Climate Group’s 24/7 Carbon-Free Coalition Technical Criteria paves the way for enhanced corporate decarbonisation

On May 29th, the Climate Group released its 24/7 Carbon-Free Coalition Technical Criteria, marking a significant milestone in corporate renewable energy procurement.

Driving positive change in how businesses consume energy, the Climate Group have published the first comprehensive set of industry guidelines for procuring time and location-matched carbon-free energy (CFE). Its core purpose being to push energy procurement beyond traditional annual matching, and towards  more granular, time-matched, and locally sourced energy consumption.

Positioned as the essential next step for sustainable leaders, the 24/7 CFE criteria offers a meaningful way for businesses to start their net zero journey, beginning with a baseline CFE score and a continued commitment to demonstrate a clear improvement in that score over the next two years. This progressive approach is key to empowering the net zero transition for a wider range of businesses committed to genuine, measurable impact.

Five key take-aways from the 24/7 CFE criteria

1. Accepted generation sources include: Wind, solar, zero-emissions geothermal, marine (wave and tidal), sustainable hydropower and nuclear. There are special considerations and limitations to hydro, storage and biomass sources.
2. Corporates procuring carbon free energy should observe a 15-year limit on the commission or re-powering of the generator, to help drive continued demand on development of newer projects.
3. All CFE claims against REGOs must be exclusive. Tracking technology, such as the Granular Energy Platform used with our Traceable Supply product ensures there is no double counting on generation.
4. Certificates must be paired with hourly meter data for the same generator. For example: SmartestEnergy only use 'revenue grade meter' data from PPA-contracted generators to ensure our allocation methodology adheres to the guidelines around generator shape preservation.
5. Recognised procurement types include: Self-generation, physical PPA, financial PPA, project-specific supply contract, retail supply contract, unbundled EACs, passive procurement.

SmartestEnergy: your partner in achieving 24/7 CFE

We welcome the Climate Group’s latest criteria and are aligned with the progression it represents. As a business, we have a commitment to transparent, traceable, and impactful renewable energy supply and we’re uniquely positioned to enable businesses to deliver against the Climate Group’s latest technical criteria.

Our products underpin our mission to empower the energy transition and are designed to align seamlessly with the framework's demands. These include:

Your net zero journey with SmartestEnergy

The Climate Group’s latest Technical Criteria goes beyond the rollout of stricter rules and represents an emphasis on real decarbonisation and fostering transparency in the energy market. Through providing clear guidance on time and location matching, it drives the industry forward from annual offsets to genuinely impactful energy procurement.

For businesses across the UK, embracing this framework offers a compelling pathway to navigate the net zero transition through enhanced sustainability credentials, improved energy efficiency, and a truly futureproofed energy strategy.