24/7 Carbon-Free Coalition enters next phase with new members

Unilever is one of the latest members to join the 24/7 Carbon-Free Coalition, which aims to advance round-the-clock carbon-free electricity for businesses.

The coalition was launched as a pilot in September 2024, and is entering the next phase of its roll-out at London Climate Action Week. 

Climate Group, the organisation behind the initiative, announced this week that eight businesses are now working together to examine how 24/7 carbon-free electricity can work in practice and what advantages it can provide. 

The group includes AirTrunk, AstraZeneca, Cathay Financial Holdings and Cathay Life Insurance, Google, Princeton Digital Group, Shree Cement and Unilever. Iron Mountain Data Centers and Vodafone UK, who were founding members of the coalition two years ago, are no longer listed on its website. 

Demand for hourly matching of renewable electricity is growing

All eight members of the 24/7 Carbon-Free Coalition will measure and report their hourly matched electricity use in at least one market within the next two years, and share learnings to help other companies move beyond annual renewables matching to 24/7 carbon-free electricity.

This shift in how companies measure their renewable energy consumption (from matching annual consumption with the purchase of annual renewable energy certificates to matching these in near real time) is particularly topical. The Greenhouse Gas Protocol is currently revising its Scope 2 guidance and is considering requiring firms to use real-time matching – a move that has sparked controversy. Businesses including Amazon and Apple argue that making this mandatory would dramatically increase electricity prices.

But while they oppose an hourly matching mandate, it appears businesses are still working towards the goal of 24/7 carbon-free electricity: according to Climate Group (citing data from Granular Energy), more than 1,500 businesses globally are now recording their electricity ‘hourly matched’ – three times more than in the same period last year. 

Electricity market adapting to demand

The group adds that four times more energy suppliers than last year now offer hourly-matching tariffs for companies, suggesting the market is adapting to this new demand. 

Climate Group CEO Helen Clarkson said: "The energy transition is entering a new phase, with businesses looking beyond annual renewable matching to invest in solutions that can deliver carbon-free electricity around the clock. There’s been so much discussion recently about 24/7 carbon-free electricity, we’re so pleased that new world-leading companies are joining the Coalition, working together to explore how it works in practice and what advantages it might give through better insight into their electricity use, preparation in facing energy price shocks, and helping call time on fossil fuels.”