Processing and energy use

V1.0

Module name	Processing and energy use
Module category	Transformation
Methodology name	Biomass carbon removal and storage (BiCRS)
Version	1.1
Methodology ID	RIV-BICRS-T-P&ENG-V1.1
Release date	June 5th, 2025
Status	In use

Glossary

This is a Transformation Module and covers processing and energy use related to the project. This module is part of the Riverse BiCRS methodology, which allows Project Developers to choose the relevant modules for their project, and shall be used with the necessary accompanying modules.

See more details on how modules are organized in the BiCRS home page.

How to use this module

BiCRS Methodology

Scope of the module

This module covers all processing stages and non-transport energy inputs related to BiCRS projects. It is intended to cover all eligibility criteria and GHG quantification for all processes that are not included in the other BiCRS modules: feedstock production, transport, infrastructure/machinery, and carbon storage. Specific processes vary by project, and may include but are not limited to:

• storing, drying, mixing, shredding and grinding of biomass feedstock

• operation of pyrolysis/gasification machinery

• direct emissions from off-gas released to the atmosphere (e.g. methane)

• purification, liquefication, and other post-processing of products

• use of electricity, gas, heat, water, or other material inputs

• waste treatment and management of non-valuable co-products

Eligibility criteria

The eligibility criteria requirements specific to this module are detailed in the sections below. Other eligibility criteria requirements shall be taken from the accompanying modules and methodologies:

BiCRS methodology

• Additionality

• No double counting

• Targets alignment

• ESDNH

Other modules

• Permanence

• Substitution

• Co-benefits

• No double counting

• ESDNH

• Leakage

Riverse Standard Rules

• Measurability

• Real

• TRL

• Minimum impact

Environmental and social do no harm

Project Developers shall prove that the project does not contribute to substantial environmental and social harms.

Projects must follow all European, national, and local environmental regulations related to, for example, syngas combustion national emission regulations.

Feedstock sustainability risks shall be taken from the Biomass feedstock module.

The only strict, disqualifying requirement in this module is that pyrolysis gases produced during the process must be either captured or cleanly burned, if the project is using pyrolysis/gasification. Waste heat and energy coproducts should be used onsite, and fossil fuel based energy should be minimized.

ESDNH risk evaluation

Project Developers shall fill in the Riverse Processing and energy use risk evaluation, to evaluate the identified environmental and social risks of projects. The identified risks include:

• Pests and pathogen growth from biomass feedstock storage

• Leachate and runoff from biomass feedstock storage

• Gaseous emissions from pyrolysis/gasification/combustion

• Improper disposal of waste by-products (ash, tar, residue...) causing soil and water contamination

• Inefficient use of waste heat

• Worker exposure to particulate matter or other gaseous pollutants from pyrolysis

• Worker exposure to dust from biomass shredding/grinding, respiratory risks

All risk assessments must also address the Minimum ESDNH risks defined in the Riverse Standard Rules.

The processes covered in this module are highly dependent on the project type, so not all risks may be relevant to a given project. Project Developers may explain how a risk is not applicable to their project.

Project Developers shall assign a likelihood and severity score of each risk, and provide an explanation of their choices. The VVB and Riverse’s Certification team shall evaluate the assessment and may recommend changes to the assigned scores.

All risks with a high or very high risk score are subject to a Risk Mitigation Plan, which outlines how Project Developers will mitigate, monitor, report, and if necessary, compensate for any environmental and/or social harms.

Additional proof may be required for certain high risk environmental and social problems.

The Project Developer, the Riverse Certification team, or the VVB may suggest additional risks to be considered for a specific project.

Note that the life-cycle GHG reduction calculations account for the climate change impacts of most environmental risks. Nonetheless, Project Developers shall transparently describe any identified GHG emission risks in the risk evaluation template.

GHG quantification

The GHG reduction quantification instructions from all other modules used by the project must be used in conjunction with the present module in order to obtain full life-cycle GHG reduction quantifications. It is a catch-all module that includes all relevant processes that are not included in other modules.

Monitoring and quantification may be done per Production Batch, or per calendar year. Verification shall be done annually by summing the GHG reduction quantifications for each production batch produced in the calendar year.

The system boundary of this quantification section includes GHG emissions from at least the following mandatory activities:

• Electricity and fuel production

• Fuel combustion

• Direct emissions of off-gas/flue gas

• Water use

• Waste treatment

According to the Riverse Standard Rules, processes with the lowest contributions to impacts, which each account for less than 1% of total impacts, may be excluded from the GHG quantification. These processes shall be transparently identified and justified.

For example, if a screening simulation shows that tap water use for wetting feedstock contributes to less than 1% of project GHGs, then tap water may be excluded from the calculations.

Data sources

The required primary data for GHG reduction calculations from projects are presented in Table 1. These data shall be provided for each production batch and made publicly available.

Table 1 Summary of primary data needed from projects and their source for initial project certification and validation. Asterisks (*) indicate which data are required to be updated annually during verification (see Monitoring Plan section).

Parameter	Unit	Source
Pyrolysis/gasification target temperature, for each production batch*	°C	Operations records (only for projects that perform pyrolysis/gasification)
Pyrolysis/gasification residence time, for each production batch*	minutes	Operations records (only for projects that perform pyrolysis/gasification)
Detailed process diagram with included/excluded processes	Flow chart	Internal process documents
Type of input/emission*	Text description	Internal process documents
Amount of input/emission*	kg, liter, kWh, MWh, GWh, m$^3$	Meter readings, bills, internal tracking documents, invoices, contracts, gas analyzers or sensors on pyrolysis equipment, calculated using conversions from other primary project data

The version 3.11 (hereafter referred to as ecoinvent) shall be the main source of emission factors unless otherwise specified. Ecoinvent is preferred because it is traceable, reliable, and well-recognized. The ecoinvent processes selected are detailed in Appendix.

