Verification service

Nomine Consult OÜ is the greenhouse gases emission reports verification body, accredited by Estonian Accreditation Centre. Accreditation scope is verification of greenhouse gas emissions reports according to Atmospheric Air Protection Act, EU ETS Directive 2003/87/EC and Commission Regulation (EU) 2018/2067 in the categories of activities as follows:

• 1a (combustion of fuels in installations, where only commercial standard fuels as defined in Regulation (EU) 2018/2066 are used or where natural gas is used in category A or B installations);
• 1b (combustion of fuels in installations, without restrictions);
• 2 (refining of mineral oil);
• 6 (production of lime);
• 98 (other activities pursuant to article 10a of Directive 2003/87/EC).

According to the Regulation No. 64 of the Minister of the Environment “Trade arrangements applicable to greenhouse gas emission credits”, the operators included to the emission trading system of the European Union have to present by March 25 each year to the competent authority (Environmental Board) a previous calendar year greenhouse gas emissions report, verified by an accredited verifier.

The verification of greenhouse gas emissions includes handling of the reliability and accuracy of installation’s monitoring systems and data and information related to the emissions. Greenhouse gas emissions verification process is separated from the other activities of Nomine Consult OÜ and is conducted according to the standards EVS-EN ISO/IEC 17029, EVS-EN ISO 14065, EVS-EN ISO 14061-1, EVS-EN ISO 14064-3,  EVS-ISO 14066, instructions EA-6/03, IAF MD6, IAF MD14,  Regulations of the European Commission (EU) 2018/2066, (EU) 2018:2067, (EU) 2019/331, (EU) 2019/1842 and Regulation No. 64 of the Minister of the Environment.

Declaration of impartiality

Verification of greenhouse gas emissions reports is an independent and impartial procedure and Nomine Consult OÜ as an accredited verification body, follows these principles and the requirements for impartiality and independence set out in the standards EVS-EN ISO/IEC 17029, EVS-EN ISO 14065 and European Commission Regulation (EU) 2018/2067.

The management and staff of the verification body recognizes the importance of impartiality in carrying out the verification activities and confirms that the verification activities and the assessment of the compliance of installations’ GHG emission reports are carried out in an objective, independent and impartial manner. To demonstrate the impartiality, policies and objectives have been established, processes, responsibilities and resources have been identified, and a transparent structure has been set up to separate verification activities from other activities. In order to manage potential conflicts of interest and to ensure the objectivity of the verification activities, the verification body shall, before each verification activity, carry out an assessment of impartiality and independence at the level of both the verification body’s client relations and the verification staff. Procedures are in place to operate and continuously improve all of the above processes in accordance with the quality management system.

The verification body shall not provide a consultancy service related to the verification of GHG emission reports or production level reports for installations with which verification agreements have been concluded.

Upon the verification of GHG emissions, the following aspects are checked:

• Data and information related to emissions;
• Operation data of an installation presented in the report, measurements and calculations related to them;
• Selection and usage of special emissions coefficient;
• Calculations made for the determination of total emissions;
• Selection and relevance of measurement methodology;
• Reliability, credibility and accuracy of supervision systems.

Verification process stages

Verification process of GHG emissions reports includes the following stages:

• Obtaining the necessary documentation from the operator in order to assess whether the verification can be performed by the verification body or not;
• Preparation and submission of an offer;
• Signing of verification contract and agreement of due dates;
• Compilation of strategic and risk analyses;
• Compilation of verification and sampling plans;
• Visiting of the installation, compilation of visiting report and submitting it to the operator;
• Submitting verification report to the operator;
• Confirming GHG emissions in the registry;
• Dealing with appeals* / complaints** (if any).

Appeals and complaints

Appeals and complaints shall be dealt with by a designated person of verification body who is competent enough and independent from the verification of specific installation. Appeals / complaints are dealt with according to the quality management system of the verification body and following the standards EVS-EN ISO 9001, EVS-EN ISO/IEC 17029 and EVS-EN ISO 14065. No special conditions are applied to the operator which submitted an appeal or a complaint.

* Appeal – written contestation of the verification decision prepared by the verifier (ISO/IEC 17000);

** Complaint – written expression of dissatisfaction made regarding to the verification body which is related to the product, service or dealing with complaint process itself (ISO/IEC 17000).

Contact

Katrin Keis, leading verifier of greenhouse gas emissions reports

katrin.keis@nomineconsult.com

Gintvilė Žvirblytė

gintvile.zvirblyte@nomineconsult.com