Published on August, 18 2025 on our platform
Last Friday, the Cabinet released drafts amending the Biokraft-NachV and BioSt-NachV, regulating the sustainability and GHG reduction requirements for the production of biofuels and solid/gaseous biomass, respectively. They are necessary to fully transpose RED3, improve fraud prevention, and incorporate new practices in certification.
Our first analysis of the draft amending the Biokraft-NachV highlighted some critical changes, explained below.
Implementation of RED3
- Reinforced sustainability requirements for forestry biomass: operators of the supply chain will have to issue a “declaration of assurance” based on a form to be published by the national competent authority. (§5)
- Requirement to use the Union Database for Biofuels (UDB) from the official date of enforcement (yet to be announced by the EU). (§12)
Accreditation of certification bodies
- Obligation for certification bodies to obtain accreditation from the German Accreditation Body (DAkkS) from 2027.
Improving fraud prevention
- Abolition of the exception for the recognition of ineffective sustainability certificates: the section allowing an operator to avoid cancellation of a PoS by pleading a breach of trust by its supplier, is deleted. (§17)
- Introduction of deadlines for the period between the completion of the inspection and the issuance of the certificate, as well as for recertification. (§19)
- The certification bodies shall inspect no later than six months after the issuance of the first certificate, and at least once a year thereafter, to determine whether the interfaces and suppliers continue to meet the requirements. (§34)
- If there is “reasonable suspicion” that the requirements are not longer met, the competent authority may:
1/ Determine that the operator must be inspected at shorter intervals.
2/ Conduct these inspections itself. (§34)
- If there are reasonable doubts about the nature or origin of the raw materials used or the biofuel or biomass fuel, the certification body is obligated to take samples and have them examined by an independent accredited laboratory to clarify their origin, if suitable analytical methods are available. (§34)
- Expansion of the notification obligations of the certification body in the event of certificate revocation or suspension. (§36)
- Certification bodies must notify the competent authority of each inspection. (§37)
- On-site inspections in Germany, in a EU MS or in a State part of the EEA must be announced at least 14 days ahead, 21 days for all other countries. (§37)
- Upon completion of each inspection, certification bodies must prepare a report to be submitted electronically to the competent authority. (§37)
- The competent authority may order certification bodies to suspend or withdraw certificates; if it fails to do so, it may declare the certificate invalid and publish public information about the invalidity. (§40)
- The competent authority may request information from the accreditation body and initiate a review procedure, even without a specific reason, within the framework of random market surveillance measures in order to verify the integrity and performance of the certification bodies and the recognized certification systems. (§40)
- Expanding the list of administrative offenses. (§51)
