ESG & Carbon Reporting for Irish Businesses

30-Second Overview

Electricity and gas are two of the first areas to address when calculating carbon emissions. Gas burned in your own boilers or equipment creates direct emissions and is generally reported as Scope 1. Emissions associated with the electricity you purchase are reported as Scope 2, while Scope 3 covers other indirect emissions across your supply chain and business activities.

How you purchase electricity also affects your carbon reporting. Renewable electricity contracts and Corporate Power Purchase Agreements (CPPAs), supported by Guarantees of Origin, can provide certification of the renewable electricity purchased by your business and support your sustainability reporting.

Businesses covered by the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) have specific sustainability reporting obligations. Those outside the mandatory reporting requirements may choose to measure their carbon emissions for group reporting, their own sustainability targets, or to communicate their environmental credentials to customers.

This guide explains how electricity and gas are treated under Scope 1, Scope 2 and Scope 3, how energy-related emissions are calculated and what information businesses should retain to support their Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) and carbon reporting.

⚡ Looking to reduce energy costs or improve your carbon reporting? Utilityfair helps large energy users secure better electricity and gas contracts, source renewable electricity and manage energy-related carbon emissions. Choose an option below to discuss your requirements with our specialist team. 👇

What Is ESG & Carbon Reporting?

ESG reporting covers a business's environmental, social and governance performance. From an energy perspective, one of the most important areas is measuring and reporting greenhouse gas emissions from electricity, natural gas and other fuels.

Carbon reporting involves measuring these emissions and classifying them as Scope 1, Scope 2 or Scope 3. For businesses with significant energy consumption, accurate electricity and gas data is therefore an important part of the reporting process.

Which Irish Businesses Have to Report Under the CSRD?

The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) requires businesses within its scope to report sustainability information using the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS). Following changes to the CSRD agreed in 2026, mandatory sustainability reporting applies to businesses that exceed both:

• €450 million in net annual turnover; and
• An average of 1,000 employees during the financial year.

The thresholds can also apply at group level for parent companies preparing consolidated sustainability reporting. Businesses outside these thresholds may still report voluntarily or need to provide emissions and sustainability information to parent companies, customers, financial institutions or other businesses in their value chain.

For energy and carbon reporting, the starting point is understanding where your emissions arise and whether they fall under Scope 1, Scope 2 or Scope 3.

What Are Scope 1, Scope 2 and Scope 3 Emissions?

Greenhouse gas emissions are divided into three categories, Scope 1, Scope 2 and Scope 3, depending on where the emissions arise and the business's relationship to them. Understanding the difference is important because electricity, natural gas and other energy use can contribute to all three scopes.

Scope 1 – Direct Emissions

Scope 1 covers emissions produced directly from sources owned or controlled by your business. For energy users, one of the most common examples is natural gas burned in boilers, heating systems or production equipment. Other examples include oil, LPG or diesel used on site and fuel consumed by company-owned vehicles.

If your business purchases natural gas and burns it in its own equipment, the emissions produced from burning that gas are generally reported under Scope 1.

Scope 2 – Purchased Electricity

Scope 2 covers indirect emissions associated with energy purchased and consumed by your business. For most Irish businesses, electricity purchased from the grid is the main source of Scope 2 emissions. The electricity is consumed at your premises, but the emissions associated with generating it occur elsewhere in the electricity system.

Scope 2 emissions can be calculated in two ways. The location-based method reflects the emissions associated with electricity supplied through the grid, while the market-based method takes account of how your business purchases its electricity, including qualifying renewable electricity contracts and Guarantees of Origin.

This distinction is important for businesses purchasing renewable electricity, as the same electricity consumption can produce different location-based and market-based Scope 2 emissions.

Scope 3 – Other Indirect Emissions

Scope 3 covers other indirect emissions associated with your business and its wider value chain. These can include emissions from purchased goods and services, business travel, employee commuting, waste, transportation and distribution, leased assets and the use of products sold by the business.

Energy use can also contribute to Scope 3 emissions. These can include emissions from producing and transporting the natural gas and other fuels your business purchases, as well as emissions associated with electricity generation and transmission and distribution losses.

This means electricity and gas can contribute to more than one emissions category. The emissions from burning natural gas on your premises are generally reported under Scope 1, for example, while emissions associated with extracting and transporting that gas can fall under Scope 3.

How Are Electricity and Gas CO₂ Emissions Calculated?

The starting point for measuring energy-related carbon emissions is the amount of electricity, natural gas or other fuel your business consumes. This consumption is multiplied by the appropriate carbon emission factor to calculate the associated greenhouse gas emissions, usually expressed as kilograms or tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO₂e). Where there are multiple locations or meters, consumption data can be consolidated by energy type before the relevant emission factors are applied.

Natural Gas Emissions

Natural gas consumption is normally recorded in kilowatt-hours (kWh) on your energy bills or consumption reports. To calculate the Scope 1 emissions from burning that gas, the total consumption is multiplied by the appropriate natural gas emission factor.

