Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions explained — a GCC starter

Almost every emissions report organises its numbers into three “scopes.” The idea comes from the GHG Protocol — the standard framework behind most corporate emissions accounting — and it exists to avoid double-counting, so the same tonne of CO₂ isn't claimed twice across companies. Here's what each scope covers, in plain terms, with the GCC activities that typically fall into each.

Scope 1 — what you burn directly

Direct emissions from sources you own or control. In a GCC enterprise this is usually your company fleet's fuel and any on-site combustion — diesel generators, for instance, which are common wherever grid supply needs backing up.

• Company fleet fuel (petrol, diesel)
• On-site power generation and gensets
• Any fuel burned on your own premises

Scope 2 — the energy you buy

Indirect emissions from the electricity — and sometimes cooling or steam — you purchase. You don't burn anything on site, but generating that power produced emissions somewhere. Purchased grid electricity is the classic Scope 2 line for most GCC organisations.

• Purchased grid electricity
• Purchased district cooling or steam, where applicable

Scope 3 — everything else in your value chain

All other indirect emissions, up and down your value chain, that you don't own or control: business travel, employee commuting, purchased goods and services, waste, and more. It's the broadest and hardest category — most organisations start with the categories they can measure reliably and expand over time.

Where the GCC specifics bite

The scopes are universal, but the inputs are local. Fleet fuel (Scope 1) has to be derived from receipts using per-country, per-grade pump prices. Purchased electricity (Scope 2) depends on a regional grid factor. Getting the boundaries and the local inputs right is what makes the totals defensible — not just the category labels.

Start where the data is solid

A credible first report doesn't need every Scope 3 category on day one. Start with Scope 1 and 2, where the data is closest to hand — fleet fuel, generation and purchased power — prove those numbers against their source, and extend from there.

Susmatic ESG covers exactly these inputs — electricity, water, waste, company fleet fuel and power generation — and turns the evidence behind each into a figure you can defend.