How to Calculate Emissions from Electricity Consumption: Türkiye Factors

Purchased electricity is often the largest emission item for service companies and, in industry, one of the two largest together with natural gas. The calculation is a single multiplication; the difficulty lies in choosing the right factor and correctly reflecting certified renewable purchases. This guide explains which of the factors published by Türkiye's Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources (ETKB) should be used for which purpose, and how to apply the two Scope 2 methods.

Why is electricity Scope 2?

The GHG Protocol Corporate Standard defines emissions from the generation of electricity that a company purchases and consumes as Scope 2. The emissions physically occur at the power plant, but they result from your consumption. The same standard states that emissions from electricity lost during transmission and distribution do not fall under the end consumer's Scope 2; they are reported by the company that operates the grid (Chapter 4, p. 27). On the consumer side, these losses are reported in Scope 3 Category 3.

Electricity you generate and consume from a solar plant on your own roof is not Scope 2; if the plant is yours, no emissions are recorded in Scope 1 either, because generation uses no fuel. Electricity in a building you lease is classified according to the type of lease and the control approach you have chosen, not according to whose name is on the invoice. For this, see the organizational and operational boundaries guide.

Core formula

Scope 2 emissions (tCO₂e) = Electricity consumption (MWh) × Emission factor (tCO₂e/MWh)

Use the active energy (kWh) on the invoice; the reactive energy (kVArh) line is not included. Divide the kWh value by 1,000 to convert it to MWh.

The two separate factor sets published by ETKB

ETKB's Department of Energy Efficiency and Environment publishes two different information forms, and they are often confused.

1. Electricity generation and consumption-point emission factors

This form (ETKB-EVÇED-FRM-042) is based on the International Energy Agency's emission factor methodology. As its dataset, it uses the generation, consumption and loss statistics of TEİAŞ (Türkiye's transmission system operator), the electricity generation emissions from the national inventory, and European Environment Agency intensity values for imported electricity. The form explicitly states that it can be used in carbon footprint calculations. Current values:

The forms also give values for CO₂ only (for 2023: 0.430 for generation, 0.433 for transmission and 0.465 tCO₂/MWh for distribution). In the inventory, use the CO₂e column, which also includes CH₄ and N₂O.

At the time of writing, the latest value belongs to the 2023 calculation period. This means that when you prepare your 2025 inventory, you use a factor that reflects the grid structure of two years earlier. This is normal in Türkiye; state in the report which year's factor you used, and keep the same approach when a new form is published.

2. National Electricity Grid Emission Factor of Türkiye

The second form (ETKB-EVÇED-FRM-039) is calculated using the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change's Clean Development Mechanism Tool 07 methodology. The values for 2023 are: operating margin 0.7134, build margin 0.3567, combined margin 0.6242 for solar and wind and 0.5350 for other renewables, in tCO₂/MWh. The form itself says that the combined margin factors can be used to calculate greenhouse gas reductions achieved through renewable energy.

These values estimate what a project displaces on the grid; they do not show the average emissions of consumed electricity. They are not used in Scope 2. A Scope 2 calculated with 0.6242 comes out about 44 percent higher than with the generation factor.

Which factor suits Scope 2: generation or consumption point?

The GHG Protocol Scope 2 Guidance requires the factors used in the location-based method to reflect the emission rate at the point of generation; these factors do not include transmission and distribution losses or upstream fuel emissions, which are reported in Scope 3 Category 3 (p. 27). Table 6.2 also requires the data format to be a combustion-only emission rate (p. 47).

ETKB's consumption-point factors differ by connection point, the dataset includes TEİAŞ loss statistics, and the distribution network value is about 8 percent higher than the generation value. This indicates that grid losses are reflected in the consumption-point factor; the information form does not state this detail of the method explicitly.

This leaves two consistent routes:

Whichever route you choose, state the choice in the report and follow the same route in all years, including the base year.

Location-based and market-based: dual reporting

The Scope 2 Guidance requires companies operating in markets where contractual instruments are available to report Scope 2 using both methods (Sections 1.5.1 and 7.4). Because YEK-G and I-RECs are available in Türkiye, this requirement also applies to companies in Türkiye.

• Location-based: Uses the average emission rate of the grid you are connected to. It does not change even if you buy certificates.
• Market-based: Reflects the contractual instruments relating to the electricity you purchase: certificates, direct purchase agreements, supplier-specific factors. If there are no instruments, the residual mix is used, and if that is not available either, the grid average (Table 6.3, p. 47).

The two results are not added together or subtracted from each other. When setting targets, you need to state which one you use as the basis. We cover how to word the report in detail in our post on market-based and location-based reporting.

