Producers of energy from renewable sources warn: Potential malfunctions in the Regulation for centralized anonymous green certificates markets

Producers of energy from renewable sources warn on potential malfunctions in the regulation treating the spot market and the futures market for green certificates. The anonymous green certificates markets, created as of 1 September, have to liquidize the market in a way in which all producers have equal access to the support scheme and all suppliers can have access to the best price for certificates necessary according to the annual quota, according to the Renewable Energy Producers Organization in Romania – PATRES, which analyzed the Regulation of organization and functioning of the green certificates market according to GEO 24/2017, proposed by ANRE, as well as the documentation on the functioning and management of the Green Certificates Market – GCM prepared by OPCOM. PATRES officials mention: “In the new market conditions – the large increases in energy prices on the exchange, from which producers from renewable sources don’t benefit because of the absurd provisions of Order 78/2014 – the creation of these markets on OPCOM represents possibilities to trade green certificates for suppliers and producers in the renewable sector, especially the small and middle-sized ones, many of them threatened with bankruptcy. According to PATRES estimates, one third of the small and middle-sized producers of the 100 members with a total installed power of approximately 1,000MW in all technologies (solar, wind, micro hydro and biomass) are actually in default and will enter into insolvency or even close their production capacities”. PATRES expresses its concern regarding investors’ expectations in the renewable energy sector that GEO 24/2017 could produce beneficial effects in the market, which in reality are delaying to appear: “Our call to authorities is to create the regulatory framework to support all producers of RES-E. Romania needs renewable energy, which is proven in the periods of crisis this year when the contribution of renewable energy was significant, with beneficial effects in energy prices”. Viorel Lefter, President of PATRES, says: “In the form proposed by ANRE, the two markets will not provide in reality the anonymous and non-discriminatory framework provided by the primary legislation in force. We notice the failure to change the principle of correlation of offers by pro-rata allocation in the case of the centralized spot market for green certificates and the failure to standardize the amount in the case of the centralized futures market for green certificates bilateral contracts.” According to PATRES, specifically, for the centralized spot market – PCSCV, article 28 defines the modality of automatic correlation of offers for sale with purchase offers depending on two successive criteria: price and time mark. “In conditions of a huge surplus of green certificates in the market of 9,482,469 GC, according to OPCOM data on 21.08.2017, the price cannot be a breakthrough element. Therefore, the only objective criterion to separate offers for sale and purchase offers in the future market will remain the time mark, a criterion considered by PATRES to be discriminatory and to the detriment of small and middle-sized producers, which will not manage to sell their certificates in this market”.

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