Issue 8, 2024

Towards standardized grid emission factors: methodological insights and best practices

Abstract

Inconsistent calculation of grid emission factors (EF) can result in widely divergent corporate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reports. We dissect this issue through a comprehensive literature review, identifying nine key aspects—each with two to six methodological choices—that substantially influence the reported EF. These choices lead to relative effect variations ranging from 1.2% to 69%. Using Germany's 2019–2022 data as a case study, our method yields results that largely align with prior studies, yet reveal relative effects from 0.4% to 34.6%. This study is the first to methodically unpack the key determinants of grid EF, quantify their impacts, and offer clear guidelines for their application in corporate GHG accounting. Our findings hold implications for practitioners, data publishers, researchers, and guideline-making organizations. By openly sharing our data and calculations, we invite replication, scrutiny, and further research.

Graphical abstract: Towards standardized grid emission factors: methodological insights and best practices

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
17 Dec 2023
Accepted
12 Mar 2024
First published
14 Mar 2024
This article is Open Access
Creative Commons BY license

Energy Environ. Sci., 2024,17, 2776-2786

Towards standardized grid emission factors: methodological insights and best practices

M. Schäfer, F. Cerdas and C. Herrmann, Energy Environ. Sci., 2024, 17, 2776 DOI: 10.1039/D3EE04394K

This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported Licence. You can use material from this article in other publications without requesting further permissions from the RSC, provided that the correct acknowledgement is given.

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