# Do I need a carbon baseline before applying for a green loan?

Canonical: https://senseible.earth/answers/carbon-baseline-before-green-loan-application

It helps. A baseline of twelve months of energy use, fuel and production shows where you start, so the project's effect can be estimated and later checked. Some lenders ask for it; even where they do not, it makes the case clearer.

## What to include

- Twelve months of electricity bills and fuel invoices.
- Production for the same months.
- Emissions and intensity per unit, with factors stated.

## Using it

Compare the baseline with the project's expected savings, labelled as an estimate, and repeat the measurement after commissioning.

## Common gaps

Missing months and unrecorded diesel are the usual problems; fill them before applying.

## What Senseible does here

Senseible turns bills and fuel invoices into a dated, traceable emissions record, the kind of evidence lenders may ask for. Lenders decide, and financing is never guaranteed.

- [Prove energy savings to a lender](https://senseible.earth/answers/how-to-prove-energy-savings-to-a-lender)
- [How lenders read GHG reports](https://senseible.earth/answers/how-lenders-read-msme-borrower-ghg-report)
- [Green loan principles](https://senseible.earth/answers/green-loan-principles-explained)

Sources: [Loan Market Association, green and sustainability-linked loan principles](https://www.lma.eu.com), [GHG Protocol Corporate Standard](https://ghgprotocol.org/corporate-standard), [Bureau of Energy Efficiency](https://beeindia.gov.in)

Last reviewed 2026-10-22.