Biogas production certificates (CPB): everything you need to know

CPB: an extra-budgetary measure to boost the industry without burdening public finances

France has set itself the goal of becoming a natural gas-free country by 2050. This doesn’t mean we want to give up gas, but it will have to be green. So we’ll be consuming biomethane. Biomethane is produced from fermentable waste (agricultural and food industry waste, sewage sludge, etc.) after passing through a digester. Once purified, by removing the_CO2, the biogas thus produced becomes biomethane , which can be injected into gas networks, biomethane having the same properties as natural gas.

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Biomethane production costs are structurally higher than those for natural gas, requiring ongoing financial support for the sector. Depending on the installation, biomethane is two to four times more expensive than natural gas. Historically based on the guaranteed feed-in tariff, this model is generating increasing pressure on public finances.

Biogas Production Certificates: an obligation for gas suppliers

The Biogas Production Certificate (CPB) scheme is based on an obligation mechanism imposed on natural gas suppliers. Since January^1, 2026, these suppliers have been subject to an annual obligation to return to the French government a quantity of CPB proportional to the volumes of gas they market. This obligation is expressed in CPB per MWh, and increases progressively from year to year:

• 0.0041 CPB/MWh sold in 2026 (0.41%).
• 0.0182 CPB/MWh sold in 2027 (1.82%).
• 0.0415 CPB/MWh sold in 2028 (4.15%).

To meet their obligation, suppliers have two options:

• Purchase Biogas Production Certificates from biomethane producers over the counter.
• Produce biomethane themselves and obtain the corresponding Biogas Production Certificates.

If they fail to meet their obligation, gas suppliers will be subject to a penalty of €100 per missing certificate. This amount is an essential benchmark, as it represents the theoretical upper limit of the CPB biomethane market price, providing producers with a degree of visibility and suppliers with a strong incentive to purchase.

Note that gas suppliers will be able to use biomethane CPBs to green their gas supply up to the level of their obligation.

An additional source of income for biomethane producers

Producers of biomethane injected into the grid are issued biomethane CPBs for each MWh produced. These Certificats de Production de Biogaz are tradable and can be sold to gas suppliers subject to the obligation. The CPB scheme is exclusive of other public support mechanisms for the same quantity of biomethane. Moreover, a producer cannot benefit from both biomethane CPBs and guarantees of origin for the same production.

The regulations have introduced modulation coefficients for the production of biomethane CPB according to the type of installation:

• 0.8 CPB/MWh of biomethane for installations producing biomethane on non-hazardous waste storage sites from household and similar waste.
  
• 0.8 CPB/MWh of biomethane for methanization plants for non-hazardous products or waste with a commissioning date of 15 years or more.
  
• 1 CPB/MWh of biomethane for methanization plants for non-hazardous products or waste with a commissioning date of 15 years or less.

In concrete terms, biomethane producers have the option of selling their production via customer sales contracts, also known as Biomethane Purchase Agreements, for example, and, secondly, biomethane production certificates.

This support mechanism is mainly aimed at units with a production capacity in excess of 25 GWh/year, which are not eligible for the feed-in tariff. This scheme should therefore have a positive impact on the development of large-scale facilities. It is also an opportunity for producers of biogas valorized in cogeneration whose feed-in tariff is due to expire. Provided they are close to a gas network, the injection of biomethane via Biogas Production Certificates represents a second economic life for these assets.

The EEX platform has been appointed operator of the biogas production certificate registry. To issue, transfer and surrender a biomethane CPB, you need to be an account holder on the register. There are currently 32 account holders (biomethane producers and gas suppliers) on the EEX register.

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How much will gas prices rise for consumers?

The impact of biomethane CPB prices on gas prices

This additional cost, although gradual, represents a new factor to be factored into the energy budgets and purchasing strategies of the consumers concerned.