About the pilot

What is the objective of the Renewable Gas Certification Pilot?

The objective of the pilot is to accelerate new renewable gas projects being developed, enable a voluntary market for renewable gases, and provide independently certified renewable gas options for commercial and industrial gas users.

For gas customers to be able to support renewable gas projects, we need a functioning voluntary market that is based on independent certification and auditing. To enable this voluntary market for renewable gases, GreenPower has developed the Renewable Gas Certification Pilot.

This new certification is run as a pilot because the industry is in its infancy and renewable gases may in future be included in the Australian Government’s Guarantee of Origin scheme.

The pilot is an interim scheme that aims to bridge the gap until a permanent scheme is in place. That means the pilot is a fully functional certification that customers and gas producers can rely on for their climate action. GreenPower is committed to ensuring continuity by running the pilot until a replacement scheme is available, and working to make the transfer to the eventual ongoing scheme as easy as possible.

How does it work?

Certified producers supply renewable gas into the gas network or directly to a local customer. The producer registers that gas in an online registry platform to generate certificates. The certificates are called Renewable Gas Guarantee of Origin (RGGO).

Gas retailers and certificate traders can register to sell renewable gas certificates. They buy certificates from producers and sell them to commercial and industrial gas consumers. Once sold, the traders retire the certificates on behalf of the customer.

Customers that have certificates retired in their name can claim that their gas use has been matched with renewable gas that was added to the gas network on their behalf.

Certificate sales provide an additional revenue stream for renewable gas producers, helping more projects become commercially viable.

Who can participate?

Participation is open to renewable gas projects across Australia that produce biogas, biomethane (upgraded biogas) or renewable hydrogen. Certified producers will be able to create renewable gas certificates for their produced gas. You can read more about becoming a certified producer here.

To make the renewable gas available to customers, we are working with certificate traders and gas retailers. They will sell certificates to gas users and retire them in the online registry platform on behalf of business customers. You can read more about becoming a certificate trader here.

How to buy renewable gas certificates

Businesses that want to match their gas use with renewable gas certificates can contact producers and traders to discuss purchasing certificates.

Residential gas customers won’t be able to participate as the certification is only available to commercial and industrial gas users.

A list of certified gas projects and traders will be published on the website shortly.

How long will the pilot operate?

We plan to operate the pilot until a suitable long-term scheme becomes available. We are working closely with other schemes to make the future transfer to an ongoing scheme as easy as possible. If no other national scheme is developed, GreenPower may consider making the pilot a permanent scheme.