RED sustainability criteria for biomass for the SDE++ scheme

What is the RED?

The revised European Renewable Energy Directive (RED) is meant to stimulate the generation of sustainable energy. Whether your installation has to meet the RED sustainability criteria depends on whether you already had to meet the RED I sustainability criteria or the date on which you applied for the SDE++ subsidy.

• If you generate heat and/or power from liquid biomass, then you already had to meet the RED I sustainability criteria. You will therefore now also have to meet the RED II or RED III sustainability criteria.
• If you do not generate heat and/or power from liquid biomass and you have applied for an SDE++ subsidy after 21 December 2018, you will have to meet the sustainability criteria if the power output of your installation exceeds the thresholds as laid down in the RED II.
• If you do not generate heat and/or power from liquid biomass and you applied for an SDE++ subsidy before 21 December 2018, the biomass you use is not subject to sustainability criteria.
• On 11 December 2025, the government announced in a letter to Parliament that it intends to change the SDE regulations as of 1 January 2026. These changes mean that installations with an SDE+ subsidy decision from before 2024, for co-firing or main firing of solid biomass and for the production of industrial steam or heat using solid biomass, must also comply with the sustainability requirements of the RED from 1 January 2026 onwards.

SDE++ categories

The Designation Regulation (Regeling aanwijzing categorieën duurzame energieproductie en klimaattransitie) and General Implementing Regulations for Stimulating Sustainable Energy Production and Climate Transition (Algemene uitvoeringsregeling stimulering duurzame energieproductie en klimaattransitie) state which facilities that have to meet the RED sustainability criteria. This applies to biomass facilities and facilities that burn wood pellets. A summary of the SDE++ categories to which these sustainability criteria apply is given below:

Demonstrating sustainability

You have to demonstrate that the biomass used meets the RED requirements. You do so by using certification schemes that have been approved by the European Commission (EC). Your business itself must usually also be certified.

See the list of certification schemes that have been approved by the EC

For some types of installations, certification of the biomass and of the business are not compulsory: for example, manure mono-fermenters and sewage sludge fermenters. See the ‘Verification Protocol RED 2025’ for the facilities to which the protocol applies and for other ways to demonstrate their sustainability. 

Conformity year statement

Are you an energy producer? If so, you report annually on the sustainability of the biomass used by means of an conformity year statement. In the conformity year statement you list the sustainability characteristics of all the biomass you have used at your facility. 

You can download the following documents (in Dutch) to use in your reports:

Verification Protocol

A recognised CAB draws up the conformity year statement. What requirements the biomass you use at your facility have to meet? These are set out in the RED. The requirements depend on the type of biomass you use. The way in which you demonstrate sustainability is stated in the Verification Protocol. More information about the role and requirements of CABs is available in the section on CABs below.

On 1 January 2025, the most recent version of the verification protocol was published. You can use this protocol to prove the sustainability of your biomass installation for the SDE. This applies to all biomass installations with a subsidy from 2024 onwards, including pellet installations. In February 2025, an addendum to the protocol was published. You can also use the protocol to demonstrate the sustainability of biomass under the ETS zero-emissions reporting. For more information, see the website of the NEa.

For verification of deliveries in 2025, use the new 'Verification protocol RED 2025' and the addendum (both in Dutch). This also applies to the conformity year statement for 2025, which you must prepare at the beginning of 2026.

In January 2026, the newest version of the verification protocol was published. This version also includes the requirements for pellet installations with an SDE+ subsidy from before 2024. These installations must comply with the sustainability requirements of the RED. The new protocol will be made available here soon.

Both versions of the Verification Protocol have been amended so that it can also be used to demonstrate the sustainability of biomass in the context of the Emissions Trading System (ETS) zero emissions report. See the Dutch Emissions Authority (NEa)’s website for more information on this.

Conformity Assessment Bodies (CABs)

CABs play a role in demonstrating the sustainability of biomass. They carry out two different tasks:

• Certification of biomass and energy operators. They work for a certification scheme recognised by the European Commission.
• Carrying out verifications based on the Verification Protocol. This applies to the verification of individual consignments or issuing an conformity year statement to an energy producer. This can only be carried out by CABs recognised by the Minister of Climate Policy and Green Growth (KGG) for working with the Verification Protocol.

To be recognised, a CAB must be accredited for the Verification Protocol SDE++ RED II by the Dutch Accreditation Council (RvA). To be recognised, a CAB may – instead of being accredited – also submit other (alternative) evidence. The CAB in question uses this evidence to demonstrate that it is able to work with the Verification Protocol. Alternative evidence is:

• evidence of a current application to the RvA for accreditation for the SDE++ RED II Verification Protocol;
• evidence that the CAB carries out audits for an EC-recognised scheme and meets the ISO standards 14065 and 17065.

Has the RvA confirmed the accreditation application of your CAB? Then the CAB can submit a request for recognition to us by email.

Recognised CABs

Normec QS is the only approved CAB at this time. As soon as more CABs have been recognised for the Verification Protocol, we will add them to the table below.