The Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme and Domestic Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme (Amendment) Regulations 2015

Made: 4th February 2015

Coming into force in accordance with regulation 1(1) and(2)

In accordance with section 100(7) of that Act, the Secretary of State has obtained the consent of the Scottish Ministers to the making of these Regulations.

PART 1 — Introduction

Citation, commencement and interpretation

1

• (1) These Regulations may be cited as the Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme and Domestic Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme (Amendment) Regulations 2015 and, except as provided in paragraph (2), come into force on the day after the day on which they are made.

• (2) Regulations 4 to 6 come into force on 5th October 2015.

• (3) In these Regulations—

• (a) “the 2011 Regulations” means the Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme Regulations 2011[^f00002], and

• (b) “the 2014 Regulations” means the Domestic Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme Regulations 2014[^f00003].

PART 2 — Amendments to the 2011 Regulations

Amendments to the 2011 Regulations

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Amendment to regulation 2 (interpretation)

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Amendment to regulation 29 (participants using solid biomass in accredited RHI installations with an installation capacity of 1MWth or above)

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Amendment to regulation 33 (biomethane producers)

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Amendment to regulation 34 (ongoing obligations: general)

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Sustainable solid biomass etc

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Amendment to Schedule 2

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Sustainability criteria

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PART 3 — Amendments to the 2014 Regulations

Amendment to the 2014 Regulations

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The 2014 Regulations are amended in accordance with regulations 11 to 13.

Amendment to regulation 2 (interpretation)

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In regulation 2 of the 2014 Regulations, after the definition of “applicant” insert—

• “approved sustainable fuel” means solid biomass which is listed under a scheme approved by the Secretary of State in accordance with regulation 36E of the Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme Regulations 2011;

Amendment to regulation 41 (ongoing obligations: annual declarations)

12

In regulation 41, after paragraph (f) insert—

(g) where the accredited domestic plant is a biomass plant— (i) that all solid biomass used in that plant on or after 5th October 2015 was an approved sustainable fuel, or a fuel in respect of which the Secretary of State has made a declaration under regulation 36E(5) of the Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme Regulations 2011, and (ii) the authorisation number or other means of identification allocated to that fuel by the scheme under which, at the time it was received by the participant, that fuel was listed.

Sustainable solid biomass

13

After regulation 42 insert—

(42A) (1) A participant who uses solid biomass in an accredited domestic plant on or after 5th October 2015 must only use solid biomass which meets the requirement in paragraph (2) in that plant. (2) The requirement in this paragraph is that— (a) the solid biomass was, at the time when it was received by the participant, an approved sustainable fuel; or (b) the Secretary of State has made a declaration under regulation 36E(5) of the Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme Regulations 2011 in respect of that solid biomass.

Signed

Verma — Parliamentary Under Secretary of State — Department of Energy and Climate Change — 4th February 2015

Explanatory note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

EXPLANATORY NOTE

These Regulations, amend the Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme Regulations 2011 (“the 2011 Regulations”) and the Domestic Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme Regulations 2014 (“the 2014 Regulations”), to impose requirements on solid biomass or biogas used to generate heat and on biomethane which is injected. These requirements will, from 5th October 2015, require compliance with lifecycle greenhouse gas emission limits and restrict the place from which solid biomass or feedstock for biogas or biomethane can be sourced.

Regulation 3 inserts definitions of approved sustainable fuel and energy crops into regulation 2 of the 2011 Regulations.

Regulation 6 amends the ongoing obligations in regulation 34 of the 2011 Regulations to require record keeping in relation to approved sustainable fuel.

Regulation 7 inserts a new Chapter 4 into the 2011 Regulations comprising new regulations 36A to E.

The new regulation 36A provides for further definitions which are specific to the new chapter 4, in particular definitions of greenhouse gas criteria, land criteria and sustainable solid biomass, biogas and biomethane.

The new regulation 36B provides for a new ongoing obligation to use sustainable solid biomass or biogas or to produce sustainable biomethane.

The new regulation 36C requires participants to provide declarations and information to the Authority relating to sustainable solid biomass, biogas and biomethane.

The new regulation 36D requires sustainability audit reports subject to certain exceptions.

The new regulation 36E gives power for the Secretary of State to approve schemes for the listing of approved sustainable fuels for the purposes of these Regulations, and to deem certain fuels compliant with the requirements in regulation 36B.

Regulation 9 inserts a new Schedule 2A relating to greenhouse gas criteria and a new Schedule 2B relating to land criteria for sustainable biomass.

Regulation 12 amends regulation 41 of the 2014 Regulations to introduce a requirement for annual declarations in relation to sustainability.

Regulation 13 provides for a new ongoing obligation in the 2014 Regulations to use only sustainable solid biomass which is an approved sustainable fuel in an accredited domestic plant.

Documents which can be obtained from the British Standards Institution at www.bsigroup.com can also be obtained from the British Standards Institution customer services at 389 Chiswick High Road, London, W4 4AL upon payment of a fee.

Documents which can be obtained from www.ifac.org can also be obtained from the International Federation of Accountants, 6th Floor, 529 5th Avenue, New York, New York 10017, USA.

Documents which can be obtained from www.foresteurope.org can also be obtained from the Department of Energy and Climate Change, 3 Whitehall Place, London SW1A 2AW.

A draft of these Regulations was notified to the European Commission in accordance with Directive 98/34/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council laying down a procedure for the provision of information in the field of technical standards and regulations (OJ L 204, 21.7.1998, p. 37) as amended by Directive 98/48/EC (OJ L 217, 5.8.1998, p. 18).

Footnotes

[^f00001]: 2008 c. 32. Section 100 was amended by S.I. 2011/2195.

[^f00002]: S.I. 2011/2860, amended by S.I. 2012/1999, S.I. 2013/1033, 2410 and 3179, S.I. 2014/928 and 1413 and S.I. 2015/[ ].

[^f00003]: S.I. 2014/928, amended by S.I. 2015/[ ].

Editorial notes

[^key-bf212ffe38850daafb938bd8adb6b77b]: Reg. 1 in force at 5.2.2015, see reg. 1(1)

[^key-781aec1f6e7b6034f60dbbf1bd36a43c]: Reg. 10 in force at 5.2.2015, see reg. 1(1)

[^key-95de93d88aa32ec6ba56f021b1793fd0]: Reg. 11 in force at 5.2.2015, see reg. 1(1)

[^key-db3bf63905ec1b9cc8f8e15c656c7d6c]: Reg. 12 in force at 5.2.2015, see reg. 1(1)

[^key-841e93852ce86244f859b89cab2fbd56]: Reg. 13 in force at 5.2.2015, see reg. 1(1)

[^key-d8654affddc16e32543d97259e00ea43]: Regs. 2-9 revoked (22.5.2018) by The Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme Regulations 2018 (S.I. 2018/611), regs. 1, 92(2)(e) (with reg. 92(3)-(14))