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Australia allows emissions reporting for biomethane, H2
Australia allows emissions reporting for biomethane, H2
Sydney, 13 June (Argus) — The Australian government will enable companies to report scope 1 emissions from the consumption of biomethane and hydrogen, which will need to be backed by eligible renewable gas certificates, it announced today. Companies will be able to prove that the gas they receive from the natural gas network and consume in a reporting year contains an amount of renewable gas, as represented by renewable gas certificates retired or completed by them or on their behalf, adjusted for losses, the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) said on 13 June. The new product guarantee of origin (PGO) certificates registered under the guarantee of origin (GO) scheme, as well as the renewable gas guarantee of origin (RGGO) certificates issued under the GreenPower Renewable Gas Certification (RGC), will both be allowed. Any gas sourced from the natural gas network that is not covered by the new certificate-backed loss-adjusted amount must be reported as natural gas, the DCCEEW said. The changes are part of updates to the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting (NGER) scheme, which is used to measure and report greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and energy production and consumption. These are the latest changes following the implementation of the recommendations made at the end of 2023 by Australia's Climate Change Authority (CCA), which reviews the NGER scheme every five years. The market-based reporting allowing companies to report the scope 1 emissions benefits from their renewable gas purchases will start from 1 July 2025, and be applicable from the July 2025-June 2026 financial year onwards. They will affect NGER scheme reports to be submitted by corporations by 31 October 2026. The updates also include amendments to support the reclassification of hydrogen as a fuel type. Hydrogen was previously classified in the NGER scheme as an energy commodity. The DCCEEW will monitor the uptake of biomethane as a feedstock for ammonia and hydrogen production and may revisit some technical rules in future annual NGER scheme updates, it said. Potential impact on oil and gas facilities Other changes announced on 13 June include updates to the emission factors used in two methods for gas flared in oil and natural gas operations. Some submissions to a public consultation raised concerns about the potential overestimation of methane emissions resulting from the assumption that flare gas is 100pc methane, and implications of the proposed emission factors on facilities covered by the safeguard mechanism, the DCCEEW said. The Clean Energy Regulator has the discretion to vary the facility's baseline to accommodate the regulatory change if the revised factors have a material impact on emissions reported by a facility covered by the safeguard mechanism, it said. Facilities under the oil and gas extraction sector received a combined 3.07mn safeguard mechanism credits (SMCs) in the July 2023-June 2024 financial year as their covered scope 1 emissions were below their baselines. By Juan Weik Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
EPA draft biofuel blend mandate expected Friday: Update
EPA draft biofuel blend mandate expected Friday: Update
Updates with changes throughout New York, 12 June (Argus) — President Donald Trump's administration plans to release draft biofuel blend mandates for 2026 and 2027 on Friday, according to three people familiar with the matter. The draft quotas, in addition to a separate final rule cutting cellulosic biofuel mandates for last year, exited White House interagency review on Wednesday, the last step before major regulations can be released. The Trump administration has meetings with legislative stakeholders on Friday morning ahead of the public release, three people said. Previously scheduled meetings through the end of the month as part of the interagency review process appear to have been cancelled, another signal that the rules' release is imminent. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has said it wants to get the frequently delayed Renewable Fuel Standard program back on its statutory timeline, which would require volumes for 2027 to be finalized before November this year. Any proposal will have to go through the typical public comment process and could be changed. EPA said the rules will be posted on its website once they are signed by Lee Zeldin, the agency's administrator. A coalition of biofuel-producing groups and feedstock suppliers, including the American Petroleum Institute, has pushed EPA to set a biomass-based diesel mandate of 5.25bn USG for 2026, hoping that a record-high target will support biorefineries that have struggled this year. Many plants have idled or run less recently, as uncertainty about future blend mandates, the halting rollout of a new clean fuel tax credit, and tariffs that up feedstock costs all hurt margins. US senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) said Thursday that closed biodiesel plants in his state needed a 5.25bn mandate to reopen. Meanwhile, a coalition of independent and small refiners that have long lamented the costs of the program wrote to EPA this week asking for less-aspirational future mandates, including for the conventional category mostly met by corn ethanol. RIN markets were volatile today, trading higher in the morning before slipping lower on fears the mandates would not meet industry expectations. Current year ethanol D6 RINs traded as high as 99¢/RIN before falling as low as 90¢/RIN. Current year biomass-based diesel D4 RINs ended Thursday at 102.5¢/RIN, equal to their close the prior day. Small refinery exemptions loom Zeldin told a House subcommittee last month the agency wanted "to get caught up as quickly as we can" on a backlog of small refiner requests for program exemptions. Courts took issue with EPA's exemption policy during Trump's first term and again during President Joe Biden's tenure, leaving officials now with dozens of waiver requests covering 10 compliance years still pending. It is unclear whether the rule will provide much clarity on EPA's plans for program waivers, but biofuel groups have worried that widespread exemptions would curb demand for their products. The price of Renewable Identification Number (RIN) credits used for program compliance have been volatile this year on rumors about these exemptions, which EPA has called market manipulation. In both the Trump and Biden administrations, EPA estimated future exempted volumes when calculating the percentage of biofuels individual refiners had to blend, effectively requiring those with obligations to shoulder more of the burden to meet high-level volume targets. The agency could continue that approach, but it would be more legally treacherous for the agency to similarly "reallocate" exempted volumes from past years into future standards, lawyers said. EPA by law also has to consult on exemption decisions with the Department of Energy, which a person familiar said was "still going through the scoring process" for assessing some small refinery applications, making quick resolution of the issue unlikely. Unresolved court cases, including