Extending the life of technology sits at the heart of Virgin Media O2’s new ESG strategy, as the telecoms powerhouse doubles down on its ambition to support a more circular economy in the UK and reduce electronic waste.
The company’s newly launched ‘Responsible Business Plan’ places circularity alongside climate action, digital inclusion, and online safety as one of four strategic pillars guiding the business through to 2030. Central to the strategy is an ethos that “every device should live twice”, with Virgin Media O2 pledging to increase both refurbished device sales and customer recycling rates over the next five years.
The move reflects growing momentum within the retail and technology sectors to shift away from the traditional take-make-dispose model and towards longer product lifecycles, repair, reuse and refurbishment.
Virgin Media O2 says the strategy embeds sustainability across the full lifecycle of its business, from network operations and energy use to how devices are sourced, sold, and recovered.
Under the circularity pillar, the operator has committed to doubling the number of people buying refurbished devices from Virgin Media O2 by 2030, while also doubling participation in its ‘O2 Recycle’ scheme. The company will also expand its partnership-led reuse initiatives into 30 cities by the end of the decade, encouraging communities to keep devices in circulation for longer and helping reduce unnecessary e-waste.
The strategy builds on a strong track record established under the company’s previous ‘Better Connections Plan’, which ran from 2022 to 2025. During that period, more than 12 million consumers were encouraged to take “circular actions”, including recycling unwanted devices and purchasing refurbished technology.
The O2 Recycle service has now recycled more than four million devices since launching in 2009 and paid more than £356 million back to consumers, with the business confirming that zero parts from recycled devices go to landfill. In addition, more than 7.5 million pieces of customer equipment have been repaired, reused or recycled.
Alongside circularity, the Responsible Business Plan sets ambitious targets across climate, connectivity and digital wellbeing. The business reaffirmed its commitment to achieving net zero carbon emissions across its operations, products, and supply chain by the end of 2040, while also pledging to source 100% carbon-free energy from UK suppliers.
On the social impact side, Virgin Media O2 aims to support 500,000 low-income households with essential connectivity by 2030 through low-cost tariffs, community partnerships and device donation schemes. The operator also plans to help six million people navigate the online world safely and confidently, supported by investments in scam prevention, AI-assisted fraud protection, and digital wellbeing tools.
Lutz Schüler, CEO of Virgin Media O2, described the Responsible Business Plan as “more than a strategy – it’s how we do business” and said the company remained committed to “giving technology a second life”.
Last August, UK circular economy minister Mary Creagh announced moves impacting retailer requirements around waste electricals.
Following a longstanding loophole which meant UK-based retailers footed the bill for dealing with broken and discarded electricals products, Creagh announced that online marketplaces such as Amazon and other international companies selling into the UK would be required to help cover the cost of collecting and recycling waste electricals.
[image credit: Green Retail World]
