Green Power labels not yet at full power

Clean-E report presents overview of current situation

The share of eco-labelled electricity is below 5% of the total renewable electricity sold in Europe. Opinion polls show however that European consumers prefer electricity from renewables. This means that the existing green power labels in various European countries are not yet at full power.

In September 2006, Clean-E (Clean Energy Network for Europe) published the Overview of green power labelling schemes report. Along with an overview of the twelve existing labels, this report gives suggestions for improving the quality of those systems. According to the report, consumers of green electricity want products that they know are of good quality and organizations behind the labels they can trust.

One of the main issues is whether the green power labels respect the ‘additionality’ criterion. Additionality is ensured when the labelled electricity is generated over and above the requirements to meet legal obligations. Only green power labels that meet this criterion actually contribute to the expansion of renewable energy generation.

The Clean-E report also checked compatibility with the Eugene Labelling Standard, a European meta-standard to which national green power standards can be accredited. Currently only the German ok-power and the Swiss Naturemade label are accredited by the Eugene Standard. The report states that it would be a good idea to harmonize national green power labels with the Eugene Standard.