What is RE100 and why does it matter for large businesses?
RE100 is a global corporate renewable energy initiative led by the Climate Group in partnership with the CDP, bringing together large businesses committed to 100% renewable electricity. Members must be influential based on brand, global presence, significant energy use, or other characteristics that draw attention to their commitment. The initiative requires members to purchase 100% of their electricity from renewable sources by 2050, with interim targets of 60% by 2030 and 90% by 2040. RE100 participation signals corporate environmental leadership and supports long-term decarbonization strategy, making it relevant for organizations with significant energy consumption or public sustainability commitments.
What geographic constraint applies to RE100 renewable electricity purchases?
RE100 members must purchase renewable power in the same location where they are using it. This location-matching requirement means that a company cannot simply buy renewable certificates from any global source; the electricity attributes must be sourced from the region or country where the consuming facility operates. This constraint affects procurement strategy, available certificate pathways, and commercial feasibility, as it narrows the pool of eligible instruments and suppliers in each jurisdiction. Organizations with multi-site operations across different countries need to plan separate procurement strategies for each location.
Does purchasing renewable electricity certificates automatically satisfy RE100 requirements?
No. While the renewable energy certificate pathway is a recognized approach to RE100 alignment, purchasing certificates alone does not automatically meet RE100 requirements. The proposed instruments and claims must be checked against the specific RE100 criteria before assuming compliance. This means that organizations need to verify the certificate type, sourcing framework, location match, claim structure, and retirement treatment against RE100's explicit standards. Our moREnewable100 service includes RE100-aligned sourcing support to help ensure that selected instruments meet these requirements, but the verification must occur as part of the engagement.
What is moREnewable100 and how does it support RE100 compliance?
moREnewable100 is a service offered by Northmore Gordon for procuring renewable energy certificates without changing existing electricity supply contracts. The service provides multi-site coverage, procurement flexibility, RE100-aligned sourcing, and technology and due-diligence support. It allows organizations to retain their current electricity retailers while acquiring renewable attributes through certificates. The exact instrument, market, period, and claim need to be established for each engagement based on the organization's consumption profile, reporting framework, and RE100 commitments. The service addresses both the technical certificate selection and the commercial procurement process.
What evidence and planning are needed before starting RE100 certificate procurement?
Before procuring certificates, document the organization, consumption period, electricity volumes, site locations, and applicable reporting framework. Clarify whether the purpose is a renewable-electricity claim, market-based Scope 2 accounting, a voluntary commitment such as RE100, or another stated objective. A suggested procurement evidence checklist includes site consumption and reporting-period boundaries, instrument type and generation location, ownership and exclusive claim rights, registry and retirement evidence, beneficiary and allocation across sites, proposed public statements with supporting calculations, and contract terms with price assumptions and responsibilities. This preparation ensures that selected instruments align with both RE100 requirements and the organization's accounting standards.
How do renewable electricity certificates differ from carbon offsets in an RE100 context?
Renewable electricity certificates and carbon offsets serve fundamentally different purposes and should not be conflated. A renewable-electricity attribute is not the same as a carbon offset or a physical reduction in fuel consumption. Renewable electricity certificates represent ownership rights to renewable generation attributes and support renewable-electricity claims under frameworks like RE100. Carbon offsets represent emissions reductions or removals from separate projects. For RE100 compliance, organizations must use appropriate renewable electricity instruments, not substitute carbon offsets. The GHG Protocol Scope 2 Guidance provides quality criteria for contractual instruments used in renewable electricity accounting, distinct from offset accounting requirements.
What interim targets must RE100 members meet before reaching their 2050 commitment?
RE100 member companies must achieve 60% renewable electricity by 2030 and 90% by 2040, with a final target of 100% by 2050. These interim targets create staged reduction and procurement requirements that should inform a company's energy strategy and certificate procurement planning. Organizations need to develop transition plans that identify how they will source sufficient renewable attributes in each period to meet these milestones. Our carbon advisory services, including opportunity assessment and transition planning, can help organizations establish realistic pathways to meet these interim targets and plan procurement accordingly across their multi-site operations.
Can an organization maintain its current electricity retailer while pursuing RE100 compliance through moREnewable100?
Yes. moREnewable100 is specifically designed to allow certificate procurement without replacing existing electricity supply contracts. Organizations can retain their current commercial electricity arrangements with their retailer while separately procuring renewable energy certificates to support their RE100 claims and environmental objectives. This flexibility is commercially valuable because it avoids contract renegotiation, transition costs, and operational disruption. However, the accounting and claim treatment must be clearly established, including how renewable attributes align with physical consumption, how they are retired, and how the organization will publicly represent its renewable-electricity position under this dual-instrument arrangement.
What role does the reporting framework play in RE100 certificate selection?
The reporting framework—agreed at the start of engagement—determines how renewable electricity claims are structured, documented, and publicly communicated. Different frameworks (such as GHG Protocol Scope 2, voluntary commitments, or investor reporting standards) have different evidence requirements, quality criteria, and claim limitations. Organizations must agree on the applicable framework before selecting instruments, because it defines acceptable certificate types, ownership evidence, retirement treatment, and the scope of renewable-electricity claims that can be supported. Misalignment between the selected instruments and the reporting framework can undermine both RE100 credibility and accounting integrity. Our moREnewable100 service addresses this by establishing the framework early and ensuring selected instruments satisfy its requirements.
How should organizations with multiple sites in different countries structure their RE100 procurement?
Multi-site organizations must plan separate procurement strategies for each location because RE100 requires location-matching: renewable electricity must be sourced in the same geographic region where it is consumed. This means that a company with facilities in Australia, Singapore, and Europe needs distinct certificate pathways for each jurisdiction, reflecting different available schemes, suppliers, and eligible instruments. Our multi-site coverage capability through moREnewable100 addresses this complexity by coordinating procurement flexibility across locations while ensuring that each site's instruments meet both local regulatory requirements and RE100 sourcing criteria. Organizations should map their consumption by location and establish procurement governance that maintains consistent evidence and claim treatment across the portfolio.
