Guarantees of Origin

What’s a GO?

A Guarantee of Origin (GO) is a market-based instrument that is used to claim consumption of one megawatt-hour of energy produced from a specific resource in Europe. While GOs are most commonly used to claim consumption of renewable electricity, they are increasingly utilized to track all types of energy, including fossil fuels and renewable natural gas. 3Degrees only offers GOs from renewable resources. Similar to a REC in North America, a GO represents the environmental attributes (but not the power) associated with renewable energy.

Supporting renewable energy in Europe through Guarantees of Origin (GOs)

A Guarantee of Origin (GO) is a critical tool for organizations looking to address their Scope 2 emissions from their operations across Europe. 3Degrees works with global customers to find best-fit GO solutions for their European energy footprint, helping them make credible renewable energy claims, navigate complex regulatory environments, and contribute to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

 

GO features include:

  • Location: 25+ countries in Europe
  • Governance: EU Law and/or European Energy Certificate System (EECS)
  • Technical Restriction: None
  • Supporters: CDP, RE100, LEED
  • Transparency: National laws prevent double counting
  • Vintage: 12 month window with no online date restriction

AIB GO (AIB Guarantee of Origin)
Non-AIB GO or REGO (Non-AIB Guarantee of Origin or Renewable Energy Guarantee of Origin)

GO features include:

  • Location: 25+ countries in Europe
  • Governance: EU Law and/or European Energy Certificate System (EECS)
  • Technical Restriction: None
  • Supporters: CDP, RE100, LEED
  • Transparency: National laws prevent double counting
  • Vintage: 12 month window with no online date restriction

AIB GO (AIB Guarantee of Origin)
Non-AIB GO or REGO (Non-AIB Guarantee of Origin or Renewable Energy Guarantee of Origin)

GO TECHNOLOGY OPTIONS IN EUROPE

Hydro

Small hydro
Norway, Sweden, Italy

Onshore wind
Italy, Spain, France, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Portugal, Germany, Poland, Belgium, Estonia, Croatia, UK, Netherlands

Offshore wind
Denmark, Germany, Finland, France, Netherlands, Portugal, Sweden, Belgium, UK

Large Hydro

Large hydro
Norway, Sweden, Finland, France, Switzerland, Austria, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Slovenia, Czech Republic

Solar
Austria, Belgium, Switzerland, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Hungary, France, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Slovakia, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Germany, UK

Biomass
Austria, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Croatia, Hungary, Lithuania, Latvia, Portugal, Slovenia, Slovakia, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, France, Italy, Germany, Netherlands, Estonia, UK, Spain

Regulatory Environment & Voluntary Standards

The EU Renewable Energy Directive II requires the cancellation of GOs to substantiate renewable energy claims. The majority of countries in the EU (and some non-EU members) have also strengthened the GO market through voluntarily joining the Association of Issuing Bodies by demonstrating compliance with European Energy Certificate System Rules. Reporting initiatives such as CDP and RE100 may impose further criteria for renewable energy claims in Europe.

3Degrees helps companies evaluate options for increasing their impact, such as adding ecolabel certification to their GO purchase. We are proud to be a licensed supplier of EKOenergy certified GOs.

 

3Degrees is the recipient of the 2023 EKOenergy Oak Award for the largest seller of EKOenergy-labelled electricity in 2022 and the 2023 EKOenergy Bamboo Award for the highest growth percentage of EKOenergy sales in the past year.