IEA Report: Advancing Decarbonisation Through Clean Electricity Procurement

A study entitled “Advancing Decarbonisation through Clean Electricity Procurement” has been released by the IEA (International Energy Agency).

In recent years, a lot more businesses have made commitments to use clean energy, and many of them have set specific targets to satisfy all or part of their electrical needs with clean energy. These objectives may help expand renewable energy production capacity and increase the overall shares of power systems. Goals for clean electricity can now be defined in a variety of ways, which may have an impact on the clean technologies purchased, the volume and location of those purchases, and the emissions reduction that results. When buying clean electricity, corporations in some countries have a variety of possibilities; but, in other regions, participation in corporate procurement is still constrained by legal and regulatory restrictions.

In order to achieve net zero electricity targets, this research analyses the solutions that are available and how they contribute to decarbonization. The paper uses quantitative analysis to analyse the effects of various procurement techniques for emissions reduction, procurement costs, and technology deployment. It uses the IEA’s regional power system models for India and Indonesia. One significant conclusion is that setting more specific goals, such as matching electricity demand hourly (rather than annually, as has been the prevalent practise), can encourage the deployment of the wider portfolio of flexible technologies required for net zero transitions in the power sector.

The research (Advancing Decarbonisation through Clean Electricity Procurement) intends to assist businesses in making informed decisions on how best to obtain clean electricity. It also emphasises how policymakers, regulators, system administrators, and network owners and operators may help make business procurement options more accessible and effective. The last chapter makes specific suggestions for various stakeholder groups.