No-regret 24/7 Carbon Free Electricity approach lowers system costs in Asia

24/7 carbon-free electricity (24/7 CFE) is now about cost, risk, and efficiency. TransitionZero’s Abhishek Shivakumar explains how granular procurement reduces system costs and makes clean power more bankable.

Electricity demand is rising rapidly across Asia, bringing greater focus on how clean power can be supplied at scale. TransitionZero, an energy transition planning data and software provider, examined the economics of 24/7 CFE across five key Asia-Pacific markets.

Hourly matching is more cost-competitive than annual matching

The modelling demonstrates that partial 24/7 CFE targets outperform annual matching on a cost basis in all markets.

In India, 70% CFE by 2030 is 35% cheaper than 100% annual matching, delivering net system savings of $1 billion per year. Carbon abatement costs are roughly three times cheaper compared to annual matching.
Japan would save $1.84 billion at 90% CFE from the transition to renewables from fossil fuels. At 100% matching levels system-wide benefits would reaching nearly $3 billion.
In Singapore, achieving 70% CFE by 2030 would lower net system cost by $47 million compared to annual matching. The overall grid benefits amount to $185 million due to avoided fossil fuel costs.
In Malaysia, savings under hourly matching start at $560 million. Reaching 80% CFE nationwide would cost Malaysia 15% less than annual matching, with a total system cost of $56 million owing to lower investment needs and higher fuel savings.
In Taiwan, if only 5% of its national demand adopted 80% CFE, the system could save nearly $1 billion.

24/7 CFE is a journey, with benefits showing from the outset

Capital is already flowing to support higher levels of CFE. For example, globally, annual energy storage deployment is set to be 23% higher than in 2024, hitting an all-time high at 92 GW. The ever-stronger business case for dispatchable clean power enables corporates to begin the transition toward 24/7 CFE, with 100% hourly matching serving as the North Star of corporate energy procurement.

Building towards 100% CFE over time rather than committing upfront improves bankability, allowing companies to adapt portfolios over time as costs fall and new technologies mature. TransitionZero’s model identified no-regret CFE targets for policymakers, where both the participating consumers and the wider electricity system benefit relative to annual matching. These findings reflect a demand signal that is already present in the market, as large corporates seek more effective and credible procurement strategies in business-led initiatives such as the United Nations’ 24/7 CFE Compact, Climate Group’s 24/7 CFE Coalition and Eurelectric’s Next-Level CFE Hub.

“A key risk management strategy is to view 24/7 carbon-free electricity as a pathway rather than a binary decision. A business can then set intermediate CFE targets on the way to achieving 100% 24/7 CFE and procure a cost-optimal portfolio for the pathway rather than optimising only for the final objective.”

Abhishek Shivakumar

Head of Systems Modelling, TransitionZero

Planning for a granular energy future

24/7 CFE is particularly relevant for commercial and industrial consumers driving electrification, such as heavy industry and data centres, where electricity demand is flat around-the-clock and energy costs are material to competitiveness. For these consumers, hourly matching offers not just a decarbonisation solution, but an economic strategy for hedging and long-term planning.

"A push for more granular accounting of Scope 2 emissions, such as the Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHGP)’s Scope 2 revision and Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), will further incentivise corporates to align with 24/7 goals."

Abhishek Shivakumar