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SBP Bulletin
March 2017 Issue 6
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Welcome to issue 6 of the SBP Bulletin and the first of 2017. We have had a good start to the year and I should like to update you on some of the highlights, but first perhaps I should mention our name change.
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In order to better reflect the nature of our business we have changed our name to the Sustainable Biomass Program, so still SBP for short. Please see below for further details, I think you will prefer the truncated email address and website domain!
Many of you will be aware that at the end of last year we advertised three new, full-time job positions. I am delighted to report that we have successfully recruited for all three and our new colleagues joined us earlier this month. A fuller introduction is given below.
Earlier this week, we published our first annual report. The report covers the calendar year 2016, and I trust it will make a good base against which we will be able to monitor and report on our performance and achievements in the coming years. I hope you will take the time to read it.
At the end of 2016, we had 74 Certificate Holders across 14 countries. Today, we have improved on that number and have 92 Certificate Holders across 15 countries. Interest in attaining SBP certification remains high and we are focusing our efforts on reducing
the time taken from initial audit to certification.
Since its implementation on 1 October 2016, the SBP Data Transfer System (DTS) v0.5 has functioned well. Month-on-month we have seen more users start to record transactions of SBP-certified material. Importantly, users are providing useful feedback that is helping inform the development of DTS v1.0, which is planned to go live on 1 July 2017.
I should like to draw your attention to two side events that we are hosting on 25 April, the pre-conference day of Argus Biomass 2017. The first event is general in scope at which participants can expect to receive an update on the SBP certification system and understand more about our key priorities for this year. The second is more specialist and targets DTS users. See below for more on both events and how to register as a participant.
Finally, I am pleased to report that the SBP certification system has been formally recognised as meeting Biomass Category A evidence requirements in the UK’s Woodfuel Guidance. The Guidance sets out how to comply with the woody biomass land criteria as defined in UK legislation, more detail is given below.
I will be attending the Argus Biomass 2017 conference and look forward to seeing many of you there. Please read on for more on the above topics and other items of interest.
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Carsten Huljus, Chief Executive Officer
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Three new faces and a name change
New recruits
We have recruited for three new roles within SBP. The level of interest shown in all three jobs was high and the calibre of those who applied equally so. At the end of a reasonably swift process our new recruits joined us earlier this month. In alphabetical order they are:
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Penny Bienz, Technical Manager
penny.bienz@sbp-cert.org
Penny joins us from the Soil Association, a UK food, farming and land use charity and Certification Body. She is a forester by training and a qualified FSC and PEFC Chain of Custody auditor with extensive experience of certification and accreditation. Penny is based in the UK.
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Lauri Kärmas, Data Manager & Analyst
lauri.karmas@sbp-cert.org
Lauri comes to SBP from the SBP-approved Certification Body, NEPCon, where he gained hands-on experience of the SBP certification system as an SBP-approved auditor. In addition, Lauri is a trained FSC and PEFC Chain of Custody auditor and has experience in certification data management. Lauri is based in Estonia.
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Agita Nagle, Office Manager
agita.nagle@sbp-cert.org
Agita was previously the Office Manager at NewFuels, the largest single pellet producer facility in the Baltic States. She was involved in the company’s successful application for SBP certification. Agita is based in Latvia.
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I am sure our new recruits will soon establish contact with our many stakeholders, but feel free to contact them should the need arise.
New Name
With the name change to Sustainable Biomass Program comes a much shorter email address and website domain. Although the old website domain will get you to the desired place, please get used to using www.sbp-cert.org. I am sure you will agree that it is much easier to type and remember!
Over time you will start to see the revised logo being rolled out across our various pieces of literature and documentation. If, as a Certificate Holder or Certification Body, you wish to use the SBP logo please request it from Melanie Wedgbury. Please remember, however, that if you are producing any new SBP-related promotional materials, including press releases, you must seek approval from SBP prior to publication.
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SBP annual report 2016
On 30 March, we published our first annual report, the link to which can be found on our home page at: www.sbp-cert.org. As it is our first annual report we hope it will provide a solid base from which we can report on and measure our progress.
We have tried to provide an easy-to-follow guide to SBP and we hope that the illustrations help to communicate what is a fairly complex certification system. The performance review takes a good look at the key outputs of 2016. A lot has been achieved in a short period and we are grateful to all our stakeholders for the invaluable support they have given to the process.
The current governance arrangements are described and readers will be able to see where SBP relies on independent oversight. In linking good governance and independent oversight we aim to deliver a credible and robust certification system.
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Certifications Update
There are now 92 Certificate Holders, of which 13 are traders and the remainder biomass producers. Our geographic reach has now extended to Sweden bringing the total number of countries covered to 15.
The pipeline of applications for SBP certification remains very healthy, with around a further 60 organisations having made applications through SBP-approved Certification Bodies.
