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The mechanism of green certificates (CV) is a form of incentives for the production
of electricity from renewable sources. This mechanism is based on the mandatory
rule that producers and importers of electricity generated from non-renewable sources,
must annually introduce into the national electricity system a minimum share of
electricity produced by plants using renewable sources. In fact, the green certificate,
which conventionally attests the production of 1 MWh of renewable energy is issued
by the Gestore dei Servizi Energetici SpA - GSE – upon request of the holder of
a IAFR- qualified plant ( a plant powered by renewable sources) and it has a negotiable
value of 1 MWh.
The requirement may also be satisfied through the purchase of CV, corresponding
to the amount due, proving the generation of electricity from renewable sources
carried out by any other producer.
The Leg. Decree 79/99, Art. 11, states that, as of 2002, manufacturers and importers
of electricity produced from non-renewable sources are required to introduce a certain
share of electricity in the grid per year, generated by plants using renewable sources.
This share is equal to 2% of the electricity produced or imported from non-renewable
sources in the previous year, exceeding 100 GWh / year.
As of 2004 to 2006, the minimum share of electricity generated from renewable sources
to be put into the grid in the following year was increased by 0.35% per annum.
The 2008 Budget Law has subsequently predicted that in 2007-2012, the share were
to be increased by 0.75% per annum. According to the provisions of Law 244/07, the
production of electricity from renewable sources in plants which began operating
or had been repowered as of 1 April 1999 until 31 December 2007 is entitled to receive
a certification attesting its generation from renewable sources (green certificate)
for the first twelve years of operation. The production of electricity from renewable
sources in plants which began operating or had been repowered with effect as of
1 January 2008, however, is entitled to receive certification of renewable energy
production for the first fifteen years of operation.
For plants that entered into service after December 31, 2007-of annual average nominal
power exceeding 1 MW and 0.2 MW for wind power plants - the GSE releases CVs for
15 years, recognized by multiplying the net energy recognized at the intervention
carried out for the constants, differentiated by source, Table 2 of the 2008 Budget
Law, subsequently updated by Law 99 of 23/07/2009 as shown below:
TABLE 2
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Source
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Multiplicative Factor
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1 Wind (plants with a capacity of more than
200 kW)
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1.00
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1 bis Off-shore wind
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1.50
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3 Geothermal
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0.90
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4 Waves and tides
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1.80
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5 Hydro (other than the one indicated in the
previous point)
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1.00
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6 Biodegradable waste and biomass (other than
the one indicated in the following point)*
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1.30
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7 Biomass and biogases obtained from agriculture,
animal husbandry and forestry on a
short supply-line basis
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1.80
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8 Landfill gas, sewage treatment plant gas
and biogases (other than the ones indicated in
the previous point)
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0.80
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*Pursuant to art. 18, paragraph 3, of the Ministerial Decree of 6th July 2012, the
biogas produced by the fermentation of the organic fraction of municipal waste falls
between the sources referred to in line n. 6. As a result of the enactment of the
Decree of 18 December 2008, GSE makes adjustments for eligible RES (“IAFR”) plants,
i.e. issues additional Green Certificates by applying the multiplicative factors
reported in the above table.
The
Legislative Decree n.28 of 3 March 2011, regarding the " Implementation
of Directive 2009/28/EC on the promotion of energy from renewable sources and amending
and subsequently repealing Directives 2001/77/EC and 2003/30/EC" there has
been a reshaping of the electric energy incentive system from renewable sources ,
foreseeing, among other things that the present market system based on the (GC)
Green Certificates be gradually replaced by a feed-in tariff system.
Among the innovations, it is envisaged that those plants powered by renewable
sources to be enforced by December 31st, 2012 with a view to protecting the investments
yet to be completed, shall keep receiving GCs, whereas as of 2013, the new plants
will receive a fixed tariff according to the energy being produced, on the basis
of the general criteria which will have to guarantee a fair payment of operation
and investment costs.
Furthermore, the duration of the incentive shall be equal to the average life of
the specific plant technology.
The incentive will be constant throughout the support period and granted under private-law
contracts with GSE:
- the amount of the incentive for plants below a given threshold – different for the
different sources and anyway not below 5 MW – will be differentiated by technology
and equal to the one applicable upon commissioning of the plant;
- for plants above the aforementioned threshold, the incentive will be determined
through Dutch auctions (each concerning a capacity quota to be installed for each
source or technology) organised by GSE.
Furthermore, the Decree envisages that- for the energy producers and importers of
conventional sources- that the obligation quota percentage of energy produced by
renewable sources ( art 11, paragraph 1 and 2 of legislative decree n. 79 dated
March 16th, 1999) to be entered into the network, equal to 7,55% for 2012, starting
from 2013 will reduce, in a linear way, up to dwindling itself up to zero by 2015.
The
Decree of the Ministry of Economic Development, dated July 6th, 2012 stating
" Energy incentives resulting from non photovoltaic renewable sources "
( electrical DM FER) which made it possible the implementation of art.24 of
Legislative Decree, n 28 dated March 30th, 2011, envisaged also the following:
- For the period after 2015, the conversion into incentive of the right to
GCs, as far as incentivised plants are concerned, through the acknowledgment
of the GCs, according to the specific ways being defined by GSE and consequently
being published on its internet website.
- from 2013 to 2016, the offer by GSE to those liable entities, according to
art.11 of Legislative Decree n.79 of 1999, of the withdrawn certificates pursuant
to the same decree dated July 6th, 2012 at a price equal to the withdrawal one,
and that the transactions related to such a purchase take place by means of the
Market of the Green Certificates managed by GME itself.
CVs related to production prior to 2013 are released ex post or as offset in case
they have been received ex ante. Producers who have requested the ex ante issue
of green certificates are then always required to offset the emission and send a
copy of the yearly consumption to the Customs Agency, attesting the actual production
of electricity generated over the year the Green Certificates refer to, as defined
in the "application
Procedure for the issue, management and withdrawal of Green Certificates".
The Ministerial Decree of 6 July 2012 also provided that, as of 2013, the
issue of Green Certificates is made according to the information provided
monthly by the network Operators and therefore they are no longer under the CV ex
ante terms of issue of the CV which was based on the guarantee on expected production
or on the basis of the suretyship contract.
The CVs are issued on a monthly basis, subject to the obtainment by network operators
of the measures of gross output and energy fed into the grid, in relation to the
RES- IAFR plants. CVs are then classified according to the year and month of reference
in order to correctly identify the relevant quarter for the subsequent withdrawal.
The Green Certificates Market organised by GME provides:
liquidity: as per art. 9 of the Ministerial Decree of 24 Oct. 2005,
GSE will offer its own Green Certificates in GME’s regulated market;
transparency: the prices that are set in the market are of public
domain;
security: GME operates in the market as a CENTRAL COUNTERPARTY
and guarantees the payment of transactions.
The ordinary sessions usually take place on a weekly basis, through continuous trading.
The dates of the sessions are published in the "How to operate" section.
GSE-dedicated sessions are held according to a schedule published by the GME published
on its corporate website in the section "How to operate." The dates of
the sessions will also be published on the GSE website.
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