On compliance with sustainability requirements from 1 January 2023 (information update)

We inform you that the Ministry of Energy of the Republic of Lithuania has published for public consultation on  27 December 2022 a draft amendment to the Rules of Centralised Trade in Biomass on the application of biomass sustainability requirements from 1 January 2023. Link to the document.

Below we provide a structured overview of how such changes would affect exchange participants. We note that the final proposal is slightly changed from the original proposal that was communicated to participants on 2 December 2022.

The substance of the proposed regulation:

• Until the amendment to the Law on Energy from Renewable Sources comes into force and the national biomass sustainability scheme becomes operational (1 May 2023), all biomass supplied to customers will automatically be considered sustainable without further proof. Sustainable biomass will be deemed to be biomass volumes that are reported in the exchange trading system according to the transactions concluded on the exchange and/or declared to the exchange operator in the OTC contracts section. At the end of the calendar year, Baltpool, as administrator of the national biomass sustainability scheme, will report to buyers on the amount of biomass received under this paragraph.
• From 1 May, when the national biomass sustainability scheme becomes fully operational, only biomass supplied under a voluntary international scheme, or biomass supplied in exchange transactions labelled “Sustainable Biomass”, will be considered sustainable. According to these transactions, the suppliers will undertake to provide the Operator with data on the origin of the supplied biomass and the raw material used for the production of biomass. On the basis of this data, Baltpool, as the administrator of the national biomass sustainability scheme, will report to biomass buyers on the amount of sustainability-compliant biomass received at the end of each calendar year.

What participants need to do to meet the sustainability requirements from 1 January 2023:

• No further actions are required for the supply of biomass up to and including 30 April 2023. As mentioned above, such biomass will be deemed to meet the sustainability requirements without any further action on the part of the participants, all necessary actions will be carried out by the Operator.
• For biomass supply from 1 May 2023, transactions must be carried out under a voluntary international scheme or under the “Sustainable Biomass” label in the exchange. Such transactions will be available on the exchange no later than 28 February 2023.

If you have any questions, please contact Baltpool customer service.

Sincerely,

International Biomass Exchange
BALTPOOL UAB