💡 For example: Natural gas consumption (kWh) × emission factor = Scope 1 emissions (kg CO₂e)

The same principle applies to other fuels, although the appropriate emission factor and unit of measurement will depend on the fuel being used.

Electricity Emissions

Electricity consumption is also measured in kWh. For electricity, there are two different ways of calculating the emissions associated with that consumption. One measures emissions based on the electricity supplied through the grid where your business operates. The other takes account of how your business has chosen to purchase its electricity, which is particularly important if you have a renewable electricity contract. These are known as the location-based and market-based methods.

The location-based method uses an emission factor based on the electricity supplied through the grid. It reflects the emissions associated with the electricity system in the location where your business operates, regardless of the electricity contract you have chosen.

The market-based method reflects the electricity purchasing choices made by your business. It takes account of contractual arrangements supporting the electricity you purchase, including eligible renewable electricity contracts and Guarantees of Origin.

SEAI publishes carbon emission factors that can be used to calculate emissions from electricity, natural gas and other fuels in Ireland. For the current factors, calculation methodology and worked examples, see our Carbon Emission Factors for Irish Businesses guide.

How Do Renewable Electricity Contracts, GOs and CPPAs Affect Carbon Reporting?

Purchasing renewable electricity can reduce market-based Scope 2 emissions. However, the electricity contract itself is only part of the reporting process. You also need evidence supporting the renewable origin of the electricity purchased.

Renewable Electricity Contracts

A renewable electricity contract allows a business to purchase electricity backed by renewable generation. The electricity continues to be supplied through the national grid, so purchasing a renewable contract does not change the business's location-based Scope 2 emissions. It can, however, affect the market-based Scope 2 calculation where the renewable electricity purchased is supported by the appropriate Guarantees of Origin.

Guarantees of Origin

A Guarantee of Origin (GO) is an electronic certificate used to verify that a specified amount of electricity has been generated from a renewable source. GOs provide evidence supporting the renewable attributes of electricity purchased by a business. Once the relevant GOs have been cancelled for the electricity supplied, they cannot be sold or claimed again.

For businesses using the market-based method, this documentation can support the treatment of qualifying renewable electricity within their Scope 2 reporting.

Corporate Power Purchase Agreements (CPPAs)

A CPPA provides a contractual link between a business and a specified renewable electricity generator, such as an Irish wind or solar farm.

This provides greater transparency over the source of the renewable electricity purchased than a standard renewable electricity contract. Rather than relying solely on renewable certificates that may relate to generation elsewhere in Europe, a CPPA links the electricity purchase to a named renewable generator in Ireland, with the associated Guarantees of Origin providing certification of its renewable origin.

For businesses with ESG, carbon reporting or group sustainability requirements, this provides a clear and traceable link between their electricity purchase and a specific Irish renewable energy source.

For a detailed explanation of how these agreements work, see our Corporate Power Purchase Agreements (CPPAs) for Irish Businesses guide.

What Energy Data Should Businesses Keep for ESG & Carbon Reporting?

Accurate carbon reporting depends on having reliable energy consumption data and supporting records for the reporting period. Where there are multiple locations or meters, this information should cover all relevant electricity and gas accounts across the organisation. For electricity and gas reporting, you should retain:

• Electricity consumption data for each meter, including the relevant reporting period.
• Natural gas and other fuel consumption data used for heating, production or other business activities.
• Energy bills and supplier consumption reports supporting the consumption figures used in the calculations.
• Renewable electricity documentation, including electricity contracts, Guarantees of Origin and GO cancellation statements where applicable.

You should also keep a record of the carbon emission factors and calculation methodology used for each reporting period. This allows reported emissions to be traced back to the underlying energy consumption data and provides consistency when comparing emissions from one year to the next.

For renewable electricity, the supporting documentation is particularly important. Consumption data shows how much electricity was used, while the relevant Guarantees of Origin and cancellation records provide evidence supporting the renewable electricity claimed under the market-based method.

How Utilityfair Helps with Energy Procurement & Carbon Reporting

Utilityfair works with large energy users to manage electricity and gas procurement and understand the carbon impact of their energy consumption. Our Large Energy User team can:

• Consolidate electricity and gas consumption data across multiple meters and locations.
• Calculate energy-related carbon emissions using the relevant consumption data and emission factors.
• Compare renewable electricity options, including standard renewable contracts and CPPAs from Irish renewable generators.
• Provide ongoing energy and carbon reporting, including monthly consumption, cost, carbon emissions and sustainability reporting where required.

For renewable electricity, we can also assess the different contract options and supporting Guarantees of Origin, so that both the commercial terms and carbon reporting requirements are considered as part of the procurement process.

⚡ Talk to our Large Energy User team about your energy procurement and carbon reporting requirements. 👇