GreenPower Claims: What to Check on Your Electricity Plan
"Green energy," "100% carbon neutral," "powered by renewables" — these phrases appear on electricity plans with different meanings and different levels of verification behind them. GreenPower is the only government-accredited renewable electricity program in Australia with defined standards. Claims that use other language may reflect genuine renewable investment or may be marketing without substance. Knowing the difference takes 2 minutes of reading the plan's product disclosure statement.
- GreenPower (capital G, capital P) is the accredited Australian government program. Plans that use GreenPower must purchase accredited renewable energy certificates proportional to the household's usage.
- "Renewable energy," "clean energy" and "carbon neutral" without the GreenPower accreditation are not standardised. They may or may not reflect equivalent investment.
- GreenPower adds cost — the premium varies by retailer, state, plan and GreenPower percentage, so check the current plan document rather than relying on a generic c/kWh range.
- Check whether the plan is GreenPower accredited on the Energy Made Easy plan listing or the plan's PDS.
What GreenPower actually means
GreenPower is an Australian government-managed accreditation program. When a retailer sells a GreenPower plan, they are required to purchase Large-scale Generation Certificates (LGCs) from accredited renewable energy generators equal to the percentage of usage covered by the plan.
Partial GreenPower plans (e.g., 10%, 25%, 50%) purchase that proportion of the household's usage from accredited renewables. 100% GreenPower means all usage is matched with accredited renewable certificates.
The key point: GreenPower certificates are retired (cancelled) against your usage — they cannot be double-counted or used for another purpose. This is what makes GreenPower a meaningful environmental claim rather than a general marketing statement.
The GreenPower program is managed by the National GreenPower Program Steering Group and administered by state governments. Retailers participating in the program are listed on the GreenPower website.
What other "green" claims mean
Many plans use green language without GreenPower accreditation. Some are backed by genuine renewable investment — the retailer may hold renewable energy contracts, purchase voluntary offsets or have a carbon neutrality certification. Others use language with no defined standard.
Questions to ask for non-GreenPower "green" plans:
- What specific mechanism makes this plan "green" or "renewable"?
- Are the renewable energy certificates or offsets verified by a recognised third party?
- What percentage of the generation is renewable?
- Is this accredited under any government or independent standard?
If the retailer cannot answer these questions clearly, treat the "green" claim as unverified.
What GreenPower costs
GreenPower adds a premium to the standard plan rate. The exact premium varies by retailer, state, offer date and the percentage purchased. Use the retailer's current plan document or Energy Made Easy listing to calculate the annual premium from your own grid import, then decide whether the accredited renewable-energy contribution is worth that cost to you.
Does GreenPower make sense if you already have solar?
If you have rooftop solar, you are already producing renewable energy for self-consumption. GreenPower certificates on the grid import portion of your usage cover the energy you buy from the grid, not your own generation.
If solar self-consumption reduces your annual grid import, the GreenPower premium is applied only to that reduced import, so calculate it from your own bill rather than using a generic annual kWh range.
Some households with solar choose a lower percentage GreenPower as a balance between environmental contribution and cost. Check the current available percentages on the plan you are comparing.
Check whether a plan's green claim is GreenPower accredited — look for the GreenPower logo or check the Energy Made Easy listing. Accredited GreenPower has defined standards. Other green language on electricity plans does not. Accredited GreenPower adds a plan-specific premium, so calculate the annual dollar impact from your own grid usage and the current offer.
Analyse your bill to understand your annual grid usage before calculating the GreenPower premium.