Guarantees of Origin (GOs) for Business

A Guarantee of Origin (GO), also written GoO and often called a GO certificate, is the European Union's official certificate proving that energy was produced from renewable sources, one megawatt-hour (MWh) at a time. Companies cancel GOs to back renewable electricity claims and to report market-based Scope 2 emissions for the electricity they use in the EU and other European markets; for electricity used in Great Britain, the equivalent certificate is the REGO. Evertreen sources and cancels GOs on your behalf as an intermediary. A GO proves where electricity came from; it is not a carbon offset.

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Key facts

Unit: the standard size of a GO is one MWh of energy from renewable sources.
Legal basis: Article 19 of the EU Renewable Energy Directive (Directive (EU) 2018/2001), as amended by Directive (EU) 2023/2413, with the European standard EN 16325.
Issued by: a designated issuing body in each country (in Belgium, one for each region), such as a grid operator, an energy regulator or a government agency.
Cross-border: most European registries follow the European Energy Certificate System (EECS) of the Association of Issuing Bodies (AIB), so GOs can move between countries.
Validity: 12 months after the energy is produced; a GO that has not been cancelled expires at the latest 18 months after production.
Used for: renewable electricity claims, market-based Scope 2 reporting under the GHG Protocol and the CSRD, RE100 and supplier fuel-mix disclosure.
Not: a carbon offset. A GO does not remove or avoid emissions elsewhere.

What is a Guarantee of Origin?

A Guarantee of Origin is an electronic certificate that tracks the renewable origin of energy from the point of production to the point of use. Electricity from a wind farm, solar park or hydro plant flows into the same grid as electricity from fossil sources, and once it is there the two cannot be told apart. The GO separates the renewable attribute from the physical electricity, so that one, and only one, consumer can claim it. The Directive describes a GO as an electronic document whose sole function is to show a final customer that a given share or quantity of energy was produced from renewable sources.

Article 19 of the Directive sets out what a GO must show: the energy source and the start and end dates of production; whether it relates to electricity, gas (including hydrogen) or heating and cooling; the name, location, type and capacity of the installation and the date it began operating; whether the installation or its output received public support, and of what type; and the date and country of issue, with a unique identification number. Installations under 50 kW may show simplified information. Most GOs are issued for electricity.

GOs are known by other names across Europe: Herkunftsnachweis in Germany and Austria, garantie d'origine in France and Belgium, garanzia di origine in Italy, garantía de origen in Spain, garantie van oorsprong in the Netherlands and Belgium, and opprinnelsesgaranti in Norway.

What are Guarantees of Origin used for?

Renewable electricity claims — a company that says the grid electricity it uses in Europe is renewable needs GOs cancelled on its behalf, either directly or through its supplier, to show it.
Market-based Scope 2 reporting — under the GHG Protocol Scope 2 Guidance, GOs are the main energy attribute certificate for European electricity in the market-based method.
CSRD reporting — the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS E1) ask companies to disclose both location-based and market-based Scope 2 emissions.
RE100 and climate targets — GOs can be used as evidence of renewable electricity for RE100 commitments when they meet RE100's technical criteria, which include a limit on the age of the generating installation, and they are commonly used in market-based Scope 2 reporting against corporate climate targets.
Supplier disclosure — energy suppliers use GOs to prove the share of renewable energy in the fuel mix they disclose to customers, including green tariffs.

Why companies need Guarantees of Origin

Customers, investors, auditors and procurement teams increasingly ask companies to evidence their electricity claims, not just state them. For electricity taken from the grid in Europe, the GO is the instrument that carries that evidence: without GOs cancelled on its behalf, a company cannot credibly report that electricity as renewable, and its market-based Scope 2 figure falls back on its supplier's emission rate or, where none qualifies, the country's residual mix, which is often more carbon-intensive than the grid average. The residual mix is what remains of a country's electricity mix once the attributes already claimed through certificates such as GOs are taken out; the AIB publishes European residual mixes every year.

For companies reporting under the CSRD, both Scope 2 figures are disclosed side by side, so the difference that renewable electricity makes is visible to anyone reading the report. GOs are also the simplest route for organisations that cannot install their own solar or sign a power purchase agreement, such as tenants in shared buildings or companies with sites in several countries.

How a Guarantee of Origin works

Produce — a renewable installation generates one MWh and feeds it into the grid.
Issue — at the producer's request, the issuing body issues one GO for that MWh, with a unique ID, in the registry. No more than one GO can be issued for the same MWh.
Transfer — the GO is traded between registry accounts, within a country or across borders, usually through the AIB Hub.
Cancel — the GO is cancelled for a named consumer and a stated consumption period, so it can never be used again. Cancellation is the European term for what is called retirement for RECs and carbon credits.
Report — the consumer reports the matched electricity as renewable, supported by the cancellation statement from the registry.

Guarantees of Origin vs RECs, REGOs and I-RECs

Every major electricity market has its own certificate. They all represent one MWh, and under the GHG Protocol the certificate must come from the same market as the electricity it is matched against.

Certificate	Where it is used	Framework	Unit
Guarantee of Origin (GO)	EU and EEA countries, and other European markets in the AIB system	EU Renewable Energy Directive, EECS, EN 16325	1 MWh
REGO	Great Britain (Northern Ireland is part of a single electricity market with Ireland)	Renewable Energy Guarantees of Origin scheme, administered by Ofgem	1 MWh
REC	United States and Canada	Regional tracking systems, often with Green-e certification	1 MWh
I-REC	Many countries without a national scheme, in Asia, Africa and Latin America	International REC Standard	1 MWh

So a company with offices in Germany and the United States would cancel GOs for its German electricity and RECs for its American electricity. Electricity used in Great Britain is matched with REGOs.

