Decarbonization Anxiety? What Companies Told Us at 2025 Energy Taiwan

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As global and domestic efforts toward net-zero accelerate, companies face not only technical challenges but also complex pressures from policy, resource constraints, and cost control.

At the 2025 Energy Taiwan, Mt. Stonegate engaged with numerous visitors and heard recurring themes of concern: anxiety, confusion, and frustration in their carbon-reduction journey. 

Comments such as “We can’t secure green power,” “ISO 14067 feels like a black hole,” “Policies are unclear,” and “How can Taiwan realistically reach RE100?” reveal the growing gap between corporate ambition and practical resources on the ground.

From these conversations, we identified three key challenges most companies share:

• The dilemma of resource allocation and budgeting

• The difficulty of green-power procurement

• The lack of clarity in long-term strategy

1. The Resource Allocation Dilemma: Balancing Budget and Benefit

Common concerns: “ISO 14067 is a bottomless pit.” | “No budget.” | “Supplier demands are overwhelming.”

These voices reflect the everyday struggle of Taiwanese businesses. On one side, revenue volatility caused by market uncertainty; on the other, growing downstream pressure from clients to conduct GHG inventories, purchase green power, or invest in carbon-reduction projects. Not doing it risks losing contracts; doing it cuts into profit margins.

At the heart of this issue lie two unknowns: unclear costs and uncertain value.

Understanding the Value Beyond Cost

Many companies still view decarbonization purely as an expense. However, a growing number have begun to see it as a strategic investment that delivers long-term benefits:

1.        Sustaining supply-chain competitiveness and securing orders

2.        Attracting new sustainability-focused customers

3.        Reducing future carbon fees and compliance costs through early action

4.        Strengthening corporate reputation to attract talent and investors

When these benefits are quantified and clearly communicated, carbon reduction shifts from a reluctant obligation to a proactive strategy, one that motivates internal alignment and unlocks stronger commitment to transformation.

Clarifying the Cost Structure

Costs for carbon accounting or product carbon footprints can vary widely depending on company size, industry, and product complexity.

Executors often find quotations from consultants and verification bodies much higher than expected, leading to budget-approval deadlocks and project stagnation. 

For teams new to carbon management, we recommends engaging with professional advisors early. Our consultants help evaluate realistic budgets, identify cost-effective solutions, and share benchmark cases from similar industries, turning uncertainty into actionable planning.

2. The Green Power Challenge: PPA, Certificates, and Cross-Border Procurement

Common concerns: “We can’t buy green power.” | “How can Taiwan reach RE100?” | “The market isn’t open.” | “Our electricity use is too small.”

For many companies, green power remains the biggest roadblock on the path to decarbonization.

Yet, the real issue often lies not in the lack of green power, but in the misdirection of procurement strategy.

Small and medium-sized users often find power purchase agreements (PPAs) too complex or unsuitable. Contracts are long-term, power demand is small, and generation types (e.g., solar) may not match consumption patterns.

However, Taiwan also offers EACs, which fulfill the same purpose as physical green power and provide flexibility through annual purchase options without the administrative burden of PPAs.

Globalized supply chains now face growing “cross-border procurement” issues.

Headquarters may mandate renewable energy use in overseas sites such as Singapore or Vietnam, but local teams struggle with unfamiliar regulations and certification systems. The key is to develop a diversified green-power portfolio rather than rely on a single tool. For instance, in Vietnam, rooftop solar installations combined with I-RECs are often the most effective route. In Singapore, where renewable generation is scarce but the market is liberalized, companies can leverage flexible instruments and short-term contracts.

Corporates today need not only electricity providers, but strategic partners who can assess local conditions and tailor procurement portfolios to achieve global targets efficiently.

3. Strategic Uncertainty: Policy, Scope 3, and Carbon Credits

Common concerns: “Policies are unclear.” | “Scope 3 reduction is too difficult.” | “Soil carbon credits are hard to quantify.”

Policy uncertainty remains a major source of hesitation. Rapid rollouts of carbon-related regulations, such as CBAM, along with ongoing discussions around carbon pricing, leave companies unsure how to plan for the long term.

For organizations that have already addressed Scope 1 & 2, the next challenge, Scope 3, is even harder. It requires collaboration across entire supply chains, yet global best practices are still emerging. 

Meanwhile, carbon credit development, such as soil-carbon projects, offers opportunity but demands deep technical expertise and complex verification. Many companies worry whether such investments will truly generate measurable returns.

In most cases, these barriers stem from limited market information, lack of benchmarking examples, and unfamiliarity with the evolving carbon-market framework.

Hesitation is natural in uncertainty, but accurate data and the right partner bring clarity. Just as companies require lawyers for litigation and consultants for environment investigate assessment, they must engage professional carbon-strategy advisors to assess opportunities and manage complexity.

Now is the time for businesses to turn uncertainty into a strategic advantage through expert collaboration.

From Anxiety to Action

The concerns voiced at Energy Week mirror a decarbonization reality: sustainability transformation offers no single roadmap.

Companies need not face these challenges alone. Mt. Stonegate provides integrated carbon-management services—helping organizations assess their status, allocate resources effectively, and design customized solutions.

We invite companies to connect with us, share their challenges, and explore together how to transform uncertainty into a sustainable roadmap for the future.