Eneco is among companies backing a non-profit initiative that will create more transparency for energy consumers to help accelerate renewables uptake.
EnergyTag is creating a standard for delivery of hourly certificates enabling energy consumers to track the source of their energy and understand their carbon emissions in a “totally new way”.
In addition to Eneco EnergyTag brings together 60 organisations and corporates including Microsoft, Google, WindEurope, Engie, PwC, Association of Issuing Bodies and CertiQ.
EnergyTag’s council and advisory board are working together to define a set of guidelines that will form the basis of a market for energy certificates with a timestamp of one hour or less.
In parallel, the initiative will stimulate the “first voluntary markets” for the certificates by coordinating a series of demonstrator projects around the world demonstrating real-time energy tracking technologies.
EnergyTag founder Toby Ferenczi said: “It’s a cruel irony that the more successful we are at deploying renewable energy the harder it gets to integrate that energy into the grid.
“Adopting hour-by-hour energy certificates build’s consumer trust by linking production directly to consumption, supports the growth of energy storage, and enables accurate carbon accounting.
“Our goal is to establish a common, tradable instrument that provides traceability across markets for power, flexibility and carbon.”
Google operations director Michael Terrell added: “Google intends to run on carbon-free energy everywhere, at all times by 2030.
“EnergyTag will be an important tool for helping Google and many others source carbon-free energy for their operations, at an hourly level. We are excited to be part of the EnergyTag initiative and look forward to supporting the development of this important standard.”
EnergyTag works with and within existing electricity certification schemes (such as GOs and RECs) as a voluntary ‘add-on’ and will not replace these schemes.