Green Energy Certification scheme
10 February 2010
Green Energy Certification Scheme
Green Energy Certification Scheme
The certification scheme is a voluntary, not mandatory scheme, that was launched on February 9th 2010 with the Big 6 and one other supplier having tariffs certified.
Green Energy UK was not invited to submit its tariffs for certification.
We became aware of a proposed scheme 18 months ago and we made our concerns known during the consultation period. At the time we felt that any scheme that pushed up costs to consumers would in fact discourage them from going green.
Despite these concerns Ofgem have gone ahead with their accreditation scheme which involves committing suppliers, even the dedicated green ones, to additional measures and costs to gain certification. The gap between green and brown tariffs had been narrowing but we feel this scheme sets this back.
If all suppliers had adopted a greener supply policy 10 years ago we wouldn’t be facing the energy gap in 2015 referred to recently in press releases from the regulator.
Reluctantly we are investigating having a tariff certified but are concerned that additional costs will have to be passed on to our customers.
We believe strongly that everything we and our customers do is making a difference. Virtually all the power purchase agreements we have entered into are with generators who weren’t in business when the company was founded. That is how we have defined additional, and providing additional environmental benefits.
The credentials of our current tariffs
Deep Green- we purchase 100% renewable electricity- energy from waste, small scale hydro, anaerobic digestion, wind and solar. This is 100% backed by REGO’s and 100% backed by LECs
Pale Green- 100% green electricity -100% backed by LECs. This is low impact combined heat and power from Ofgem accredited generators. Despite being a low carbon tariff and climate levy exempt, this is excluded from the scheme! So in spite of being green in the eyes of HMRC and Ofgem who issue the LECs and accredit the generator, they deny its green credentials under this scheme!
What’s a REGO
Renewable Energy Guarantees of Origin (REGOs) are certificates which demonstrate that electricity has been produced from a renewable source of energy.
What is a LEC
Levy Exemption Certificates (LECs) are electronic certificates. Ofgem issue them to eligible stations for each Megawatt/hour (MWh) of qualifying electricity. LECs are the evidence that electricity was produced in a fully or partly exempt* CHP station for renewable LEcs a renewable station
LECs are the primary evidence that suppliers use to demonstrate to HM Revenue & Customs the amount of electricity supplied from good quality CHP sources to non-domestic customers in the UK
