The Minister for Climate Change, Senator Penny Wong, and the Minister Assisting the Minister for Climate Change, Greg Combet, today released an amendment to the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting Act 2007 that increases flexibility and lowers costs for businesses that are required to report their greenhouse gas emissions and energy information.

Industry stakeholders have highlighted that some businesses obliged to report under the NGER Act from this financial year will have to amend their reporting arrangements, at some cost, prior to the commencement of the CPRS in July 2011.

"This amendment to the NGER Act recognises this important feedback and is consistent with the Government's commitment to reduce, where possible, the reporting burden on industry through the streamlining of greenhouse and energy reporting through a single national reporting framework - the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting System," Senator Wong said.

"To achieve this and provide greater flexibility for industry in setting up their reporting arrangements, this amendment introduces the 'Reporting Transfer Certificate' concept.

"This concept enables the voluntary transfer of reporting obligations of a facility specified under the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting Act from a controlling corporation, where one member of its group has operational control of a facility, to a member of a different corporate group that has financial control of that facility."

Mr Combet said the amendment would ensure a high degree of continuity between current and future reporting arrangements, provide greater certainty for business and would lead to a reduction in compliance costs for business to meet their reporting obligations.

"This is another example of the Government working to assist industry in preparing for a low-carbon future,'' Mr Combet said.