Energy
‘Stationary energy’ includes all fuels used in electricity generation, industrial heat generation and the refining of petroleum. It does not include energy used for transport or emissions from industrial processes.
Participants will be those who import or mine coal and import or mine natural gas, plus petrol refineries and stationary energy producers who use geothermal fluid, used oil, waste oil, used tyres or waste for electricity generation or industrial heat.
Participants will be required to report their greenhouse gas emissions from 1 January 2010. They will need to submit their first emissions return by 31 March 2011 for the period 1 January 2010 to 31 December 2010. The emissions trading scheme is being reviewed and these dates may change.
The government won’t give electricity generators free emission units. This is because they can pass on the costs of the scheme to their customers, which means the impact of the scheme on the profits of electricity producers will be limited.
The government will compensate trade-exposed major electricity users for increasing electricity prices by allocating some free emission units to them that they can sell to cover the extra cost.
Regulations setting out data collection and emissions calculation requirements for the energy sector to comply with reporting obligations under the NZ ETS have been finalised.
A guide for stationary energy and industrial processes participants in the NZ ETS (Ministry for the Environment website)
ETS Bulletin 13 – Explanatory note: Climate Change (Stationary Energy and Industrial Processes) Regulations 2009 (Ministry for the Environment website)
ETS Bulletin 15 – Explanatory note: Climate Change (Unique Emissions Factors) Regulations 2009 (Ministry for the Environment website)
More information on registering as a participant is available at the New Zealand Emissions Unit Register.
Last updated: 30 September 2009
