Requirements and guidelines according to the GHG Protocol
Category 3.11 of the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocol covers all indirect GHG emissions generated during the use phase of products sold. This includes emissions caused by the energy consumption of products during their life cycle, as well as direct emissions from the use of products that release greenhouse gases (e.g. vehicles, fossil fuels or chemical products).
Important requirements
Source identification: Companies should record all products that cause emissions during their use, e.g. electronic devices, vehicles, heating systems or chemical products.
Recording methods: Calculations can be based on typical energy consumption patterns, lifetime assumptions or direct emission factors.
Emission factors: Use of standardized emission factors from recognized databases such as IPCC, Ecoinvent or national environmental authorities.
Reporting period: Recorded emissions should be aggregated and reported over the entire estimated lifetime of the products.
Units: Emissions should be documented per product category in kg CO2e per unit of use (e.g. kWh, operating hours, kilometers driven).
Recording in NetCero
Follow these steps to record emissions from the use of sold products in NetCero:
Create activity: record all relevant sold products that cause emissions during their use as separate activities in the system.
Assign responsibility: Designate a person responsible for data collection and maintenance.
Assign recording object: Assign each activity to the correct business unit to ensure clear allocation.
Select emission factors: Users standardized emission factors from the NetCero database or external sources.
Define your own emission factors: Add company-specific factors if more accurate data is available from customers or industry organizations.
Document usage data: Record typical consumption values or expected service life directly in the table within the activity - based on customer information or industry statistics.
Automatic Emission Calculation: NetCero calculates the emissions per unit of use and integrates them into the overall balance.
Examples of emissions from the use of products sold
Example 1: Electrical appliances
A company sells 100,000 household appliances per year with an average electricity consumption of 300 kWh per year over a service life of 10 years. If the emission factor for electricity is 0.4 kg CO2e/kWh, the emissions amount to
100,000 x 300 kWh x 10 years x 0.4 kgCO2e/kWh = 120,000,000 kgCO2e (120,000 tCO2e)
Example 2: Heating systems
A company sells 5,000 gas heating systems with an expected service life of 15 years and an annual natural gas consumption of 20,000 kWh. If the emission factor for natural gas is 0.2 kg CO2e/kWh, the emissions amount to
5,000 x 20,000 kWh x 15 years x 0.2 kgCO2e/kWh = 300,000,000 kgCO2e (300,000 tCO2e)
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