Green Gas Support Scheme Mid-Scheme Review

Overview

The Green Gas Support Scheme (GGSS) provides tariff-based support for biomethane produced using anaerobic digestion (AD) and injected into the gas grid, as a direct replacement for natural gas. The scheme opened for applications on 30 November 2021 and at present runs to 30 November 2025.

In March 2021, we committed to a mid-scheme review of the GGSS to consider the effectiveness of the scheme and review several areas for potential amendments.

In this consultation, we set out proposals for policy amendments to the GGSS, as part of the mid-scheme review. The consultation document is available on this webpage. 

We are seeking views on our proposals and aim to implement any amendments during the 2023/2024 financial year. Areas under consideration include issues we previously committed to reviewing in our Future Support for Low Carbon Heat and the Green Gas Levy: Government Response as well as aspects of the scheme we are aware may need revisiting.

The areas for consultation include: 

• the scheme’s close date;
• how we will treat tariff guarantee and commissioning deadlines;
• the waste feedstock threshold;
• the scheme mitigation requirements for digestate emissions;
• the eligibility of Combined Heat and Power plant conversions to biomethane injection;
• heat deductions from total eligible biomethane; and
• fugitive methane emissions monitoring and mitigation. 

Additionally, we are gathering views on a future biomethane policy framework which would follow the GGSS. 

Our proposals continue to be focused on providing support for biomethane injection, as per the original intent of the scheme. This consultation invites responses on these proposals from stakeholders to inform our final decisions on the recommendations for this mid-scheme review.

What happens next

This consultation will close on 18 May 2023, after which responses will be analysed. It is expected that the government response will be published later this year.

Following the government response, the introduction of regulations to deliver these policy proposals will be subject to a negative statutory instrument and are expected to come into force during the 2023/2024 financial year. 

The government is currently considering options for a post-GGSS policy framework for biomethane. Following the response to this consultation, we intend to engage further on this in due course.