Many companies source energy attribute certificates (EACs) as part of their decarbonisation strategy and to show that the electricity they use comes from renewable or low-carbon sources. If your company has a science-based target, those certificates also count towards your Scope 2 target, which the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) validates.
In June 2026, the SBTi changed the rules for those targets when it published Version 2.0 of its Corporate Net-Zero Standard, and that includes which certificates count.
So, do EACs still count?
Yes, with conditions. Unbundled EACs remain an eligible way to claim low-carbon electricity against Scope 2 targets, but V2.0 adds three quality rules. The plant that generated the electricity needs to be less than 15 years old, sit in the same grid region as your sites and match your consumption within 12 months. Some of the certificates on the market today won’t meet them.
This blog explains when V2.0 applies, what each rule means in practice, which certificates are most at risk and what to do with your 2026 and 2027 procurement. If you’re a sustainability or energy procurement lead at a large multinational, it’s for you.
The SBTi published the Corporate Net-Zero Standard V2.0 on 11 June 2026. It phases in gradually:
So why care now? Because the certificates you buy over the next 12 months could be the ones sitting in your inventory when your targets go back for validation. Buying to the new standard today is more efficient than buying twice.
V2.0 also splits companies into two groups. Category A covers any company with net turnover of at least €450 million or at least 1,000 full-time employees, plus some smaller companies in high-income countries (see the full criteria for every threshold). Category B covers everyone else, with lighter minimum requirements. Most multinationals buying EACs across several markets will fall into Category A, and that's where the Scope 2 rules are strictest.
Certificates bought under today's rules still support your reporting this year. And V2.0 only becomes mandatory for target submissions after 31 January 2028, which is well over a year away.
But EAC budgets and multi-year contracts can often be agreed ahead of the year they cover. That means the procurement decisions you make in 2026 and 2027 could end up in the portfolio you take to your next target validation.
Some of V2.0's requirements will be challenging in certain markets, and the SBTi is still gathering evidence on parts of them, such as hourly matching. So it helps to treat V2.0 as a planning exercise. Checking where your current portfolio stands against the new rules gives you time to adjust your sourcing gradually, at a pace that works for your budget and your markets.
Think of it like shopping at a farmers' market.
V2.0 wants your certificates to be fresh, local, in season and properly labelled. Here's what that means in practice.
You can still buy certificates separately from your electricity supply, alongside power purchase agreements (PPAs) and green supplier contracts. One wording change to note: V2.0 talks about low-carbon electricity rather than renewables alone, so check how your claims describe what you're buying.
Certificates need to come from a plant that was built or repowered within the 15 years before you used the electricity. A hydropower plant from the 1970s won't qualify. A wind farm that came online in 2020 will still work for your 2026 consumption.
Certificates need to come from the same deliverability region as your sites, meaning a grid your electricity could physically have flowed from. Crossing into another region only works where there's a real transmission link, with a few exceptions for PPAs. A solar certificate from Spain covering a factory in Poland is likely to fall short.
Certificates need to line up with your consumption within 12 months. In practice, buy vintages that match the year you're reporting. Stockpiling older certificates to cover future years won't work.
Every certificate needs a clear paper trail: issued, transferred and retired in your name in a secure registry. That's what stops the same megawatt-hour being claimed twice, and it's what your auditor will ask to see.
If you're a Category A company using more than 10 GWh in a region, you'll need to look at how well your clean electricity matches your consumption hour by hour. Hitting set levels earns recognition: 50% until 2030, 75% until 2035 and 90% from 2035. That part is optional, but the reporting is coming, so start collecting hourly data for your biggest markets now.
One more point for your CFO: V2.0 sets target ambition on your location-based inventory. EACs help you show progress on clean electricity, but they don't lower the bar your targets are measured against.
If your current portfolio relies on any of these, it's worth a closer look:
Will this cost more? In some markets, probably. Newer, local certificates can carry a premium over the cheapest options. But the real cost sits elsewhere. Paying for certificates that won't count means buying twice, restating claims and explaining the gap to your auditor.
V2.0 gives you time. Use it well.
South Pole supports companies from portfolio design and sourcing through to claims and reporting, aligned with the GHG Protocol, CDP, RE100 and SBTi requirements. In 2025, we delivered over 7 TWh of energy attribute certificates across global markets.
We can review your current EAC portfolio against V2.0, flag the certificates at risk and build a sourcing roadmap that holds up at validation.
Get clear answers on how energy attribute certificates work, what makes them credible and how to retire them for audit and reporting.
