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New label launched for certified green electricity

A new certification scheme has been launched to label green electricity tariffs which have been certified as having genuine environmental benefits.

The „green energy certified‟ label will help customers recognise tariffs that have been certified under the scheme. It will reassure them that if they choose a certified green energy deal they will be supporting suppliers who are going the extra mile to reduce carbon emissions.

The certification scheme will implement energy regulator Ofgem‟s Green Supply Guidelines, published last year. The guidelines set out what green tariffs should comprise, how they should be marketed and the evidence required to back-up claims. To be eligible for certification, suppliers will have to demonstrate to an independent panel of experts that their tariffs result in a reduction of a minimum threshold of carbon dioxide emissions.

Crucially suppliers must show that the activity associated with the green tariff is in addition to what they already have to do to meet existing Government targets for sourcing more renewable electricity and reducing household carbon emissions.

The independent panel, chaired by Solitaire Townsend, a leading sustainable development expert, has now assessed tariffs from all seven participants in the scheme; British Gas, E.On, EDF Energy, Good Energy, RWE Npower, Scottish and Southern Energy and Scottish Power. Details of the newly certified tariffs are available at www.greenenergyscheme.org

Sarah Harrison, Senior Partner, Sustainable Development, Ofgem, said:

“Ofgem‟s guidelines and the new independently applied label will help give consumers peace of mind that when they buy a green electricity deal it will bring an additional environmental benefit – this is good news for consumers and for green tariffs.”

Solitaire Townsend said:

“My foremost priority is consumer trust. Only two per cent of Britons currently buy green energy, but I hope that a trustworthy label will convince many more to go green. To rebuild confidence in green energy our independence must mean just that; the panel decisions will be based on evidence not marketing. As a communications expert myself, I‟m practised in spotting the difference.”

Keith Allott, Head of Climate Change at WWF-UK said:

“For far too long, green tariffs have been a swamp of misleading and confusing claims – and have done little or nothing to drive forward new renewable energy schemes. We hope that the new guidelines and certification scheme will be implemented robustly, and begin to give consumers some assurance that by choosing a green tariff they are making a difference.”

The certified tariffs can begin to incorporate the new label in their communications from 09/02/10

Source: © Ofgem.