2023 Data Centers sustainability report

Sustainability = Success

For Iron Mountain sustainability has always been synonymous with success. This is because our primary focus is on building and maintaining long-term customer relationships based on trust.

By measuring, refining and improving the environmental performance of our business while keeping an eye on the broader picture, we have become better.

Our business model has become more efficient and robust; we have built a valuable reputation as a sustainable service provider, and we have strengthened our all-important customer relationships.

2023: A pivotal year

In many ways, 2023 was a pivotal year in the journey to lower carbon digital infrastructure. With extreme weather events occurring worldwide, 2023 established itself as the warmest year since records began, closing in on the 1.5° °C (2.7 °F) increase the 2015 Paris Agreement was made to avoid. Generative AI began to drive unprecedented demand for data center power, with its need for graphics processing unit (GPU) chips which require 10-15 times the energy of a traditional CPU. New sustainability regulations were also launched, making GHG reporting obligatory. These include the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive which covers over 75% of EU company turnover as well as (more recently) the DOE and SEC requirements in the US.

Most importantly, 2023 demonstrated that customers want to report their emissions performance. Last year more than 23,000 companies - representing $67 trillion in market capitalization – disclosed their emissions through CDP. More than 4,000 businesses and financial institutions are now working with the Science Based Targets initiative to do their share in reducing emissions. According to Accenture, 37% of companies have set net zero targets.

This impacts our core business. As the world continues its shift to a digital economy, data centers have become a crucial part of the customer energy supply chain. We provide power to customers in the same way that utilities provide power to us, and we have similar opportunities to support a clean energy transition. As our customers report their GHG emissions, they need to know the details of the power they use in our data centers - not just the number of kilowatt hours, but the sources of those hours, and the provenance of those sources. Only then can they communicate clearly to their customers, investors and regulators how sustainable their digital footprint is.

Focusing our Efforts

With all of the compliance certifications in place, low-carbon building and facility efficiency, and a growing bank of long-term local renewable power suppliers, we put a lot of energy into meeting our customer needs for a sustainable digital future. Indeed I believe that this report demonstrates that IMDC stands out in each of these areas.

We are:

• The only colocation provider with comprehensive certifications for accurate customer GHG reporting, including ISO 14064 verification
• The first colocation provider to complete a BREEAM-accredited data center in North America, with a commitment to BREEAM certification for all new builds
• Developers (in partnership) of an award-winning AI-driven cooling efficiency initiative which has huge potential for the industry
• Still the only global colocation provider to have committed to 24/7 Carbon-Free Energy over and above our customer guarantee of 100% annual clean energy

Letter from Peter Hwang, EVP & GM

I hope that this report demonstrates that in 2023 we continued to take our responsibility to support customer sustainability goals more seriously than most in the colocation sector, and we made excellent progress. We partnered and collaborated, invested and innovated, measured and improved, and I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of the talented and knowledgeable people both inside and outside the business who have helped us stay on track. You are vital to our success.

Building genuine sustainability takes time, effort and coordination, but it is achievable and it is well worth it. We remain fully committed to our ambitious targets and are confident we will meet them, and we are also ready to help our customers, partners and competitors in any way necessary to support their own sustainability goals.

Sincerely,

Peter Hwang, EVP & GM Iron Mountain Data Centers