effectiveness (PUE) and the renewable energy utilization could reduce carbon emissions of data centers by up to 80.0% and 82.0%, respectively. Curtailing the transfer of clean energy from west to east could cut carbon emissions flow by 20% by 2060. Our research results confirm the emissions reduction potential of cross-regional computility transfer and the inequality of regional carbon emissions flow, offer a guide for the study of sustainable development of data centers, and provide a reference for a more balanced emissions reduction strategy.