Electricity emission factor in the Netherlands: a guide for businesses
Direct answer
The electricity emission factor states how many kilograms of CO2 equivalent are released per kilowatt-hour of power you consume. Multiply your consumption by this factor to get the carbon emissions of your electricity. For the Netherlands, CO2emissiefactoren.nl publishes the official values every year, with separate factors for grey power, the average Dutch production mix and green power per source.
- Clear definition
- Data-driven assessment
- Risks and opportunities visible
- Practical next steps
Electricity emission factor in the Netherlands: scattered information versus Energy Intelligence
More and more businesses in the Netherlands must substantiate their carbon emissions with numbers: for a tender using the CO2 Performance Ladder, a sustainability report under the CSRD, or a question from a major customer. Electricity consumption is often one of the largest items. Yet the meter shows no emissions, only kilowatt-hours. The emission factor is the conversion key that turns that consumption into kilograms of CO2. Which factor you choose directly determines how your footprint turns out.
- There are separate factors for grey power, for the average Dutch production mix (grid mix) and for green power per source, such as wind, solar or biomass.
- CO2emissiefactoren.nl publishes updated factors every January; you use that year's factor for the footprint covering that same year.
- The GHG Protocol and the CSRD require two parallel calculations: location-based using the grid mix factor and market-based using your electricity contract.
Insight
Traditional approach
Information is scattered across portals, documents, invoices or separate spreadsheets.
Modern approach
Data, context and interpretation are brought together into a clear decision picture.
Decision-making
Traditional approach
Choices are made based on averages, assumptions or occasional analyses.
Modern approach
Scenarios, KPIs and current measurement data make the trade-off more concrete and repeatable.
Follow-up
Traditional approach
Actions often stay non-committal or disappear into separate reports.
Modern approach
Follow-up actions, monitoring and reporting are linked to the same energy data.
How is the emission factor for Dutch electricity determined?
The factor follows from the Dutch production mix: gas-fired plants, coal, wind, solar and biomass each have their own emissions per kilowatt-hour. CO2emissiefactoren.nl adds up two layers. First, the direct emissions of the power plant itself. Then the upstream chain: extracting, processing and transporting the fuel. Together they form the total factor, including losses in the electricity grid. Two averages exist side by side. The grid mix, also called the integral mix, is the average of all electricity produced in the Netherlands, including renewable sources. The factor for grey power averages only the non-green supply and is therefore higher. Because the mix shifts every year, CO2emissiefactoren.nl updates the values each January.
- The factor adds direct plant emissions and upstream fuel emissions together.
- Grid losses during transmission and distribution are included in the published values.
- Grid mix: the average of all Dutch electricity, including green sources.
- Grey power: the average of only the non-green supply, so a higher factor.
- Consult CO2emissiefactoren.nl for the current value for the ongoing year.
Market-based or location-based: which factor do you use?
The GHG Protocol, the global standard for carbon reporting, requires two parallel calculations for purchased electricity (scope 2). The European CSRD prescribes this as well, through the ESRS standards. The location-based calculation uses the grid mix factor: the average of the Dutch grid, regardless of your contract. It shows what your consumption physically means. The market-based calculation follows your purchasing. If you buy Dutch wind or solar power with guarantees of origin, you apply a factor of zero. If you buy grey power, you use the grey factor or your supplier's electricity label. Together, both figures show the difference between what the grid emits and what your purchasing choice delivers.
- Location-based: the grid mix factor of the Dutch grid, independent of your contract.
- Market-based: the factor of the electricity you purchase under your contract.
- Dutch wind and solar power with guarantees of origin counts as zero in the market-based calculation.
- The GHG Protocol and the CSRD (ESRS E1) require both calculations in your report.
Which pitfalls should you avoid?
Most footprint errors come from using the wrong or an outdated factor. Always use the factor for the year you are reporting on: the value published in January applies to the footprint for that year. If you do not know the origin of your electricity, calculate with the grey power factor. That is the agreed worst case; the lower grid mix factor would make your footprint look too favourable. Also watch your supplier's electricity label: that figure excludes the upstream chain, which you must add yourself. Foreign green power is customarily counted as grey in the Netherlands; the CO2 Performance Ladder even requires this. And solar power fed back to the grid does not make purchased grey power green, because the associated guarantee of origin has usually already been sold.
- Report with the factor for the correct year; old factors give a distorted picture.
- Origin unknown: calculate worst case with the grey power factor.
- The electricity label excludes upstream emissions; add those yourself.
- Foreign green power is customarily counted as grey power in the Netherlands.
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