What records must NGER reporters keep, and for how long?

What to keep

The Clean Energy Regulator recommends, at a minimum:

• a list of every activity that must be reported
• the data collected for each activity and used to calculate emissions and energy
• evidence supporting the calculations, such as receipts, invoices and payment details
• the methods and measurement criteria used, and why they were chosen
• how data was collected, and any calculations used to derive activity or fuel use data
• records of business decisions on coverage, such as how the controlling corporation, corporate group and facilities were determined
• authorisations for nominated report submitters

Additional records for higher methods and market-based claims

Where facility-specific emission factors are used, records should also document the monitoring methods, the results of developing the factors, and details such as biomass fractions and oxidation or conversion factors. Corporations reporting market-based Scope 2 emissions must also keep the certificate and purchase evidence set out in the Measurement Determination.

How long

Records must be kept for 5 years from the end of the reporting year in which the recorded activities took place. The period runs separately for each year, so records of 2025-26 activities, a year that ended on 30 June 2026, must be kept until at least 30 June 2031.

Format and access

Records can be kept on paper or electronically. They should be easy to access, including by external auditors, and should be relevant, complete, consistent and transparent about the activities they describe.

Consequences

Record-keeping failures can attract civil penalties under the NGER Act. For guidance on building an auditable greenhouse gas inventory, the Regulator points reporters to the GHG Protocol Corporate Standard.