The residual mix problem in Türkiye

The residual mix is the emission rate of the electricity that remains after renewable generation claimed through certificates is removed. At the time of writing, ETKB's electricity emission factor pages do not include a residual mix factor. The Scope 2 Guidance says that in this case the grid average can be used and that the inventory should state that no residual mix is available (Section 6.11.4, p. 56). The guidance also asks companies not to try to calculate their own residual mix. As a result, you also use the grid average in the market-based calculation for your uncertified consumption; because this counts part of the certified renewable consumption twice, it may show the market-based total slightly lower than it really is.

YEK-G, I-RECs and quality criteria

YEK-G is the national system established by the Energy Market Regulatory Authority (EPDK) through the Regulation on Renewable Energy Guarantees of Origin in the Electricity Market dated 14 November 2020. Under the regulation, each certificate corresponds to 1 MWh of renewable generation, the system is managed by the Market Operator (EPİAŞ), and a certificate is cancelled when it is used on behalf of a consumer. A certificate that is not cancelled within 12 months of the end of the generation period is revoked.

I-REC is an international certificate standard. According to a 2021 interview by the I-TRACK Foundation, it has been used in Türkiye since 2015, and there has been a local issuer since 2020.

Whichever certificate you use, to apply a zero or low factor in the market-based calculation the instrument must meet the quality criteria in Table 7.1 of the Scope 2 Guidance (p. 60). In practice, you should be able to answer "yes" to these questions:

1. Does the certificate convey the emission rate attribute of the relevant MWh?
2. Is there no other document conveying this attribute for the same MWh? Obtain written confirmation from the generator or supplier that the same generation has not been sold as both YEK-G and I-REC.
3. Has the certificate been cancelled in your name or on your behalf, and is there a record of this?
4. Is the certificate's generation period as close as possible to the consumption period?
5. Is the generation in the same market as your consumption, i.e. in Türkiye?
6. If you use a supplier-specific factor, does the supplier calculate it over all the electricity it sells, taking certificates into account?
7. If you buy directly from a generator, are the documents conveying the attribute transferred only to you?
8. If no residual mix is published, have you stated this in the report?

If you sell the YEK-G certificates for electricity generated by your own solar plant, you cannot claim zero emissions when consuming that electricity; the attribute now belongs to the party that received the certificate (Scope 2 Guidance, Section 5.5 and Table 5.2, pp. 39-40). For the practical details of using certificates, see our post on how to use renewable energy certificates.

Worked example: a plastic packaging factory

The consumption and certificate quantities below are illustrative values. The factory is connected to the medium-voltage distribution network. The total active energy on its 2025 invoices is 6,000,000 kWh, i.e. 6,000 MWh. For the same year, the company had 2,000 MWh of YEK-G certificates for generation in Türkiye cancelled in its own name. The factors are taken from ETKB's 2023 calculation period form.

Location-based (Route A, generation factor): 6,000 MWh × 0.434 tCO₂e/MWh = 2,604.0 tCO₂e

For comparison, Route B with the distribution network consumption-point factor: 6,000 MWh × 0.469 tCO₂e/MWh = 2,814.0 tCO₂e

The 210 tCO₂e difference gives an idea of the size of the grid losses that would be addressed separately under Scope 3 Category 3 in Route A.

Market-based:

• Portion covered by YEK-G: 2,000 MWh × 0 = 0 tCO₂e
• Remaining portion, at the grid average because no residual mix is available: 4,000 MWh × 0.434 = 1,736.0 tCO₂e
• Total: 1,736.0 tCO₂e

Both lines appear together in the report: location-based 2,604.0 and market-based 1,736.0 tCO₂e. A footnote states the factor source and year, the YEK-G quantity and cancellation record, and that no residual mix is available.

Calculator (location-based)

Common mistakes

1. Using the project factor in Scope 2. The combined margin (0.6242 or 0.5350) is for emission reduction projects. Compared with the generation factor, it inflates Scope 2 by about 44 percent with 0.6242 and about 23 percent with 0.5350.
2. Counting losses twice. Using a consumption-point factor and also calculating grid losses in Scope 3 Category 3.
3. Reporting a single number. Because there is a certificate market in Türkiye, both location-based and market-based results should be given together.
4. Relying on a certificate without a cancellation record. A supplier's "green tariff" claim is not enough for a zero factor in the market-based calculation without a certificate cancelled in your name or equivalent evidence.
5. Not matching the certificate period with the consumption period. The quality criteria require the certificate to be as close as possible to the consumption period.
6. Mixing up the CO₂ and CO₂e columns. The ETKB form has two columns; the inventory uses the CO₂e column.
7. Changing the factor year without updating the base year. For how to preserve comparability between years when the factor year or method changes, see the base year guide.
8. Adding reactive energy to consumption. Only active energy (kWh) is included in the calculation.

Next step

Electricity is usually the whole of Scope 2, but only one part of an inventory. For direct emissions, continue with the natural gas emissions calculation and company vehicle emissions calculation guides, and for the whole process, the carbon footprint calculation guide. If you want to align your electricity supply with your targets, build a certificate strategy or prepare Scope 2 for verification, Alalëa's carbon footprint service plans these steps together with you.