Part 8 of the Clean Energy Act
2011 (the Act) and Part 8 of the Clean
Energy Regulations 2011 (the Regulations) allow eligible persons to apply
to the Clean Energy Regulator to be issued with free carbon units relating to
coal-fired electricity generation complexes.
The Clean Energy Regulator will
issue the free carbon units if the coal-fired electricity generation complex meets
certain eligibility requirements set out in the Act and the Regulations. The recipient
of the free carbon units can then determine how they use those carbon units,
subject to the provisions of Part 4, Division 5 of the Act relating to free
carbon units.
Information about issue of
free carbon units
Subsection 198(2) of the Act requires the Clean Energy Regulator to
publish the following information on its website as soon as practicable after
the free carbon units are issued to a person in accordance with Part 8 of the
Act:
- the name of the person
to whom the carbon units were issued
- the total number of
free carbon units issued to the person, and
- the vintage year of
the free carbon units issued to the person
To date the Clean Energy Regulator has not issued
any carbon units in accordance with Part 8 of the Act. It is anticipated free carbon units will be
issued to eligible persons in accordance with Part 8 of the Act during the
2013-14 to 2016-17 financial years.
Please note free carbon units are also issued under the Jobs and Competitiveness Program.