In order to calculate electricity emissions, companies must record precise information about their electricity consumption. The most common method of recording electricity consumption is to use purchasing documents such as invoices. In addition, relevant information can also be obtained from other purchasing documents or directly from the energy supplier, for example via a customer portal.
Activity data required
The activity data required for this calculation includes the amount of electricity consumed for the company:
- Electricity consumption: Collect data on the amount of electricity. The most common method is to use purchase records.
- Purchase records: The mass or volume of electricity entering the facility. This data can be based on receipts, purchase records or data provided directly by the energy supplier and/or the customer's online portal.
Accounting for electricity in the Climate Hub
Three predefined categories are already available in the Climate Hub for Germany and the location-based method:
You can also add your own emission factors using the plus symbol in the bottom left-hand corner. The type of electricity must be specified here, as well as a direct emission factor for the market-based and location-based approach, an emission factor for its upstream supply chain and the associated source. If the electricity is sourced from Germany, the factor for the market-based upstream supply chain and both factors for the location-based approach are already predefined. Otherwise, the values must be entered yourself. Finally, it must be indicated whether the energy was self-generated, as well as the shares of renewable and nuclear energy. This applies to both the location-based and the market-based calculation method. The latter is necessary in order to ensure that all data points in ESRS E1-5: Energy consumption under standards are fully specified.
By entering the recorded amount of electricity and the corresponding emission factors in the Climate Hub, the emissions are finally calculated automatically.
Further information can be found in the Scope 1 & 2 GHG Inventory Guidance of the GHG Protocol in chapter Scope 2 Emissions from Purchased Energy from page 24.