ElectricityLevel 1 of 6 calculation factorCalculation factor, level 1 of 6Used to calculate all the calculated entriesDatabase structure 
6Territories
5Organisations
4Occupations and activities
3Uses
2Machine operationsGrid electricity, by country
The greenhouse gases emitted to produce one kilowatt-hour of electricity in the country of the servers, including power plant construction and fuels.
- For an identical quantity of electricity, the factor of the case is 11 times that of France.
- Changing the country changes the calculated emissions, not the quantity of electricity consumed.
- The factor includes the production of electricity over the life cycle, including power plant construction and fuels.
Sentence to citeGrid electricity, by country: 458 gCO2e per kWh worldwide, 41 gCO2e in France, over the life cycle.
- Used to calculate
- All the calculated entries: this factor converts their electricity into CO2e.
Origin of the value
A single source for the twelve countries and zones; from the lowest to the highest emitter, the gap reaches about 21 times. The database keeps this source for France too, in order to compare countries with one another; for a Bilan Carbone® or a regulatory carbon footprint in France, use the ADEME value, 51.9 gCO2e per kWh (Base Empreinte, consumption mix, transmission and distribution included, average 2021 to 2024).
Characteristics
| Unit | 1 kWh |
|---|---|
| Counted | the production of electricity over the life cycle, including power plant construction and fuels |
| Not counted | grid losses and the renewable electricity purchase contracts that a company can deduct |
| Status | published, 1 reading of the same scope, 4 other published values |
All the characteristics
| Identifier | IA-0001, projetcelsius.com/en/ai/database/IA-0001/ |
|---|---|
| Version | 0.3 of 2 November 2026 |
| Category | Calculation factors, the foundation of the calculation |
| Choice of the selected value | value taken as it stands from its source, without calculation |
| Sources | Ember, 2026 |
| Licence | CC BY 4.0 |
Result for the chosen case
This block is made of no other: its value is read from its sources.
Entries that use it
All the calculated entries: this factor converts their electricity into CO2e, depending on the location of the servers.
Sources of the calculation
1 publication, for this entry and those used to calculate it, with the chosen parameters.
Conversion into carbon
The source of the electricity factor of the selected location.
Worldwide: 458 gCO2e/kWh, life cycle.
Role and limits : Ember
Author. Ember, Our World in Data
What the publication covers. electricity generation over the life cycle, by country
What it does not cover. guarantees of origin
Reading by the database. The same source for all countries
Conversion of electricity into carbon: worldwide
Scope of the figure used. the production of electricity over the life cycle, including power plant construction and fuels
Limit. An average for the chosen country, not the electricity contract or the data centre of a specific service.
Published values
5 figures for the same quantity, each in its own scope.
| Source | Date | Intensity | What the figure measures | Scope | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grid electricityselected by the database, v0.3 | 2026 | 458 gCO2e/kWh | the value selected by the database | same scope | published |
| Ember and Our World in Data ↗Global Electricity Review 2026, and Our World in Data based on Ember | 2026 | 458 gCO2e/kWh | Electricity generated in 2025, life cycle, world; same source for each country | same scope | estimated |
| ADEME, Base Carbone ↗Base Carbone V23.6 | Jul. 2025 | 52 gCO2e/kWh | Mainland France, 2024 electricity, average consumption mix, transmission and distribution included (3.8 g), smoothed average of 2021 to 2024 data, life cycle (Base Empreinte, identifier 43642) | other scope | estimated |
| Google ↗Measuring the environmental impact of delivering AI at Google scale | August 2025 | 94 gCO2e/kWh | The same fleet in 2024, according to Google's low-carbon electricity purchase contracts (market-based) | other scope | computation |
| Google ↗Measuring the environmental impact of delivering AI at Google scale | August 2025 | 345 gCO2e/kWh | Average of Google's data centres in 2024, according to the intensity of the grids where they are located | other scope | computation |
| IEA, Electricity 2026 ↗Electricity 2026 | Feb. 2026 | 435 gCO2e/kWh | 2025, CO2 from generation only, without power plant construction | other scope | estimated |
The published figures do not all count the same scope; the scope of each figure is written next to it. Why do the estimates diverge?
Methodology conventions
With their alternatives
| Calculate a case without an entry | The formula, the default values and a step-by-step example |
|---|
Uses in the hub
Charts, figures, analyses and articles that cite this entry
History
Entry in version 0.3 of 2 November 2026, in the database in version 0.4
- 12 November 2026Description : the single source for the twelve countries becomes the same sentence, then: the database keeps Ember for France in order to compare countries with one another; for a Bilan Carbone® or a regulatory carbon footprint in France, use ADEME, 51.9 gCO2e per kWh.Decision of 12 November 2026: the database keeps a single source for all countries; the French regulatory value is stated on the entry; the France value (41.44 g) does not change.
- 12 November 2026ADEME reading, scope : mainland France, average consumption mix 2024, life cycle becomes mainland France, electricity 2024, average consumption mix, transmission and distribution included (3.8 g), smoothed average of the data from 2021 to 2024, life cycle (Base Empreinte, identifier 43642)."2024" is the ADEME vintage, not the year of the data: the value smooths 2021 to 2024 (data.ademe.fr API, re-read on 11/11); the value (51.9) does not change.
- 2 November 2026Designation : One kilowatt-hour of the grid becomes Grid electricity, by country.More precise designation: the object first, the specification after the comma, the quantity or period at the end; the former title remains searchable.
- 31 October 2026Creation of the database, in its first version (0.1).