Stakeholders are notified of all applications for SBP certification via an email circular. If you wish to be added to the circulation list please email Melanie Wedgbury.
Stakeholders are reminded that they may comment at any time if they hold particular concerns about any of the Certification Bodies or SBP-certified biomass supply chain actors, or indeed about the SBP certification system itself.
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Certification Body accreditation update
In the last Bulletin we reported that all six of our approved Certification Bodies had applied to Accreditation Services International (ASI) for accreditation. Certification Bodies must become accredited by ASI if they wish to continue to provide SBP certification services to their clients and prospective clients after 31 December 2017.
The accreditation process starts with a desk review of supporting documentation from the Certification Body, and is followed by an on-site head office assessment. The last stage is a witness assessment of a Certification Body audit.
ASI has informed us that all but one of the six applicant Certification Bodies have sent their documentation for the initial desk review; two desk reviews have been completed, and three are either ongoing or about to start. Two Certification Bodies have also gone through the head office assessment, and are responding to the findings raised.
If all goes well and any major non-conformities issued as a result of any of the three assessments are closed, and minor non-conformities are addressed by adequate corrections and/or corrective actions, a report is submitted to the ASI Accreditation Committee, which, if positively received, will result in a positive accreditation recommendation to the ASI Managing Director, who has the final say.
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Data Transfer System
The SBP Data Transfer System (DTS) v0.5 is an important tool and its use by Certificate Holders wishing to sell biomass with an SBP claim is mandatory.
Through facilitating the collection, collation and transmission of the data required by those generators using biomass to produce heat and power, the DTS supports the integrity of the SBP certification system. Importantly, the DTS allows SBP claims (SBP-compliant and SBP-controlled) to be transmitted along the supply chain.
The DTS will also support the introduction of the fee schedule, planned to be introduced on 1 October 2017, based on actual SBP-certified sales volumes.
To date, close to 1,300 transactions have been recorded in the DTS and comfortably over half of the SBP Certificate Holders are making use of the system. A total mass of over 4,000,000 tonnes of SBP-certified material has been traded, the vast majority of which has been pellets, but still, the total includes over 100,000 tonnes of SBP-certified woodchips.
A series of information bulletins has been published to provide a step-by-step guide to the DTS. The information bulletins can be viewed at: www.sustainablebiomasspartnership.org/data-transfer-system.
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SBP side events at Argus Biomass 2017
On 25 April, the pre-conference day of Argus Biomass 2017, SBP will be hosting two side events.
SBP update and look ahead
When: 25 April 2017, 10am – 12 noon;
Where: Tower Suite, The Landmark London, 222 Marylebone Road, NW1 6JQ;
Who: All SBP interested parties.
SBP’s CEO, Carsten Huljus, and Technical Director, Simon Armstrong, will host the event and provide an update on the work of SBP and its future direction, focusing on the key priorities for 2017.
DTS users workshop
When: 25 April 2017, 2pm – 5pm;
Where: Tower Suite, The Landmark London, 222 Marylebone Road, NW1 6JQ;
Who: All DTS users (biomass producers, traders, energy producers, and Certification Bodies).
The SBP DTS Working Group will host the event, which will be split into two sessions of approximately one and a half hours each. The first will be a more general introduction to the DTS, why it is necessary, what is planned for v1.0 and so on. The second will be more interactive, with more detail on v1.0, and a live demonstration of the new version under development, with plenty of opportunities for participants to put forward ideas and suggestions.
If you wish to register for one of the above events please email Agita Nagle clearly stating which event you are interested in. Places are limited so please register early to avoid disappointment.
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Woodfuel Guidance: SBP recognised
In February, the UK Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) published its Woodfuel Guidance (version 2), a suite of three documents that together set out how to comply with the woody biomass land criteria as defined in UK legislation, namely, the Renewables Obligation (RO) and the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) regulations, and as written into Contract for Difference (CfD) investment contracts. Specifically, the documents address how a mass balance approach or a risk based regional approach can be used to help comply with the woody biomass land criteria.
Two types of evidence are accepted in demonstrating that woody biomass is ‘legal and sustainable’ under the RO, RHI and CfD investment contracts:
- Evidence permitted from approved sustainability schemes which have been benchmarked against the woody biomass land criteria in the legislation, known as Biomass Category A evidence; and
- Bespoke evidence, known as Biomass Category B evidence.
Biomass Category A evidence comes from voluntary third-party certification schemes that have been benchmarked by the UK Government as meeting the woody biomass land criteria set out in the RO, RHI and CfD contracts (not against the Timber Standard as was the case previously).
Having benchmarked SBP against the RO and found it to be compliant with the legislation, the UK energy regulator, Ofgem, has extended the benchmarking results to the RHI. Therefore, we are pleased to report that the SBP certification system has been benchmarked as meeting Biomass Category A evidence requirements.
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