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Progress reports
Once the law is in place, evaluating and reporting on its progress periodically is desirable. This would be a task of the relevant governmental body, and would help ensure that the law is functioning well.
This progress report would include, for example:
- analysis of growth rates and average production costs of the eligible technologies
- progress towards the achievement of targets
- economic, social and environmental benefits of the law (such as the amount of investment and export trade, the number of jobs created and the amount of carbon dioxide emissions avoided)
- additional costs for the consumer, and
- ecological effects of the use of renewable energy sources on nature and landscapes.
The progress report can also serve as a basis for periodic revision of the tariff (or price). In this case, the progress report should be issued shortly in advance of the revision.
For example, under the German FIT law, the government must make a progress report to the parliament on 31st December 2007, and every four years afterwards, with tariff (or price) revisions scheduled for the following year. In addition, producers and grid operators must provide certain information to the government, if requested, for the purposes of compiling the report.
Germany
English
Renewable Energy Sources Act 2004, Article 20 provides that:
(1) The Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety shall, in agreement with the Federal Ministry of Consumer Protection, Food and Agriculture and the Federal Ministry of Economics and Labour, report to the Bundestag by 31 December 2007 and subsequently every four years thereafter about the state of affairs with regard to the introduction to the market of plants generating electricity from renewable energy sources and from mine gas and about the development of electricity production costs in such plants and shall if necessary propose an adjustment of the amount of the fees to be paid in accordance with Articles 6 to 12 and of the degressive rates, in line with the development of technology and markets for plants commissioned after that date. The progress report shall also assess the storage technologies and the ecological effects of the use of renewable energy sources on nature and landscapes...
(2) For the purpose of spot checks of electricity production costs within the meaning of paragraph (1) above and in order to ensure the functioning of the equalisation scheme pursuant to Article 14, plant operators whose plants were commissioned on or after 1 August 2004 and who have received payment of fees in accordance with Articles 5 to 12, and grid system operators shall, upon request, provide the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety and its authorised representatives with truthful and accurate information about all facts that may be relevant for the assessment of electricity production costs and of equalised energy quantities and payments of fees in accordance with Article 14. If the plant operators and grid system operators are traders within the meaning of the Commercial Code, the account books shall in addition be disclosed upon request where they may give information about facts that may be relevant for assessing the electricity production costs and the equalised energy quantities and payments of fees. The principles of data protection shall be observed.
Deutsch
Gesetz für den Vorrang Erneuerbarer Energien 2004, § 20 lautet:
(1) Das Bundesministerium für Umwelt, Naturschutz und Reaktorsicherheit hat dem Deutschen Bundestag bis zum 31. Dezember 2007 und dann alle vier Jahre im Einvernehmen mit dem Bundesministerium für Ernährung, Landwirtschaft und Verbraucherschutz und dem Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Technologie über den Stand der Markteinführung von Anlagen zur Erzeugung von Strom aus Erneuerbaren Energien und aus Grubengas sowie die Entwicklung der Stromgestehungskosten in diesen Anlagen zu berichten sowie gegebenenfalls eine Anpassung der Höhe der Vergütungen nach den §§ 6 bis 12 und der Degressionssätze entsprechend der technologischen und Marktentwicklung für nach diesem Zeitpunkt in Betrieb genommene Anlagen vorzuschlagen. Gegenstand des Erfahrungsberichts sind auch Speichertechnologien sowie die ökologische Bewertung der von der Nutzung Erneuerbarer Energien ausgehenden Auswirkungen auf Natur und Landschaft...
(2) Anlagenbetreiber, deren Anlagen ab dem 1. August 2004 in Betrieb genommen worden sind und die eine Vergütung nach den §§ 5 bis 12 in Anspruch genommen haben, sowie Netzbetreiber sind zum Zweck der stichprobenartigen Ermittlung der Stromgestehungskosten im Sinne von Absatz 1 sowie der Sicherstellung der Funktionsfähigkeit des Ausgleichsmechanismus nach § 14 verpflichtet, dem Bundesministerium für Umwelt, Naturschutz und Reaktorsicherheit und seinen Beauftragten auf Verlangen wahrheitsgemäß Auskunft über sämtliche Tatsachen zu geben, die für die Ermittlung der Stromgestehungskosten sowie der ausgeglichenen Energiemengen und Vergütungszahlungen nach § 14 erheblich sein können. Soweit es sich bei den Anlagen und Netzbetreibern um Kaufleute im Sinne des Handelsgesetzbuches handelt, sind darüber hinaus auf Verlangen die Handelsbücher offen zu legen, soweit sie Aufschluss über Tatsachen geben können, die für die Ermittlung der Stromgestehungskosten sowie der ausgeglichenen Energiemengen und Vergütungszahlungen erheblich sein können. Die Grundsätze des Datenschutzes sind zu beachten.
Include progress reports in your proposed law
How do I compile my proposed law?
Here you can choose the draft sample text provided for progress reports (Option A) or choose to draft your own text offline (Option B).
If you choose Option A, the text provided will appear as section 9 in your proposed law document with the section number and title. You will need to consider how often these reports should be made, making sure that this is consistent with regular adjustments of the tariff (or price) [see adjusting the tariff]. You will also need to insert offline the reporting periods and Minister or Ministry. Terms in the text which have been defined appear in bold, and will automatically appear in the Definitions section at the end of your document.
If you choose Option B, the text in square brackets will appear in section 9 of your document with the section number and title.