Power and renewables accounting
Plain-English guides to the accounting issues power and renewables companies face, each with a worked example from the industry.
Power and renewables accounting guides
- Power and utilities accounting: the key issues3 minute readPower and utilities accounting explained: PPAs, own use and hedging, certificates, wind and solar asset lives, decommissioning, rate regulation and capacity.
- Power purchase agreements4 minute readPower purchase agreements under IFRS: when a PPA is a lease, an own-use contract or a derivative, virtual PPAs, the 2026 IFRS 9 amendments, with examples.
- Renewable energy certificates4 minute readRenewable energy certificates under IFRS: no specific standard, generators' policy choices, bundled PPAs under IFRS 15, buyers and obligated suppliers.
- Wind and solar asset lives: depreciation by component4 minute readWind and solar asset lives under IAS 16: components such as turbines, gearboxes and inverters, limits from land leases and permits, repowering and reviews.
- Decommissioning wind and solar farms4 minute readDecommissioning wind and solar farms: when the provision arises, what it covers, why salvage is not deducted, lease extensions and repowering, an example.
- Regulatory deferral accounts: IFRS 14 and the new IFRS 204 minute readRegulatory deferral accounts explained: why most IFRS utilities show none today, IFRS 14 for first-time adopters, and regulatory assets under IFRS 20 from 2029.
- Capacity payments4 minute readCapacity payments under IFRS 15: stand-ready obligations recognised over time, penalties as variable consideration, capacity and energy charges, and leases.
- Feed-in tariffs and subsidies4 minute readFeed-in tariffs and subsidies for renewable generators: fixed tariffs as revenue, premiums and contracts for difference, investment grants and tax credits.
- Grid connection contributions3 minute readGrid connection contributions under IFRS: the network operator's revenue under IFRS 15, assets transferred by customers, and the generator's connection asset.
- Energy contracts and the own-use exemption4 minute readThe own-use exemption for energy contracts: when power and gas contracts are derivatives, net settlement, tainting, written options and the fair value option.
- Battery storage projects3 minute readBattery storage accounting under IFRS: depreciating cells by cycles, augmentation, capacity and ancillary revenue, energy trading, and tolling deals as leases.
- Emissions allowances3 minute readEmissions allowances under IFRS: no specific standard, the common net liability approach, free and purchased allowances, traders, and the US Topic 818.
- Unbilled revenue at utilities3 minute readUnbilled revenue at utilities under IFRS 15: estimating energy delivered but not yet billed, the energy balance method, network losses and credit losses.
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About these guides
Each guide starts from an accounting issue power and renewables companies actually face and works through it with numbers from the industry. 13 of 13 planned guides are published; more are added with every batch.