Suppliers NIRO Obligation level for 2012/13 is 0.081 ROCs per MWh of electricity supplied
Article 12(4) of the Renewables Obligation Order (Northern Ireland) 2009 ("the NIRO Order") requires the Department to publish the level of a forthcoming Obligation Period by 1st October preceding that Obligation Period.
The calculation process set out in Articles 5 to 12 of the NIRO Order has now been completed and in accordance with Article 12(4), the Department can today confirm that the Obligation level for supplies to customers in Northern Ireland for the period running from 1st April 2012 to 31st March 2013 will be 0.081 ROCs per MWh (megawatt hour) supplied.
The Obligation level for England, Scotland and Wales has been set at 0.158 ROCs per MWh for the same period.
Full details of how the Obligation level is calculated are available on the DECC website.
Notes
The Northern Ireland Renewables Obligation (NIRO) is the main support mechanism for encouraging increased renewable electricity generation in Northern Ireland. It operates in tandem with the Renewables Obligations in Great Britain - the 'ROS' in Scotland and the 'RO' in England & Wales - in a UK-wide market for Renewables Obligation Certificates (ROCs) issued to generators under the Obligations. The NIRO, like the GB Obligations, obliges electricity suppliers to produce a certain number of these ROCs for each Megawatt-hour (MWh) of electricity which they supply to their customers in Northern Ireland or to pay a Buy-Out fee that is proportionate to any shortfall in the number of ROCs being so presented.
With the introduction of 'banding' to all three UK Obligations from April 2009 the number of ROCs due to be presented can vary from the specific proportion of electricity sales that had hitherto been fixed for each year as the supplier's obligation. This is because the number of ROCs issued to generators for each MWh of electricity now varies according to the banding of their particular technology or renewable energy source and because the Obligation level must be set at a level that is at least 10% above the projected number of ROCs that will be available in that particular year.
The Northern Ireland Renewables Obligation (NIRO) is DETI’s main policy measure for supporting the development of renewable electricity in Northern Ireland. The NIRO was introduced on 1 April 2005 and has been the subject of several amendments The current legislation governing the NIRO is the Renewables Obligation Order (Northern Ireland) 2011
The Renewables Obligation (Amendment) Order (Northern Ireland) 2011
Details of the changes can be found at this Link
NIRO – An outline of its operation
The Renewables Obligation places a legal requirement on all Northern Ireland licensed electricity suppliers, from 1April2005, to provide Ofgem (on behalf of the Northern Ireland Authority for Utility Regulation (NIAUR)) with evidence that a specified quantity of the electricity supplied to final consumers can be accounted for by generation from renewable sources.
ROC banding levels
Prior to 1 April 2009 all renewable electricity generation technologies received 1 Renewables Obligation Certificate (ROC) for every megawatt hour (MWh) generated. On 1 April 2009, banding levels were introduced to the NIRO providing different levels of support for renewable generation depending on the cost of the technologies involved. All microgeneration (up to 50kW) was increased to 2 ROCs regardless of technology. On 1 April 2010 additional ROCs were introduced for wind, hydro and photovoltaic technologies. On 1 April 2011 additional ROCs were introduced for Anaerobic Digestion. The attached banding table sets out current the ROC levels for generators seeking accreditation with Ofgem
Further information
For further information on the Northern Ireland Renewables Obligation contact: Michael Harris,
DETI Sustainable Energy; Tel: (028) 9052 9269; E-Mail: michael.harris@detini.gov.uk
Information on the accreditation process for receiving ROCs can be found on the Ofgem website by clicking HERE -
Information on NIE’s export tariff can be found at -
