What is class 35.12, production of electricity from renewable sources?

Class 35.12 covers production of electricity from renewable sources. It was created in the restructuring of group 35.1 in NACE Rev. 2.1, beside class 35.11 for non renewable sources. Its explanatory note lists the renewable sources included and states the exclusions. The class is statistical only, and it does not determine a code for a specific reader.

What does the note include?

The note includes operation of generation facilities that produce electricity from renewable sources, with examples including gaseous biofuels, hydropower, onshore and offshore wind power, photovoltaic solar energy, thermal solar energy, geothermal energy, and tide, wave and ocean energy. The list is introduced by the words for example, which means it illustrates the renewable sources rather than closing the list. A generation facility using a renewable source not named in the list is not excluded by the omission alone. The note must be read with the notes for the neighbouring classes, and with the classification index, before the scope of the class is stated for a source not named in the list.

The list is also notable for what it groups together. Gaseous biofuels sit beside hydropower, wind, solar, geothermal and marine energy, under the single heading of renewable sources. The grouping is by the renewability of the source, not by the technology of the facility or the form of the fuel. A facility burning gaseous biofuels and a facility using photovoltaic panels therefore sit in the same class, even though their processes differ greatly. The grouping principle is the character of the source, as the note presents it, and the class must be read on that principle, not on a technology based principle that the manual does not adopt for this group.

What does the note exclude?

The note excludes production of electricity from non renewable sources to class 35.11, production of electricity as part of the storage of electricity activities to class 35.16, and pretreatment of waste for energy recovery to class 38.22. The exclusions mirror the exclusions in the note for class 35.11, with the first exclusion reversed. The mirroring is deliberate: the two production classes divide generation by source, and each note points to the other for the opposite source. A reader who reads only one note will see only half of the boundary. Both notes must be read together, with the note for class 35.16 for the storage boundary, before the generation boundary is stated with confidence.

The storage exclusion deserves the same attention as in the companion guide. Electricity produced as part of the storage cycle, conversion, storing and reconversion, sits in class 35.16, not in the production classes. The production classes cover generation as a standalone activity, and the storage class covers the cycle as a whole. A facility that both generates and stores electricity must therefore be read against both notes, and against the principal activity rules, in general terms. This guide does not state a rule for a combined facility that the manual does not state, and the entry for a specific unit is confirmed by the institute or register.

How is the class placed in the hierarchy?

| Level | Identifier | Title |

|---|---|---|

| Section | D | Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply |

| Division | 35 | Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply |

| Group | 35.1 | Electric power generation, transmission and distribution |

| Class | 35.12 | Production of electricity from renewable sources |

The table follows the detailed structure. The class sits immediately after class 35.11 in the restructured group, and the pair together divide electricity production by source. The table states the place of the class. The note states its content, and the correspondence table states how the old group content relates to the new classes, including the creation of the two production classes from the restructured group.

What does a new class not decide?

The creation of a class does not, by itself, move a unit from one class to another. The introductory guidelines rules classify units by principal activity, and the entry held for a unit is held by the institute or register. A new class gives statistics a finer heading under which to count the activity, where the data allow it. This change reclassifies no unit automatically, and it does not place every unit whose work resembles the new title in the new class. Before quoting the new class for any purpose, consult the note for the class, the correspondence table, and the holder of the record, in that order.

Where is a new class confirmed?

Three checks make a confirmation: the note, the table, and the holder of the record. The note states what the new class contains. The table states where its content came from in the old structure. For a specific unit, the institute or register states the entry held. No step replaces another.

Work through the renewable source examples, read the non renewable note beside this note, and confirm the entry with the institute or register that holds it.