To judge how clean a data center’s electricity really is, separate the power physically supplying it from the renewable-energy contracts and certificates used to support its claims. Compare its location-based and market-based emissions for the same facility, load, and reporting period, then check how emissions factors, procurement timing, and facility efficiency were handled.
Start by defining what the claim covers
A carbon figure is only useful if you know what it measures. Establish whether the claim is for one data center, a cloud region, an operator’s entire fleet, or your allocated share of a cloud service. Also pin down the reporting year and whether the boundary includes onsite generation as well as purchased electricity.
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For cloud services, facility totals alone may not tell you the emissions associated with your use. Ask how the provider allocates energy and emissions to the service or resources you use. ICT-sector guidance describes an allocation relationship using rack-metered cloud energy, PUE, and an emissions factor; ask for the inputs and allocation method, not just the resulting figure.
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Separate physical electricity from contractual claims
The physical mix describes the generation supplying the facility through onsite generation and the relevant electricity system. A contractual procurement mix describes instruments an operator uses to support its electricity or emissions claims, such as power purchase agreements (PPAs), certificates, utility products, and onsite generation. These are related, but they are not interchangeable.
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| What to examine | What it tells you | What it does not establish by itself |
|---|---|---|
| Physical supply | The generation mix serving the facility or relevant grid region, including onsite generation where applicable. | Which contractual instruments the operator uses for market-based accounting. |
| Contractual procurement | The electricity attributes or arrangements the operator reports using, such as PPAs, certificates, utility products, or onsite generation. | That the facility is physically supplied by clean generation in every hour it consumes electricity. |
The International Energy Agency (IEA) makes this distinction in its global data-center supply analysis: it estimates the fuel mix physically consumed, rather than the contractual portfolios of individual operators. In that 2025 analysis, the IEA estimates that renewables supplied about 27% of electricity physically consumed by data centers globally, compared with coal at about 30%, natural gas at 26%, and nuclear at 15%. Those are global sector estimates, not a description of any particular facility.
Compare location-based and market-based emissions
Request both Scope 2 electricity-emissions results for the same reporting boundary and period. The location-based result reflects grid electricity emissions using a relevant grid factor. The market-based result accounts for contractual instruments and the emissions attributes assigned to the electricity purchase. A low market-based number can therefore coexist with a more carbon-intensive physical grid mix.
| Accounting view | Ask the operator | How to interpret it |
|---|---|---|
| Location-based | Which grid or regional emissions factor was applied, for which year and location, and how onsite generation was treated? | Use it to understand emissions associated with electricity from the relevant grid under the stated methodology. |
| Market-based | Which contracts or instruments were counted, how were their attributes assigned, and how was unmatched load treated? | Read it as a contractual accounting result, not as proof that clean generation served the load at each moment. |
For each result, ask for the units, load boundary, reporting period, factor source, and residual-mix treatment. Residual mix refers to the electricity attributes left after contractual claims are accounted for; how it is handled can affect the reported result. GHG Protocol materials discuss contractual-instrument quality and proposed revisions involving time and location criteria. Treat those revisions as proposals, not as final requirements.
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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesGoogle Cloud provides one example of why methodology details matter: its published method uses hourly factors for location-based calculations, while its market-based reporting reflects procurement from the previous year rather than a dynamic hourly view. That is an example of one provider’s method, not a universal rule for cloud or data-center reporting.
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Check when and where clean electricity is matched
Ask what share of the facility’s load is matched annually, monthly, or hourly, and whether the generation is in the same relevant market or deliverable to the load. Annual matching can pair total consumption over a year with an equivalent volume of clean-energy attributes while leaving some hours supplied by the grid without a matching clean source.
Hourly matching can show those timing gaps more clearly and align procurement claims more closely with when electricity is consumed. It does not, on its own, establish the wider effect of procurement on the electricity system. Additionality also matters: ask whether the arrangement supports new clean supply or relies on existing generation, and how that conclusion is established.
The IEA’s 2022 analysis illustrates why grid conditions matter. In its India modeling case, annual matching reduced company emissions by 96% in 2020; in its 2030 Sustainable Development Scenario, the modeled reduction was 89%. In a high-variable-renewables case, the modeled reduction fell to around 50%. These are scenario-specific results, not forecasts for other countries or proof of a universal effect.
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Keep efficiency separate from carbon intensity
Power usage effectiveness (PUE) describes facility efficiency: the relationship between total facility energy and the energy used by IT equipment. It can help show how much energy goes to cooling and other overhead, but it is not a carbon score. Two facilities with the same PUE can have different electricity emissions if their grid emissions factors differ.
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For a cloud-service allocation, check the rack-metered IT energy, PUE, and emissions factor used in the provider’s calculation. A PUE value without those other inputs cannot tell you the allocated carbon footprint.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Use sector statistics as context, not as a site estimate
The IEA’s 2025 Base Case estimates that electricity generation supplying data centers totaled 460 TWh in 2024 and projects it will exceed 1,000 TWh in 2030 and reach 1,300 TWh in 2035. The 2024 figure is an estimate; 2030 and 2035 are projections. These global figures describe sector scale, not the energy use or carbon intensity of an individual provider or facility.
A practical disclosure checklist
When reviewing an operator’s report or answering a provider questionnaire, request:
- The subject and boundary: facility, region, fleet, or allocated cloud service; reporting year; included onsite and purchased electricity.
- Electricity consumption data for that boundary and period, plus the method used to allocate facility energy to a cloud service if relevant.
- The physical generation mix for the facility or relevant grid region, reported separately from contractual procurement.
- Location-based and market-based Scope 2 results, with units, factor sources, residual-mix treatment, and treatment of onsite generation disclosed.
- A list of the procurement instruments counted, their relevant market or location, and whether matching is annual, monthly, or hourly.
- How unmatched load is treated, and what evidence supports claims about additional clean generation.
- For cloud allocations, the rack-metered IT energy, PUE, emissions factor, and allocation method used to derive your share.
There is no single procurement or accounting approach that is best for every grid and buyer. The useful comparison is whether the operator makes its physical and contractual claims distinct, discloses the factors and boundaries behind its numbers, and makes the timing and location of its matching clear.
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