The electric power industry is one of the industries likely to be affected most by efforts to reduce climate change. In an effort to better understand the effects of domestic and international proposals, and to consider the various options available to policy-makers, EPRI commissioned a number of studies on key climate-change issues.

NERA was retained by the Electric Power Research Institute to prepare a publishable analysis of issues related to the development of effective baseline methodologies for calculating Certified Emissions Reductions (CERs) from Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects and Emission Reduction Units (ERUs) from joint implementation (JI) projects. Preliminary results were presented at an IPCC meeting in Bonn in November 1999. The final draft, published in June 2000, highlights the desirability of a “tiered” regulatory approach that encourages standardized procedures for smaller projects and more individualized approaches for larger, unique projects.

The reports were distributed to EPRI contributors and informed EPRI's efforts to participate in a high-level public debate on climate change policy.