Guarantees of origin
A guarantee of origin is an electronic document that proves the origin of energy. Elering AS has been designated as the system administrator for guarantees of origin, which issues an electronic document to the producer upon request, which certifies that energy has been produced from a renewable energy source and certifies to the consumer the origin of the energy they consume.
The guarantee of origin is the only proof of the origin of the energy consumed.
A guarantee of origin issued in Estonia or a contracting State of the European Economic Area and deleted from the Estonian register of guarantees of origin is used to prove the origin of the energy consumed. A guarantee of origin is valid for 18 months following the production of fuel or energy. This means that the guarantee of origin can be deleted to prove the origin of the energy consumed within 18 months after the end of the production period. A guarantee of origin can be transferred to another account within 12 months after the end of the production period of an energy unit. Guarantees of origin can be obtained together with energy, or separately.
The standard energy unit of a guarantee of origin is 1 MWh and one guarantee of origin is issued for each standard energy unit produced.
Elering issues guarantees of origin for:
- electricity (electronic database is located at green.elering.ee)
- biomethane (the respective electronic database is located at biometaan.elering.ee)
- thermal energy (electronic database is located at green.elering.ee)
The field of guarantees of origin is governed by the Energy Sector Organisation Act. On 28 May 2022, amendments to the Energy Sector Organisation Act entered into force, which transposed the amendments to the Renewable Energy Directive (so-called RED II). Minister of Economic Affairs and Infrastructure Regulation No. 69 “Rules for issuing, transferring and cancelling a guarantee of origin and the list of particulars to be filed when applying for such a guarantee” entered into force on 17 September 2022. More details are available HERE.
Elering as a member of the Association of Issuing Bodies, an association issuing guarantees of origin
Since September 2014, Elering and therefore the Estonian domain have been a member of the Association of Issuing Bodies (AIB), an association issuing guarantees of origin. The AIB manages the central electronic register of guarantees of origin (AIB Hub), which facilitates cross-border trade in guarantees of origin and promotes a standardised pan-European set of rules for guarantees of origin (he European Energy Certificate System or EECS). A short brochure in English introducing the AIB is available HERE.
The list of full members of the AIB (the list of countries with which members of the Estonian register of guarantees of origin can exchange guarantees of origin electronically without any issues) is available on the AIB website.
The Estonian domain explains the main activities and procedures that a producer or trader encounters when using the database of guarantees of origin.
If you have any questions or suggestions regarding guarantees of origin for electricity, please contact us at [email protected] or by phone at 715 1243. If you have any questions or suggestions regarding guarantees of origin for biomethane, please contact [email protected].