Purpose of the offsets report
An offsets report is the primary means by which the Clean Energy Regulator determines whether an eligible offsets project is on track and whether any management action needs to be taken.
The Clean Energy Regulator can use the report to:
- determine in conjunction with an audit report whether or not to issue Australian carbon credit units
- confirm emissions and removals over the reporting period, and
- determine whether the project should continue or be revoked.
When to submit the offsets and audit reports
The project proponent, the nominee of multiple project proponents, or their agent, must submit a certificate of entitlement application including offsets report form (PDF) for their project to the Clean Energy Regulator for the project’s nominated reporting period. The reporting period should align to the project’s crediting periods. For example, if your eligible offsets project is a native forest protection project, the first crediting period is the period of 20 years from the date the project is declared eligible.
Within this crediting period the project proponent can choose when it is most advantageous to report, provided that the first report is between 12 months and 5 years from the date the project is declared eligible and then every 1 to 5 years after that. Each subsequent reporting period begins immediately after the previous reporting period. The offsets report needs to be provided to the Clean Energy Regulator within 3 months after the end of each reporting period.
Where a project has received Australian carbon credit units under the Carbon Farming Initiative during a crediting period and the crediting period has closed and the project proponent has elected not to apply for a subsequent crediting period, no further offsets (or audit) reports are required.
Where a project proponent is within a crediting period and decides not to apply for further credits (for example the project has achieved maximum sequestration), they may apply to the Clean Energy Regulator to stop providing offsets reports.
Requirements of the offsets report
The offsets report for the project will include the following information:
- the project name and contact details of the project proponent
- the name of the applicable methodology determination
- the date of previously submitted reports for the project, if any
- as required by the applicable methodology determination, all of the calculations used to determine:
- for emissions avoidance projects and sequestration projects other than native forest protection projects—the carbon dioxide equivalent net abatement amount for the project, or
- for native forest protection projects—the carbon dioxide equivalent net sequestration amount for the project
- whether the project has been implemented in accordance with the applicable methodology determination
- whether an application for a certificate of entitlement for the project has been, or is being, submitted for the same reporting period
- if a project area for the project is covered by a regional natural resource management plan—whether the project is consistent with the plan
- any information required to be submitted in the report for the project under the applicable methodology determination, and
- whether the project is, or has been, wholly or partly covered by a prescribed non CFI offsets scheme.
Those projects that are affected by a prescribed non-CFI offsets scheme are required to supply the following information in the offsets report:
- the total number of tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent net abatement generated by the project during the reporting period, for which either or both of the following apply:
- carbon offsets credits have been issued or registered for the abatement under the prescribed non CFI offsets scheme, and
- the abatement has been accounted for under the prescribed non CFI offsets scheme
- If the project is a sequestration offsets project, the offsets report must also set out the total number of tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent net abatement generated by the project for the period, for which either or both of the following apply:
- carbon offsets credits have been issued or registered for the abatement under the prescribed non CFI offsets scheme, and
- the abatement has been accounted for under the prescribed non CFI offsets scheme
- If the project is a sequestration offsets project other than a native forest protection project, the offsets report must also include the following information:
- the number of Australian carbon credit units (if any) that have been issued for the project, and
- the number of Australian carbon credit units that would have been issued for the project, from the beginning of the project until the beginning of the reporting period, if the project had been, from its beginning, an eligible offsets project wholly covered by a methodology determination made under the CFI Act.
Audit reports
Unless specifically exempted by the CFI Regulations, all offsets reports must be accompanied by an audit report completed by a registered National Greenhouse and Energy Auditor.
The audit report must provide reasonable assurance that the project:
- is being carried out at the location(s) set out in the project declaration
- has been implemented, and
- abatement has been calculated in accordance with the chosen methodology determination and the CFI Act and Regulations.
For further information, see auditing eligible offsets projects.