a Supreme Court case about the proper venue for small refinery waiver disputes, could also give regulators pause until they know more. Tax credit clarity expected soon Senate committees this week have been releasing their versions of key parts of the major Republican spending bill, and the Senate Finance Committee is expected to do so soon, potentially as early as Friday according to people familiar. The incentive is crucial for biofuel production margins and thus for the viability of EPA mandates too. The version that passed the House last month would extend the "45Z" clean fuel production credit through 2031, bar regulators from considering indirect land use emissions, and restrict eligibility to fuels from North American feedstocks. While various ideas have circulated this year, lobbyists expect the Senate to preserve the general structure of the credit, which throttles benefits based on carbon intensity, rather than reinvent a new subsidy. Still, some Republicans have expressed concern with the House's phaseout of tax credit "transferability", which benefits smaller companies without much tax liability. And major oil refiners with renewable diesel plants reliant on Asian used cooking oil and South American tallow have lobbied for more flexibility around foreign feedstocks. Any changes that up the credit's costs could be controversial too among conservatives worried about the bill's impacts on a mounting federal budget deficit. And the complex tax credit will ultimately need final regulations from the US Department of Treasury clarifying eligibility. At a Senate hearing Thursday, Treasury secretary Scott Bessent said that the Trump administration planned to implement the credit in a way to "not allow for foreign actors to have a back door into the program." By Cole Martin and Matthew Cope Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
EPA readies new biofuel blend mandate proposal
EPA readies new biofuel blend mandate proposal
New York, 12 June (Argus) — President Donald Trump's administration is close to releasing two regulations informing oil refiners how much biofuel they must blend into the conventional fuel supply. The two rules — proposed biofuel blend mandates for at least 2026 and most likely for 2027 as well as a separate final rule cutting cellulosic fuel mandates for last year — exited White House review on Wednesday, the last step before major regulations can be released. Previously scheduled meetings as part of the process appear to have been cancelled, another signal that the rules' release is imminent. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has said it wants to get the frequently delayed Renewable Fuel Standard program back on its statutory timeline, which would require volumes for 2027 to be finalized before November this year. Any proposal will have to go through the typical public comment process and could be changed. A coalition of biofuel-producing groups and feedstock suppliers, including the American Petroleum Institute, has pushed EPA to set a biomass-based diesel mandate of 5.25bn USG for 2026, hoping that a record-high target will support biorefineries that have struggled this year. Many plants have idled or run less recently, as uncertainty about future blend mandates, the halting rollout of a new clean fuel tax credit, and tariffs that up feedstock costs all hurt margins. EPA administrator Lee Zeldin also told a House subcommittee last month the agency wanted "to get caught up as quickly as we can" on a backlog of small refiner requests for program exemptions. Courts took issue with EPA's exemption policy during Trump's first term and again during President Joe Biden's tenure, leaving officials now with dozens of waiver requests covering multiple compliance years still pending. It is unclear whether the rule will provide clarity on EPA's plans for program waivers — including whether the agency will up obligations on other parties to make up for exempt small refiners — but biofuel groups have worried that widespread exemptions would curb demand for their products. The price of Renewable Identification Number (RIN) credits used for program compliance have been volatile this year on rumors about these exemptions, which EPA has called market manipulation. RIN trading picked up and prices rose on the news as Thursday's session began. Bids and offers for 2025 ethanol D6 RINs, the most prevalent type currently trading, began the day at 96¢/RIN and 98¢/RIN, respectively. Deals were struck shortly after at 98¢/RIN and 99¢/RIN, with seller interest at one point reaching 100¢/RIN — well above a 95.5¢/RIN settle on Wednesday. Biomass-based diesel D4 RINs with concurrent vintage followed the same path with sellers holding ground as high as 107¢/RIN. By Cole Martin and Matthew Cope Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Self-reliant plants key for Brazil's RNG mandate
Self-reliant plants key for Brazil's RNG mandate
Sao Paulo, 9 June (Argus) — Brazil's self-sufficient biomethane producers could play a key role in meeting an emissions mandate set for next year. While most of Brazil's renewable natural gas (RNG) supply is tied up in long-term contracts, self-sufficient plants — those that produce RNG for their own consumption — may help fill the gap by generating and selling biomethane origin guarantee certificates (CGOBs) without changing how they use the fuel. Market participants are concerned about the amount of biomethane available to meet the mandate to reduce carbon emissions from natural gas by 1pc starting in 2026, as most plants have long-term contracts for almost all their supply. But self-sufficient plants could sell CGOBs while still using the fuel for their production, market participants said. Such plants represent 24 of the 54 operational RNG production plants in Brazil, with another 10 under development, according to the latest data from Brazil's international center for renewable energies CiBiogas. These are industrial, agro-industrial, sugar and ethanol, beverage and food companies, which use biomethane as a substitute for natural gas or other fuels like diesel and firewood, according to CiBiogas market intelligence manager Nicolas Lazzaretti Berhorst. Hydrocarbons regulator ANP lists only 12 authorized biomethane plants. But under current emissions mandate regulation discussions, self-sufficient plants would have a long path ahead to be recognized by ANP before being eligible to generate CGOBs. Many factors could influence how long that takes, the regulator told Argus , including how fast they answer ANP's questions." After getting approval to produce biomethane, generating CGOBs will also require hiring an origin certification agent, a financial market registrar and a registration platform recognized by securities regulator CVM, as well as transparency about volumes and prices. The biggest risk from self-sufficient plants' playing a role in the mandate would be unwillingness to relinquish the environmental attribute after investing in the production of biomethane, according to Berhorst. "Obtaining the certification to issue CGOBs has a cost," he said. "Whether this will be worth it or not will depend on the price of this new certificate." By Rebecca Gompertz Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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