Scaleway’s Environmental Footprint Calculator: Your Best Partner for CSRD Reporting

A New Chapter for Sustainable Cloud Reporting

2024 marked a major turning point in the European regulatory landscape with the implementation of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD). Far more than just an update, this directive imposes an unprecedented level of transparency on thousands of companies regarding their environmental, social, and governance (ESG) impacts.

For the tech sector — and especially for businesses that rely on cloud services — this represents a significant challenge: how can they reliably and accurately measure the footprint of their digital infrastructure?

At Scaleway, we believe that a high-performing cloud is, above all, a transparent and sustainable one. With this vision in mind, we developed our environmental impact calculator, a strategic tool designed to turn a complex compliance exercise into a real opportunity for action. More than just a feature, it's a true partner for companies aiming to meet CSRD requirements.

This article will show you how our calculator integrates directly into your sustainability report and helps you document several key sections of the European standards.

Understanding CSRD et the Challenge of Cloud Impact Measurement

The CSRD is built on a fundamental concept: double materiality, which distinguishes between:

• Impact materiality: How do a company’s activities (including cloud usage) affect society and the environment?
• Financial materiality: How do sustainability-related risks and opportunities (such as the climate transition) affect the company’s financial performance?

Both dimensions must now be detailed according to a standardized set of European norms, the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS). These cover topics ranging from climate change (ESRS E1) to water resources (ESRS E3) and the circular economy (ESRS E5).

For businesses, cloud infrastructure is no longer an exception. Virtual servers, storage, and data transfer all contribute to the energy and water consumption of data centers. Until now, this impact was often estimated indirectly and unreliably, making CSRD reporting particularly difficult.

That’s where Scaleway’s calculator makes a real difference. It’s designed to deliver precise, traceable data aligned with the standards, enabling you to shift from estimates to verifiable facts for your reports.

Scaleway’s Environmental Footprint Calculator: A Tool for CSRD Transparency

Our calculator is far more than a simple interface. It is the result of a rigorous methodology, based on a life cycle assessment (LCA) approach that breaks down impact into three detailed components:

• Manufacturing: Impact linked to hardware production (servers, components, etc.).
• Usage: Direct impact from the electricity consumption of your cloud resources.
• Operational: Impact linked to company operations (offices, etc.).

This comprehensive approach, aligned with recognized standards like the ADEME’s Product Category Rules (PCR), allows us to provide accurate data on the two most requested indicators: CO₂e emissions (in kgCO₂e) and water consumption (in m³).

To support your integration of this data, our calculator includes several key features:

• Monthly Usage Report: Available directly in your Scaleway console, this report offers a detailed view of your environmental footprint, broken down by availability zone, project, and resource. These figures, based on your actual usage, provide a strong foundation for your annual CSRD report.
• User API: For companies with advanced automation needs, our API offers programmatic access to all environmental impact data. You can directly integrate it into your business intelligence (BI) or ESG reporting platforms, simplifying data collection and consolidation. The API also provides more granular insight into the environmental footprint of each resource.
• Impact Comparator: Available before creating a resource, this feature lets you compare the estimated impact of two similar offerings. It’s a powerful decision-making tool — and a way to document actions taken to reduce your footprint at the source, as required by the CSRD.

Mapping the Calculator’s Data to ESRS Standards

In practice, how does the data generated by our calculator translate directly into your CSRD report? Let’s examine how they map to key environmental ESRS standards.

ESRS E1 – Climate change

This is arguably the most critical ESG reporting standard, requiring detailed information about greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

• The CO₂e emissions data provided by our calculator is a direct input for this section.
• When selecting a cloud offering, our impact comparator shows the CO₂e per kWh for each availability zone. This data point is determined by two key factors: the energy mix of the country hosting the zone (renewables, nuclear, fossil fuels, etc.); and the Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) of the datacenter — a measure of its energy efficiency. By selecting an availability zone with low carbon intensity per kWh, you can clearly demonstrate the importance of your location choices and their direct impact on reducing overall emissions.

ESRS E3 – Water and Marine Resources

Often overlooked, water consumption in datacenters is a growing sustainability concern — especially in water-stressed regions. The CSRD requires companies to disclose their impact on water resources.

Our calculator provides your cloud-related water consumption in liters.

This data is sourced from our efficient datacenters, which use advanced cooling systems. We also share their Water Usage Effectiveness (WUE), which is significantly lower than industry averages. This information supports your compliance with ESRS E3.

ESRS E5 – Resource Use and Circular Economy

This standard evaluates how companies manage resources and transition toward a more circular economy.

Data related to the impact of hardware manufacturing offers valuable insight into the use of raw materials.

Our circular economy programs, such as Transformers (server refurbishment) and Nursery (hard drive refurbishment), enable you to demonstrate concrete actions Scaleway is taking to extend equipment lifespans and reduce electronic waste. Your use of these services contributes to this sustainable value chain and can be documented in your report. (More information available in our Impact Report.)

Beyond Compliance: A More Responsible Cloud

The CSRD is a powerful catalyst for responsible digital transformation. It pushes both providers and users to reconsider their technology choices through the lens of sustainability.

At Scaleway, our environmental footprint calculator is our response to this challenge. It acts as a bridge between technological infrastructure and regulatory reporting obligations, providing you with the exact data you need for your sustainability reports.
It empowers you to make better-informed decisions, optimize your cloud architectures — by choosing the most sustainable availability zone, for example —, and make Green IT a measurable reality rather than just an aspirational goal.


Learn more about what the Environmental Footprint Calculator can do for you.