Climate Change Levies are rising fast; gas alone is to go up by 74% by 2019. With a Climate Change Agreement (CCA) in place you could be getting huge discounts on your energy in some industries this is a relief of 100%
But youll need to hurry, while the official application deadline is October 31st a large number of trade associations are imposing a June deadline, due to the length of time it takes to process a submission.
WHAT IS A CCA?
A Climate Change Agreement or CCA is a voluntary agreement that industries in the UK involved in intensive energy producing processes can enter into with the Environment Agency in an effort to reduce their energy use and CO2 emissions.
The incentive for organisations to enter into a CCA is a discount on their Climate Change Levy a tax that is added to electricity and fuel bills, and in certain industries the relief is 100%.
There are two types of CCA agreements. The first is an umbrella agreement, which is negotiated by the Department of Energy and Climate Change and industry sectors with an agreed target aka the sector commitment. The agreement itself is between the sector association and the Environment Agency (EA) who act as the administrator. The second type of CCA is an underlying agreement, one that is held by a site or group of sites and owned by an operator in a specific sector. These types of CCA contain carbon or energy efficiency targets relevant to their type of operation.
WHO IS ELIGIBLE FOR A CCA?
There are currently 53 business sectors participating in the CCA scheme and they range from aerospace to steel, and have been deemed to carry out an eligible process. You can check here to see if your sector is one of them.
The government guidelines for meeting the eligibility of a CCA and continuing to meet its obligations run some 170 pages long. Many of these also link to supporting appendices. This leads to a fair amount of reading that you need to pore over just to determine whether or not you are eligible.
If you do think youre eligible for a CCA there are also a number of processes you HAVE to go through to make it happen.
We are able to simplify and streamline this process by providing a summary checklist of what you will need to comply.
HOW TO MAKE AN APPLICATION FOR A CCA
Once youve determined that you meet the criteria and have clarified your position and your sector association whats next? The application process.
When you apply you need to provide information about:
- both the specific facility carrying out your eligible process and the site on which it is located
- existing or previous CCAs or EU emissions trading system permits
- any environmental permits you may have
- the manufacturing process you use, including process flow maps and annotated site plans
- other activities directly associated with your eligible process that are technically connected and will have an effect on CO2 emissions
- the amount and type of energy used by the facility running the eligible process and by your entire site
The Environment Agency sends all applications to a technical consultant facilitator with a specialism in your industry sector. The facilitator will review the application and supporting evidence to determine eligibility. The next step is for the facilitator to recommend that the application either be approved or refused. The EA will review the recommendation and are responsible for making the final decision on the application.
Organisations must measure and report on their energy use and carbon emissions against agreed upon targets over four and two-year target periods. If they meet their targets at the end of each period, they can remain in the scheme and access their discount.
ALL OF THIS TO SAY
Each step must be carefully and accurately completed to avoid inaccuracies in your application, which can lead to delays or rejection. You could attempt the application in-house, but its a cumbersome process, and we have the expertise and know-how to ensure that every requirement is met, which in turn will avoid a headache for yourselves!
Get in touch to discuss how we can work with you to complete the eligibility check and application process for a CCA.