NSW electricity emission factor 2026 (NSW and ACT, Scope 2, kg CO2e per kWh)

The 2026 DCCEEW emission factor for grid electricity in New South Wales and the ACT is 0.60 kg CO2e per kWh (Scope 2, location-based, NGA Factors Table 1), plus 0.07 kg CO2e per kWh for Scope 3 grid losses. That is 6.3% lower than the 2025 edition (0.64 kg).

Updated 19 October 2026 by the Carbon Recycling team. Figures are from the NGA Factors workbooks, Table 1: Indirect (scope 2 and scope 3) location-based emission factors associated with the consumption and losses of purchased or acquired electricity, 2022 to 2026 editions, checked against the published files.

Work out your NSW and ACT electricity emissions

KWh in a year

= 72.00 tonnes CO2e in 2026 (Scope 2 (location-based))80.40 tonnes including Scope 3 grid losses

Each kWh × 0.60 kg CO2e, the 2026 NGA Factors (DCCEEW) figure for NSW and ACT.

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NSW and ACT electricity emission factor by NGA edition

NGA edition	Scope 2 (kg CO2e per kWh)	Change	Scope 3 (kg CO2e per kWh)	Scope 2 + 3	Table
2026	0.60	-6.3%	0.07	0.67	Table 1
2025	0.64	-3.0%	0.03	0.67	Table 1
2024	0.66	-2.9%	0.04	0.70	Table 1
2023	0.68	-6.8%	0.05	0.73	Table 1
2022	0.73	–	0.06	0.79	Table 1

Row as published: "New South Wales and Australian Capital Territory". Location-based factors for electricity bought from the grid, published to two decimal places, for financial years ending in June. They include methane from hydro dams and leave out rooftop solar that is used on site. NGA publishes one figure for New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory together, because they share one part of the National Electricity Market.

Worked example

Take a warehouse in NSW and ACT using 120,000 kWh of grid electricity a year. Scope 2: 120,000 kWh × 0.60 kg = 72.0 tonnes CO2e. Scope 3 (grid losses): 120,000 kWh × 0.07 kg = 8.4 tonnes CO2e. That is 80.4 tonnes in all, which is how the NGA Factors' own example works it out.

How to use it

Add up the kWh on each site's electricity bills for your reporting year (most Australian businesses report on the financial year to 30 June) and multiply by the factor for the state or grid the site is in. That is the location-based Scope 2 figure the GHG Protocol asks every report to show. Sites in different states each use their own factor: the gap between states is large, so one national figure for everything can be well out. The national figure is only for sites you can't place.

Common mistakes: putting the Scope 3 grid losses factor into Scope 2; mixing figures from different editions in one report; and treating a renewable electricity contract or the ACT's renewable claim as a location-based figure (those belong in a market-based figure, shown alongside, not instead). The 2026 edition came out with the NGER Measurement Determination update for the 2026–27 NGER reporting cycle, and its electricity factors use NGER data for 2024–25, so each edition runs a year or two behind the electricity it describes.

Which rules apply: companies reporting under NGER take their methods from the NGER Measurement Determination, not this workbook. Companies reporting under the Australian Sustainability Reporting Standards (AASB S2, Climate-related Disclosures) disclose Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions; this factor gives the location-based Scope 2 part. UK companies with a site, office or warehouse in Australia should use this factor for that site, not the UK grid factor. In Carbon Recycling, set the site's country to Australia and its electricity is reported with the NGA national figure; your UK sites stay on the UK government factor.

Where to find your kWh

Your electricity retailer's bills show the kWh used in each billing period, usually split into peak, off-peak and shoulder; add them together. If a bill is estimated, use the next actual read. In a shopping centre or office building on an embedded network, ask the building manager for your metered use. Electricity from your own rooftop solar that you use on site is not bought from the grid, so leave it out.

Related emission factors

Victoria electricity: 0.74 kg CO2e per kWh (2026)
Queensland electricity: 0.65 kg CO2e per kWh (2026)
Australia national electricity: 0.59 kg CO2e per kWh (2026)
All Australian emission factors (NGA 2026)
Australia grid average (Ember, every year since 2000)
UK and other emission factors

Source: DCCEEW 2026, Australian National Greenhouse Accounts Factors, Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, Canberra, August. CC BY 4.0. Earlier editions: DCCEEW 2025, Australian National Greenhouse Accounts Factors, Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, Canberra. CC BY 4.0. (and the same for each year back to 2022). Carbon Recycling is not connected with or endorsed by DCCEEW; the worked examples and per litre figures are our own arithmetic from the published factors.

Frequently asked questions

What are the NGA Factors?

The National Greenhouse Accounts Factors, often called the NGA factors or the NGA Factors workbook, are Australia's official default emission factors for organisations working out their own emissions. DCCEEW publishes a new edition every year. The electricity factors are in Table 1 of the 2026 edition.

Are the NGA factors the same as the NGER factors?

Not quite. DCCEEW says the NGA Factors workbook is not published for reporting under the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting (NGER) scheme. Companies reporting under NGER use the methods in the NGER Measurement Determination. The NGA factors draw on that Determination, so many figures match, but check the Determination if you report under NGER.

Which edition should I use?

Usually the latest one available when you work out your footprint, which is the 2026 edition, unless a scheme or a customer asks for a particular edition. Say which edition you used. DCCEEW does not revise older editions, and a new edition does not mean you have to restate past years.

The ACT says its electricity is 100% renewable. Can I use zero?

Not for the location-based figure. DCCEEW notes that the ACT's 100% renewable electricity claim is made on a market-based basis. For location-based Scope 2 use this NSW and ACT factor. A market-based figure can be shown alongside it, not instead of it.

Should I add the Scope 3 factor?

NGA's own method adds them: kWh × (Scope 2 factor + Scope 3 factor). Report the Scope 2 part (0.60 kg per kWh) as Scope 2 and the Scope 3 part (0.07 kg per kWh), which covers electricity lost in the grid, under Scope 3. Don't add them together under Scope 2.

What is this factor in kg CO2e per GJ or per MWh?

Per MWh, multiply by 1,000: 600 kg CO2e per MWh. Per GJ, DCCEEW says to multiply by 1,000 and divide by 3.6: about 167 kg CO2e per GJ.

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