Broad Coalition Urges Flexibility in Scope 2 Carbon Accounting Reforms to Protect Clean Energy Growth
A broad coalition of 66 organisations, including corporates, NGOs, clean energy developers and academic experts, has issued a joint public statement calling on the Greenhouse Gas Protocol to adopt more flexible revisions to its Scope 2 emissions accounting rules. The group argues that overly prescriptive changes could slow clean energy investment, increase electricity costs and unintentionally weaken voluntary corporate climate action at a critical time for global decarbonisation.
The signatories span a wide range of global stakeholders, including major technology companies, industrial manufacturers, renewable energy developers and climate-focused research organisations. Collectively, they express concern over proposed updates that would require stricter hourly and geographically specific matching of renewable electricity purchases with actual consumption under the market-based accounting method. In their view, such requirements risk making participation in voluntary clean energy markets more difficult and less attractive, potentially reversing progress made over the past decade.
The statement highlights the role that voluntary corporate procurement has played in driving renewable energy deployment globally, noting that existing Scope 2 guidance has helped enable hundreds of gigawatts of clean energy development by allowing organisations flexibility in how they procure electricity. The coalition warns that tightening these rules could reduce corporate participation, slow the development of new renewable energy projects, and increase costs for both businesses and households. It also raises concerns that more rigid requirements could disadvantage organisations with complex or geographically dispersed electricity demand, limiting their ability to participate effectively in clean energy markets.
Alongside these market concerns, the group points to research suggesting that voluntary clean energy purchasing has been a significant driver of emissions reductions in the power sector over the past decade. They argue that restricting participation could unintentionally slow system-wide decarbonisation by reducing demand for renewable energy investment, rather than accelerating it.
The statement is backed by a diverse group of signatories, including major global firms such as Apple, Amazon, and General Motors, as well as sustainability and energy organisations such as Ceres and Schneider Electric. Together, the coalition represents trillions of dollars in annual revenue and a substantial share of global corporate energy procurement activity.
At the core of their recommendation is a call for the Greenhouse Gas Protocol to adopt a “may, not shall” approach to hourly matching and geographic constraints within Scope 2 market-based accounting rules. The coalition argues that maintaining flexibility is essential to preserving innovation, enabling broad participation, and ensuring that clean energy procurement remains scalable across different types of organisations and operational models.
They further emphasise that voluntary clean energy markets have been instrumental in accelerating renewable energy deployment, and caution that overly rigid accounting rules could undermine this progress at a time when global electricity demand is rising rapidly. In their view, the next revision of Scope 2 guidance should strengthen climate ambition while maintaining accessibility, ensuring that corporate action continues to drive, rather than hinder, the transition to low-carbon electricity systems.
