> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://blog.financely.io/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # RE100 Technical Criteria and I-REC Quality Screens - URL: https://blog.financely.io/re100-technical-criteria-and-i-rec-quality/ - Published: 2026-11-13T15:10:51.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-13T15:21:26.000Z - Description: RE100 technical criteria are the rules RE100 members use when procuring renewable electricity and reporting progress toward an RE100 target. Other buyers often use them as a quality screen. In many markets, I-REC(E) certificates can support those claims if cancellation, market. - Author: Financely Debt Advisors - Tags: Carbon Project Finance, Market Insights RE100 technical criteria are the rules RE100 members use when procuring renewable electricity and reporting progress toward an RE100 target. Other buyers often use them as a quality screen. In many markets, I-REC(E) certificates can support those claims if cancellation, market boundary and other criteria are met. This guide explains those tests, and how they differ from basic issuance. ## What do the RE100 technical criteria require of energy attribute certificates? The RE100 technical criteria, in the March 2025 edition cited here, require that renewable electricity claims in markets where energy attribute certificates are in common use be supported by cancellation of those certificates, with limited stated exceptions. They also require that certificates be issued to generation located in the same market as the electricity supply being claimed. A purchase of renewable electricity generated in one market cannot be equated to consumption in a different market. That market-boundary test is one of the most common reasons an otherwise valid I-REC(E) holding fails a buyer's RE100 screen. Vintage, technology and project specificity can also matter under the buyer's procurement policy, even where the criteria allow unbundled certificates. Unbundled I-REC(E) purchases are recognized, but they sit on top of a separate electricity purchase. They are not the same as a bundled project contract or a physical power purchase agreement. The criteria also describe limited exceptions, including some self-generation and certain direct-line supplies. The current criteria document is the controlling text, not a shortened summary on a sales slide. ## How does this relate to GHG Protocol Scope 2 reporting? RE100 technical criteria are a campaign standard for renewable electricity usage claims. The GHG Protocol Scope 2 Guidance is the greenhouse gas accounting reference for location-based and market-based inventories. A company can fail one and still be trying to meet the other, so a generator should ask which rule set the offtaker is actually applying. For a market-based Scope 2 claim, contractual instruments must meet the Scope 2 Quality Criteria. Residual mix factors are used when a company does not have qualifying instruments. Dual reporting of location-based and market-based totals still applies in markets with contractual instruments. The Protocol has also consulted on possible hourly matching and deliverability updates. Those proposals are not treated here as already in force. Device registration and production data checks, which determine whether I-REC(E) can be issued at all, are explained in the group guide on [how to generate I-RECs](https://www.financely-group.com/how-to-generate-international-renewable-energy-certificates-i-recs?ref=blog.financely.io). India solar facts remain on [I-REC development for solar portfolios in India](https://www.financely.io/i-rec-development-for-solar-portfolios-in-india?ref=blog.financely.io) and on [India solar tax incentives and I-RECs for developers](https://www.financely-group.com/india-solar-tax-incentives-and-i-recs-for-developers?ref=blog.financely.io). | Screen | Typical RE100 question | What the generator should be able to show | | -------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Cancellation | Have the certificates been cancelled for the claiming company in a market where EACs are in common use? | A redemption or cancellation statement that names the end user and the period | | Market boundary | Was the generation located in the same market as the electricity being claimed? | Device country or market, and a description that matches the buyer's market definition | | Exclusive attributes | Have the same attributes been sold or issued somewhere else? | Evidence that attribute rights are exclusive and that no second tracking system issued the same megawatt hours | | Vintage and period | Do generation and consumption periods line up with the buyer's policy? | Issuance periods, meter data and the buyer's stated vintage rule | | Instrument type | Is this unbundled, bundled, or a direct supply with a stated exception? | The contract type, stated clearly, without calling an unbundled sale a bundled PPA | ## What quality issues make I-REC(E) delivery fail a buyer screen? The usual failures are a market mismatch, missing cancellation in the buyer's name, attributes also issued elsewhere, a vintage the buyer's policy rejects, or a contract that describes the instrument as something it is not. A device that was never approved, or issuance against weak production data, will also fail, because there is then no reliable certificate to cancel. 