Avoided emissions
Emissions estimated not to occur compared with a defined counterfactual scenario.
Example
A project may prevent a release that would otherwise have happened.
The catch
These estimates should remain separate from a company's own inventory reductions.
In more depth
Avoided emissions, explained.
Avoided emissions are only as credible as the comparison behind them, because the figure depends entirely on the alternative assumed. A maker of efficient boilers can compare its product with the average model on sale or with the worst one still installed, and the second choice yields a far larger number from the same boiler. Several firms in one value chain can also claim the same avoided tonne, which invites double counting.
Avoided emissions take no carbon out of the air, so net zero standards, including the SBTi's, exclude them from the balance against a company's own emissions. Name the reference scenario, the period covered and any other party that could claim the same tonnes.