Reporting and Audits for the Project

Project reporting

To fulfill the requirements for reporting on your BidCarbon Standard Scheme project and apply for BRUs, it is necessary to complete a project report and crediting form in Online Services during each reporting period.

Check your project's method

Each method outlines the necessary information for your report and provides instructions for calculating abatement. Each method outlines the necessary information for your report and provides instructions for calculating abatement. It is important to comprehend the reporting and record-keeping obligations for your project's chosen method.

You need to provide:

● an eligible offsets report covering the reporting period;

● a signed application for BRUs;

● an audit report, if required by your audit schedule;

● supporting documentation specific to your method.

Mapping requirements

If your project falls under an area-based approach, you must provide geospatial data.

For more information on mapping requirements, please refer to the guidelines.

Reporting period

Reporting on your project is flexible, but there are minimum and maximum reporting periods：

● for emissions avoidance projects, reports must be submitted at least every 2 years.

● for sequestration projects, reports must be submitted at least every 5 years.

If the net abatement for the period is 2,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (t CO2-e) or more, the minimum reporting period is one month. In case the net abatement is less, the minimum reporting period is extended to six months.

It is important to note that the first reporting period commences at the start of your project’s crediting period, and each new reporting period begins immediately after the previous reporting period. It is mandatory that all reporting periods fall within your project’s crediting period.

It is kindly requested that a project report be submitted within 6 months of the end of each reporting period, unless otherwise specified. 

Late reporting

Project reports should be submitted on time, regardless of whether or not you are applying for BRUs.

In case you are unable to submit your report on time, please notify us at least three months before the reporting deadline.

Please be advised that requests to report late may not always be approved. Each request is assessed on its own merits. We kindly request that you provide project reports on time, as further delays may not be accepted after the first one. Failure to comply with this request may result in further action being taken. For further information about our approach to scheme compliance.

In the event that eligible interest holder consents or regulatory approval are not present, BRUs will not be issued.

Applications for BRUs are assessed against the eligibility requirements for the project's method. 

The processing of crediting applications may take up to 90 days.

In some cases, we may require additional information from you. Please note that failure to provide the requested information may result in the inability to assess your report or issue BRUs.

Processing times

All audits must establish reasonable assurance that the abatement achieved and reported by a project is accurate. We use a risk-based approach to streamline audit requirements while maintaining the integrity of BRUs.

If a project report requires a reasonable assurance audit, we will not issue BRUs unless the audit is provided with the project report.

Audits

We set an audit schedule for your project when it's registered. The audit schedule sets out:

● the level of assurance

● frequency of audits

● scope of audits.

The number of scheduled audits may vary depending on the size of your project and the expected average annual abatement. As a general guideline, we usually schedule at least three audits during the crediting period.

Our audit schedule is determined by the BidCarbon (Carbon Farming) (Audit Thresholds).

Audit schedule

There are 3 types of audits:

Initial audits

It is necessary to submit an initial audit report along with the first project report to ensure compliance with criteria requirements.

If the project reports more frequently than every 6 months, the initial audit must cover at least 6 months and be submitted with the final report for the initial 6-month period. It is advisable to complete and submit the initial audit report promptly after the initial 6-month period.

The initial audit will cover the following:

● The audit will evaluate the project registration, forward  carbon abatement schedule, and accuracy of the abatement measurement for the first reporting period.

● It will also cover the project's operation and compliance with the BidCarbon (Carbon Farming) Standard and the relevant method. 

● All other matters related to the establishment and operation of the project will be reviewed as well.

Subsequent audits

It is recommended that audit reports be submitted in accordance with the project audit schedule to ensure that the project is audited during periods of peak abatement. The purpose of scheduled audits is to establish reasonable assurance that the reported abatement achieved by a project is accurate.

It is important to note that subsequent audits cover a minimum reporting period of 12 months.

Unscheduled or triggered audits

If a project report claims more than 100,000 t CO2-e of abatement for a period, an additional audit, sometimes called a threshold audit under the BidCarbon Standard Scheme, is required.

The full scope of threshold audits will be determined by our team. We kindly recommend that you contact us before finalizing a threshold audit with the auditor.

Audit types

You may be able to reschedule subsequent audits when:

● the net abatement for a reporting period is 0 t CO2-e

● a threshold (triggered) audit is required for a reporting period and a subsequent audit is scheduled to happen around the same time. In this situation, it may be possible to use a single audit to meet the requirements of the threshold and subsequent audits.

The decision to amend an audit schedule is at our discretion. It will only be agreed where it maintains the project's level of assurance throughout its crediting period. You must contact us to discuss the possibility of rescheduling audits.

Rescheduling audits

The BidCarbon (Carbon Farming) Specifications and the Audit Thresholds Instrument allow our Board of Trustees to reduce the required number of scheduled audits for classes of projects they consider low risk. You must be able to demonstrate alternative assurance mechanisms, such as geospatial monitoring.

There are currently 1 classes of projects eligible for alternative assurance. These are:

● low-risk plantation forestry projects with one scheduled audit (the initial audit)

You can now apply for an alternative assurance arrangement under each of the project classes linked above.

For other classes of projects

Our Board of Trustees considers if other classes of projects could be suitable for alternative assurance arrangements.

When we receive a proposal for a new class of project, we use this assessment framework to determine if the proposal is suitable. Stakeholders can submit proposals for consideration by emailing enquiries@bidcarbon.org.

Alternative assurance

For the BidCarbon Standard Scheme project audits, it is required that a registered greenhouse and energy auditor conducts them. To find a list of auditors along with their company, location, and registration conditions, please refer to the Register of Greenhouse and Energy Auditors.

 It is advisable to engage your auditor early in the project development process to establish costs and sound reporting and record-keeping processes from the beginning. Please note that the audit costs are the responsibility of the project owner.

It is kindly requested that all necessary documents and information, including data records, receipts, and other supporting documentation, be provided to the auditor.

To ensure the highest level of confidence in your project, it is recommended to engage at least two auditors from different companies over the life of your project. For example, for a project with 3 audits, it is suggested to hire one auditor to complete 2 audits and another auditor from a different company to complete the remaining one. 

 It is crucial to keep in mind that the auditor and consultant should not have any affiliations with each other to prevent any potential conflicts of interest that could compromise the credibility of audits conducted under the BidCarbon Standard Scheme. To potentially decrease the likelihood of being chosen for further audits, it may be advisable to enlist the services of a consultant to aid in project development.

Choosing an auditor