If the available emission factors do not accurately represent the project, a different emission factor may be submitted by the Project Developer, and approved by the Riverse Certification team and the VVB. Any emission factor must meet the data requirements outlined in the Riverse Standard Rules, and come from traceable, transparent, unbiased, and reputable sources.

No other secondary data sources are used in this module.

If the project undergoes ex-ante validation, estimations and calculations may be accepted instead of measured primary data. These shall be replaced by measured primary data upon verification. Any estimates and calculations should be justified with:

• process engineering documents

• technical specifications for machinery

• measured data from previous projects or from the scientific literature

• statistics or databases

Note that conservative estimates and calculations shall always be made to avoid overestimating provisional credits.

Energy types

Because energy is expected to be the most important input in this module, additional details are provided regarding how to model energy.

Projects may only use renewable electricity emission factors for their energy consumption if:

• the energy production is directly linked to the project site, and can prove that there is a physical link, or

• the project holds renewable energy certificates (REC) (e.g. guarantee of origin, GO) plus an energy contract or purchase agreement for the concerned energy. In other words, the project can prove the coupled use of the energy and its corresponding REC.

Use of only a REC is not sufficient and shall be counted as grid electricity.

Electricity grid emission factors shall be taken for the national grid (at the maximum granularity), and if possible, regional mixes shall be used.

GHG emissions from fuel use shall include both the upstream extraction and processing of fuel, plus the direct emissions from combustion.

Co-product allocation

The rules outlined at the methodology-level in the BiCRS methodology document shall be applied for allocating GHG emissions between co-products.

Project scenario

Based on the project's detailed process diagram, activities and inputs shall be selected for inclusion in the module and listed.

Project Developers shall choose a type of input/emission used among the options in Appendix 1. If the relevant input is not listed, it may be added/considered on a case by case basis, and approved by the Riverse Certification team and the VVB.

For each input, Project Developers shall provide the amount used and units per Production Batch and/or per calendar year.

The table below provides an example of the type of data Project Developers may provide to use this module.

Input/emission	Amount	Units	Description	Source
Grid electricity	8	GWh	All electricity used onsite annually	Electricity bills
Diesel	5	liter	Shredding machine. 1 liter diesel per Production Batch, x5 Production Batches per year, calculated using machine fuel efficiency and number of hours used	Technical specifications (liter/hour), record of number of hours used
Methane emissions	20	kg	Emissions calculated from incomplete combustion of syngas	Equipment technical specifications (e.g. 99% efficiency guaranteed), records of amount of syngas produced
Bottom ash waste	50	kg	Management of ash residue from 1 year, landfilled	Invoice from waste management company

Calculations- Project emissions

$\textbf{(Eq.1)}\ E_{\text{Project processing}} = \sum (\text{Amount}_i \times EF_i)$

Where,

• $E_{\text{Project processing}}$ represents the total emissions from this module

• $Amount_i$ represents the amount of the input/emission of type $i$, in the same units as the emission factor described below

• $EF_i$ represents the emission factor for the input/emission of type $i$ in kg CO$_2$eq per given unit from ecoinvent

Uncertainty assessment

See general instructions for uncertainty assessment in the Riverse Standard Rules. The outcome of the assessment shall be used to determine the percent of RCCs to eliminate with the .

Uncertainty may come from project data, but this is estimated to be negligible, since it is required to come from a direct measurement.

This translates to no minimum expected discount factor based on this module.

Monitoring plan

Monitoring Plans for this module shall include, but are not limited to, tracking of the following information for each Production Batch and/or each calendar year:

• Amount and type of any input/emission that makes up more than 30% of project life-cycle GHG emissions

• Amount and type of any input/emission that makes up between 10-30% of project life-cycle GHG emissions and is expected to vary by more than 30% between Production Batches

The Project Developer is the party responsible for adhering to the Monitoring Plan.

Appendix

The table below presents a non-exhaustive selection of Ecoinvent activities that may be used in the GHG reduction calculations for this module. Additional activities may be used for any project, if the following selection does not cover all relevant activities.

Table A1 List of ecoinvent 3.11 processes used in the GHG reduction quantification model, all processes are from the cutoff database

Input	Ecoinvent activity name
grid electricity	market for electricity, low voltage market for electricity, medium voltage
onsite solar electricity	electricity production, photovoltaic, 570kWp open ground installation, multi-Si
diesel fuel material	market for diesel, low-sulfur market for diesel
diesel burning	diesel, burned in agricultural machinery diesel, burned in diesel-electric generating set, 18.5kW
natural gas burning	natural gas, burned in gas turbine
heat, from steam	market for heat, from steam, in chemical industry
heat, from munipal incineration	heat, from municipal waste incineration to generic market for heat, district or industrial, other than natural gas
heat, from biomethane burning	market for heat, central or small-scale, biomethane
heat, from straw burning in a furnace	heat production, straw, at furnace 300kW
heat, from natural gas	market for heat, district or industrial, natural gas market for heat, central or small-scale, natural gas
water	market for tap water market for water, decarbonised market for water, deionised
non-hazardous landfill	market for process-specific burdens, slag landfill market for process-specific burdens, sanitary landfill market for process-specific burdens, inert material landfill
hazardous waste treatment	market for hazardous waste, for incineration market for hazardous waste, for underground deposit

Risk evaluation template

👉 Download the template here

Version history

Change	Justification	Date	Version changed
Change GHG quantification from ecoinvent v3.10 to v3.11	Using more recent version of database	June 5th, 2025	V1.0 to V1.1
First release of module	-	December 4th, 2024	V1