What a Guarantee of Origin is not

A GO is not a carbon offset. It proves the origin of electricity you consume and changes your market-based Scope 2 figure. It does not remove or avoid emissions anywhere else, and it cannot be set against Scope 1 or Scope 3 emissions. Certified carbon credits are a different instrument, used for compensation claims; under the GHG Protocol they are reported separately and are not deducted from Scope 1, 2 or 3 emissions. Evertreen offers them as a separate product: see our Verra and Gold Standard credits.

It is also fair to say that buying GOs on their own is unlikely to lead to new renewable capacity being built: GOs are plentiful in Europe, especially from older hydropower, and their price is a small part of a project's revenue. Companies that want their purchase to make a bigger difference often choose GOs from newer wind and solar installations, from their own country, or alongside a long-term power purchase agreement.

What to look for when buying Guarantees of Origin

The right market — GOs for the European countries where you consume the electricity.
The right period — a production period that matches your reporting year. The GHG Protocol has been revising its Scope 2 Guidance, with proposals for stricter matching of certificates to the time and place of consumption, so check which version your report follows.
Technology and age — wind, solar or hydro, and the date the installation began operating, which every GO records.
Cancellation on your behalf — cancelled for your company and consumption period, with a cancellation statement from the registry.
No double claim — check whether your supplier already cancels GOs for your contract (many green tariffs do), so the same electricity is not covered twice.
Honest role disclosure — who sources and cancels the certificates, and whether they own the installations. See how we disclose ours on our transparency page.

Guarantees of Origin through Evertreen

Evertreen sources Guarantees of Origin from renewable installations across Europe and matches them to the countries, period and volume of your electricity use. We cancel them in the registry on your behalf and send you the cancellation statement for your sustainability report and your auditor. As with all our products, we act as an intermediary: we do not own or operate the installations, and a GO is sold as what it is, proof of renewable electricity, not a carbon offset.

To get a proposal, send us your annual electricity use in MWh, the countries it is consumed in and the reporting year.

Frequently asked questions

What is a Guarantee of Origin (GO)?

A Guarantee of Origin is the EU's official electronic certificate proving that energy was produced from renewable sources, with a standard size of one megawatt-hour (MWh). It is governed by Article 19 of the EU Renewable Energy Directive and issued by a designated issuing body in each country.

Are Guarantees of Origin the same as RECs?

They do the same job in different markets. A GO is the European instrument, a REC is the North American one, a REGO is the UK one, and an I-REC is used in many other countries. Each represents one MWh, and the certificate must come from the same market as the electricity it is matched against.

How many Guarantees of Origin does my company need?

One GO per megawatt-hour of electricity you want to cover. A company using 500 MWh a year in the EU would cancel 500 GOs to match all of it.

Do Guarantees of Origin reduce my Scope 2 emissions?

They reduce market-based Scope 2 emissions under the GHG Protocol: electricity covered by GOs from wind, solar or hydro that are cancelled on your behalf and meet the Scope 2 quality criteria, such as the same market and a matching period, is reported at zero emissions. Location-based Scope 2, which reflects the average grid, does not change. Reporting under the CSRD requires both figures.

Are Guarantees of Origin carbon offsets?

No. A GO proves the renewable origin of electricity you consume and is used for Scope 2 reporting. It does not remove or avoid emissions elsewhere and cannot be used against Scope 1 or Scope 3 emissions. Certified carbon credits are a separate instrument, used for compensation claims; under the GHG Protocol they are reported separately and are not deducted from Scope 1, 2 or 3 emissions either.

How long is a Guarantee of Origin valid?

Under the EU Renewable Energy Directive a GO is valid for 12 months after the energy was produced, and any GO not cancelled expires at the latest 18 months after production. For reporting, the production period should match the period of consumption you are claiming.

Do I need Guarantees of Origin or REGOs for electricity used in the UK?

For Great Britain, REGOs. Great Britain is a separate electricity market from the EU, and electricity consumed there is matched with REGOs (Renewable Energy Guarantees of Origin), the UK scheme administered by Ofgem. GOs are the instrument for electricity consumed in EU and EEA countries and the other European markets in the AIB system. Northern Ireland is part of a single electricity market with Ireland, so check the rules for sites there.

What is the difference between bundled and unbundled GOs?

Bundled GOs come with the electricity itself, for example through a green tariff or a power purchase agreement. Unbundled GOs are bought separately from the electricity supply. Both can be used for market-based Scope 2 if they meet the GHG Protocol's quality criteria; bundled and long-term contracts are generally considered stronger evidence of support for renewable generation.

Who issues Guarantees of Origin?

Each country appoints its own issuing body, for example the Umweltbundesamt (German Environment Agency) in Germany, GSE in Italy and CNMC in Spain; Belgium has one for each region. Most European issuing bodies are members of the Association of Issuing Bodies (AIB), whose Hub lets GOs move between national registries.

How much do Guarantees of Origin cost?

Prices depend on the technology, the country, the age of the installation and the production year, and they move with the market. We quote for your volume and requirements.

Do Guarantees of Origin fund new renewable energy?

Not usually on their own. GOs are plentiful in Europe and their price is a small part of a renewable project's revenue, so buying them alone is unlikely to get new capacity built. GOs from newer installations, or bought alongside a long-term power purchase agreement, make a bigger difference.

How do I buy Guarantees of Origin through Evertreen?

Send us your annual electricity use in MWh, the countries it is consumed in and the reporting year. We source GOs to match, cancel them in the registry on your behalf and send you the cancellation statement for your report and your auditor.