Second Nature Partners with Clearloop

Here are our takeaways from a thorough review of Clearloop’s Solution

Second Nature is excited to announce a new partnership with Clearloop, a company accelerating equitable grid decarbonization by commissioning new solar projects in parts of the country that have yet to share in the benefits of the growing clean energy economy – where electricity is among the most carbon-intensive. Clearloop is a wholly owned subsidiary of Silicon Ranch Corporation, one of the nation’s largest independent solar power producers and a recognized leader in pioneering community-focused solar energy solutions.

To vet this partnership,* Second Nature has fully investigated Clearloop’s solution, and is confident that campuses seeking RECs or offsets from Clearloop solar developments can make high quality claims against emissions. Our vetting process entailed a thorough review of Clearloop’s methodology, reviews of GHG Protocol guidance related to that methodology, and investigation into company history, claims, and industry relationships. Part of our excitement about this partnership is the opportunity it creates for education about the emissions impacts of solar investment, and we feel Clearloop’s model is driving change and next generation renewable energy procurement, at an especially timely moment in the pursuit of renewable energy in the U.S. 

In this post, we will review the main GHG integrity risks associated with claiming RECs and offsets from domestic solar development, and how we feel Clearloop’s solution addresses or is working to address these risks. In addition to Clearloop’s methodology, we reference the Greenhouse Gas Protocol’s Guide for Grid Connected Energy Projects (GGEP), the technical framework informing much of Clearloop’s methodology. 

Before we get into the technical details, we want to note that Clearloop’s model is based on more than just counting kilowatt hours, or even carbon emissions. Their work is building long-term renewable energy infrastructure in partnership with communities across the Southeast to expand clean energy access, maximize health and environmental benefits, and create generational economic opportunity in underserved communities across the United States. 

Clearloop is deeply committed to strengthening the community infrastructure of the regions where they build. Through their Energize STEM, Careers, and Connections programs, they create meaningful pathways into clean energy careers, support local education by investing in teacher development cohorts, and foster long-term partnerships that empower communities to actively participate in our changing economy. This partnership provides a unique opportunity for students and educators to connect with real-world clean energy projects, enabling hands-on learning, industry exposure, and a tangible understanding of sustainability in action.

At a time when renewable energy is becoming less incentivized in the United States, Second Nature is proud to assist higher education institutions with focusing their impact where it will make the most difference to the grid, and to local communities. In addition to the emissions impact, the equity considerations of Clearloop projects are impressive. Specifically for higher education, Clearloop’s willingness to share data and project details for research or student learning purposes is commendable, and the accessibility of their solar builds for institutions who cannot enter into large scale PPAs or vPPAs make Clearloop’s solution a good choice.

Now, for the emissions details. Clearloop offers its customers the option to claim the RECs associated with the kilowatt hours produced by the solar project, or to claim the offsets produced by the carbon-intensive emissions that the project displaces or avoids. We find that the RECs associated with the projects are a clear claim, as each kilowatt hour that is produced by the project can be issued a certificate against Scope 2 emissions. Quantifying carbon emissions reductions from solar projects is more involved, so claiming offset credits requires more scrutiny. Below, we offer insights into these risks and our due diligence process to discern Clearloop’s approach to addressing them. Ultimately, Second Nature is confident that a higher education institution working with Clearloop can make either the REC or offset claim with integrity.  

1. Setting the baseline and quantifying emissions:

Any offset project must concern itself with integrity when it comes to setting the baseline and then quantifying outcomes that differ from that baseline. If this is not done correctly the project is at risk of overcrediting. We find that Clearloop closely follows the GHG Protocol’s Guide for Grid Connected Energy Projects (GGEP) in this regard. Their methodology requires projects to disclose the penetration of renewable energy in the region, the likelihood that the production capacity of the new build will displace other forms of energy on the grid, and the method for quantifying that avoidance according to the best methods available. 

2. Maintaining the baseline to further prevent overcrediting:

Just as setting the baseline is important, ensuring that the baseline remains realistic and is maintained to prevent overcrediting is vital over the long term life of Clearloop’s projects, which offer 35 years of ex-ante (before they’ve happened) carbon credits to project customers choosing the offset option. We find that this area is the only area where Clearloop diverges from the GGEP, which states that ex-ante estimations of avoided emissions from marginal solar should be forecast 5-7 years only, and at most, 10 years from the baseline. We were impressed by Clearloop’s response to our concerns about this, and their awareness of the possible solutions. Truing up the baseline every 5-10 years could be one option, and setting aside a buffer pool of credits every year to insure the project against actual emissions avoidance that deviates from the original ex-ante estimation are options Clearloop is open to considering, potentially in partnership with higher ed participants. The buffer pool approach is common in nature based projects like tree planting, but the use of this approach in the clean energy space is unique to Clearloop’s methodology. Currently, Clearloop sets aside the last 5 years of project credits in a buffer pool, and provides transparency into projects’ actual emissions avoidance through Project Pages on their website, where customers can view the real-time contribution of carbon free electricity from the project to the grid. As of this writing, each of Clearloop’s projects has overdelivered on ex-ante estimations, and Second Nature feels confident that higher education institutions choosing the offset option would have access to the right information, transparency, and cooperation from Clearloop in order to support offset claims. 

3. Additionality

One of the critiques of making carbon offset claims connected to solar development in the United States and other quickly-greening nations has been that the projects are not additional– or they would have happened under business as usual circumstances, meaning there is no need for finance from carbon offsets. We find that Clearloop is carefully selecting grid regions within markets that directly disincentivize solar and other renewable energy development, and as the environment becomes less favorable toward solar development in the U.S, we believe the additionality of Clearloop projects is quite provable and can be comparable, in some cases, to international markets. For example, according to the US Energy Information Administration, wind and solar together make up only 1.3% of electric power generation in Tennessee, 0.9% in Mississippi, and only 0.3% in Louisiana, home to Clearloop’s next project. In addition to Clearloop’s methodology provision stipulating that projects are not eligible in regions where grid penetration by renewable energy is greater than 7%, Clearloop has offered that they are more than willing to share further documentation with customers to show the financial additionality of any specific project. You can read more about Clearloop’s approach to this work in the whitepaper they co-authored with WattTime, titled Curing Carbon Blindness, available for download on their website.

4. Transparency

Our final concern was transparency, mostly because Clearloop is one entity providing project development, the methodology governing those projects, and the registry functions of issuing and retiring credits from each project. In the carbon offsets space, it is generally considered best practice to have separate entities providing these functions, to increase transparency and accountability in the market. Yet as with many things in the offset space, alternative market options arise when entities step into innovation, geographic regions, or technologies that are getting left behind, and we do not want to ignore these efforts. To do so would allow the perfect to be the enemy of the good. We feel confident that Clearloop is providing ample transparency to project customers as to the project development process and the project outcomes, and showing best effort to ensure their methods and relationships are developed in high integrity. 

Lastly, Second Nature is highly attuned to the discussion currently underway about how to ensure accuracy and integrity in renewable energy procurement. We find that Clearloop is working ahead of its time in this regard, providing real-time production monitoring, and having developed a methodology to demonstrate truly impactful solar projects at a time when the precedent for this is critically important. Through our partnership with Clearloop, we are also excited to engage them with Second Nature’s Carbon Offsets Advisory Council, and to explore collaboration on high integrity, peer-reviewed projects for higher education. 

Whether your institution is interested in offsets or RECs, Clearloop can help you meet your goals through local, high-impact, and high-quality emissions reductions. Every contribution to a Clearloop project – big or small – directly supports brand new solar capacity and delivers measurable, lasting climate impact.