How to report
Do I need to report?
Under the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting Act (NGER), a registered corporation that meets a corporate reporting threshold, or whose corporate group has operational control over a facility that meets a facility reporting threshold, must apply to register and report energy consumption, energy production and greenhouse gas emissions and other information as specified under the Act.
The NGER Guidelines are designed to help your corporation understand the legislation and find out whether it is required to apply for registration, and what it must report under the NGER Act.
National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting Guidelines (PDF 2,400 KB)
Reporting thresholds
The thresholds for the following reporting periods are:
Reporting Year | 2008-2009 | 2009-2010 | 2010-2011 |
|---|
Facility Threshold |
25 kilotonnes (kt) of greenhouse gas emissions (CO2 equivalent) |
25kt of greenhouse gas emissions (CO2 equivalent) |
25kt of greenhouse gas emissions (CO2 equivalent) |
100 Terajoules (TJ) of energy consumed or produced |
100TJ of energy consumed or produced |
100TJ of energy consumed or produced |
Corporate Threshold |
125kt of greenhouse gas emissions (CO2 equivalent) |
87.5kt of greenhouse gas emissions (CO2 equivalent) |
50kt of greenhouse gas emissions (CO2 equivalent) |
500TJ of energy consumed or produced |
350TJ of energy consumed or produced |
200TJ of energy consumed or produced |
The NGER Reporting Guidelines and the online NGER calculator are available to help your corporation to assess its reporting obligations.
When must I register and report?
Under the NGER Act corporations that meet the thresholds for 2008-09 must apply to register by 31 August following the reporting period (financial year). Similarly, a registered corporation must submit their report by 31 October 2009 following the reporting period (financial year).
Corporations can use the Registration Application tool to apply to register.
How do I report?
The NGER legislation specifies how corporations must report under the NGER Act.
Chapter 3 of the NGER Reporting Guidelines explains the reporting obligations under the Act. It deals solely with ‘what is reportable’ by the controlling corporation or members of the corporate group. It does not explain the technical detail of how to calculate greenhouse gas emissions and energy or develop inventories.
Corporations must meet the requirements of the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting (Measurement) Determination 2008 in order to comply with the technical aspects of reporting. The NGER Technical Guidelines assist to understand and apply the NGER (Measurement) Determination.
Estimates of greenhouse gas emissions and energy production and consumption are to be prepared in accordance with the principles set out in the Determination of:
- Transparency
- Comparability
- Accuracy
- Completeness
Online System for Comprehensive Activity Reporting
Greenhouse gas emissions and energy use and production reports are prepared and submitted via the Online System for Comprehensive Activity Reporting (OSCAR).
Training workshops and user manuals are available to assist users to enter data into OSCAR and generate their reports. Contact 1800 018 831 for further assistance.
When should a corporation start collecting data?
If you are not sure if your corporation will meet the threshold, you should begin collecting data and keeping records about your greenhouse gas emissions and energy use and production now.
Many corporations which can expect to be affected by the NGER Act in the first reporting period (1 July 2008 - 30 June 2009) are likely to have systems or processes in place for reporting under other mandatory or voluntary government programs such as those under the Energy Efficiency Opportunities Act, or to meet investor or shareholder demands.
What happens to the data I report?
The Greenhouse and Energy Data Officer (GEDO) will publish NGER data for each reporting period (financial year) on a website by February 28 the following year.
The data must include totals of scope 1 and scope 2 greenhouse gas emissions, and energy consumption.
The GEDO may also publish:
- The breakdown of totals for each corporate group
- Methods of measurement used to derive the totals
The data is published to inform the Australian public about greenhouse gas emissions and energy usage in Australia. It provides a snapshot of greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption by corporations in Australia, and will be used to inform the development of government policy, assist government programs and activities, and meet international reporting obligations.
Request for information not to be published
Section 25 of the Act allows registered corporations or individuals providing information under the NGER Act to request their information be withheld from publication, if it would reveal, or could reveal, trade secrets or other confidential information that has a commercial value and such disclosure may destroy or diminish the value of the trade secrets or other information.
Applications must be made to the GEDO in writing. Section 25 application forms are available on request. Contact 1800 018 831 for further assistance.