24/7 carbon-free energy and granular certificates are a tighter screen again. Annual RE100 matching is not automatically a 24/7 claim. Generators who are being asked for hourly matching should treat that as a separate product discussion, with interval data and a scheme that can issue time-stamped certificates without double counting. ## What should a generator put in an RE100-ready offtake file? The file should include the approved device record, the issuer, the market, the issuance and cancellation path, exclusive attribute-rights wording, and a clear statement of whether the sale is bundled or unbundled. It should also record any buyer-specific vintage or technology limits, rather than assuming that any I-REC(E) will pass. Financely can advise on that file as an advisor and arranger. It is not an issuer, a registry, or the body that accepts RE100 reporting. Plant financing, if needed, remains on [project finance for solar and renewable energy](https://www.financely.io/project-finance-for-solar-and-renewable-energy?ref=blog.financely.io). Official residual-mix or inventory work stays with the company and its assurer, under the GHG Protocol Scope 2 Guidance. ## Frequently asked questions ### Can any I-REC(E) certificate be used for an RE100 claim? No. The certificate usually has to be cancelled for the claiming company, issued to generation in the same market as the electricity being claimed, and consistent with the buyer's other policy tests such as vintage and exclusivity. RE100 technical criteria are the controlling campaign rules. Issuance alone is not the same as a passing claim. ### Do RE100 criteria always require certificate cancellation? In markets where energy attribute certificates are in common use, RE100 generally requires cancellation to support a grid-sourced renewable electricity claim. The technical criteria list limited exceptions, including some self-generation and certain direct-line supplies. Those exceptions are narrow. Read the current criteria before assuming a supply is exempt. ### Is an RE100 claim the same as a Scope 2 market-based inventory? No. RE100 is a renewable electricity usage campaign standard. Scope 2 market-based reporting is a greenhouse gas inventory method under the GHG Protocol Scope 2 Guidance. A company may apply both, but they are not identical tests. Generators should ask which rule set the offtaker is using to accept or reject a delivery. ### Does a market-boundary failure mean the certificates are invalid? Not necessarily. The certificates may still be valid I-REC(E) instruments in the country of issuance. They may simply be unusable for that buyer's RE100 claim if the generation sits outside the market of consumption. The right response is to match certificates to a buyer in the same market, not to relabel the market after the fact. ### Is an annual RE100 match the same as 24/7 carbon-free energy? No. RE100 matching is not automatically an hourly, location-matched carbon-free energy claim. 24/7 CFE and EnergyTag granular certificates use a tighter time step and additional tests. A generator asked for 24/7 delivery should treat that as a separate product, with interval data and no double counting against annual certificates. ### Can Financely certify that a delivery meets RE100? No. Financely is an advisor and arranger. It can help a generator or offtaker assemble a file that addresses cancellation, market boundary, exclusivity and contract type. It does not certify RE100 progress, issue or cancel certificates, or sign a company's greenhouse gas inventory or campaign report. ## Related reading - [Scope 2 EAC and I-REC advisory](https://www.financely.io/scope-2-eac-advisory?ref=blog.financely.io) - [I-REC device registration advisory](https://www.financely.io/i-rec-device-registration-advisory?ref=blog.financely.io) - [How I-REC device registration and production audits work](https://blog.financely.io/how-i-rec-device-registration-and-production-audits-work/) If you want advisory help preparing an RE100-oriented I-REC(E) offtake file, submit it through the deal submission form. Financely is an advisor and arranger only. It does not certify RE100 progress or issue certificates. [Submit a deal](https://www.financely.io/deal-submission?ref=blog.financely.io) Sources 1. [RE100 technical guidance and technical criteria](https://www.theclimategroup.org/re100/technical-guidance?ref=blog.financely.io) 2. [GHG Protocol Scope 2 Guidance](https://ghgprotocol.org/scope-2-guidance?ref=blog.financely.io) 3. [I-TRACK Foundation, Product Code for Electricity (I-REC(E))](https://www.trackingstandard.org/product-code/electricity/?ref=blog.financely.io) 4. [EnergyTag](https://energytag.org/?ref=blog.financely.io)