Energy Efficiency Certificates (Italian acronym TEE, also called ‘white certificates’) have been established by the Decrees issued by the Ministry of Productive Activities jointly with the Ministry of the Environment and Land Protection on 20 July 2004 (Ministerial Decree of 20 July 2004 on electricity, Ministerial Decree of 20 July 2004 on gas), as amended and supplemented by the Ministerial Decree of 21 Dec. 2007 specifying national quantitative targets of energy efficiency improvement.
The Electricity Market Authority (in Italy GME) issues TEEs to distributors, companies controlled by the same distributors and companies operating in the sector of energy services (Energy Service Companies … ESCOs). The TEEs certify the reduction of consumption achieved through measures and projects of energy efficiency improvement.
TEEs, which have a value of one toe, may be of three types:
1) Type I, certifying the achievement of primary energy savings through projects reducing final electricity consumption;
2) Type II, certifying the achievement of primary energy savings through projects reducing natural gas consumption;
3) Type III, certifying the achievement of primary energy savings through projects other than those mentioned in point 1) and 2).
Electricity and natural gas distributors may achieve their energy efficiency improvement targets both by implementing energy efficiency projects (and gaining TEEs) and by purchasing TEEs from other parties.
GME organises and manages the venue for the trading of TEEs and, jointly with AEEG (AEEG’s decision no. 67 of 14 Apr. 2005), it formulated the rules of operation of the Energy Efficiency Certificates Market.
In the Energy Efficiency Certificates Market:
- distributors may purchase certificates, if the savings achieved through their projects lie below their yearly target and thus they purchase the missing certificates on the market in order to fulfil their obligation;
- distributors may sell certificates, if the savings achieved through their projects exceed their yearly target and they may thus make a profit by selling their surplus certificates on the market;
- ESCOs may sell the certificates that they have obtained through independent projects, as they are not required to fulfil any obligation and may thus make a profit by selling their certificates on the market.
© 2009 ASSONEBB