Introduction to UNFC, the Expert Group on Resource Classification,

its Activities and Standing Committees

Charlotte Griffiths, UNECE

Regional Training Course on UNFC for Evaluation of Uranium and Thorium Resources and to Leverage

Transparent and Effective Communications Luxor, Egypt, 18-22 October 2015

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International Atomic Energy Agency UNECE

Nuclear Materials Authority, Egypt

Outline

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● UNECE

● Why the United Nations is involved in resource classification

● Mandate

– ECOSOC Decision 2004/233

● History/development of UNFC

● Expert Group on Resource Classification

UN regions …

UNECE

ESCAP

ECLAC

ECA

ESCWA

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Who is UNECE?

• 56 countries in North America, Europe,

FSU, Central Asia, Israel and Turkey

• Produce 40% of the world’s energy, consume 45%

• Home to important energy industries

• Produce nearly 50% of the global economic output

• Dominant in the world’s financial infrastructure

• Fossil fuels are 60% of primary fuel in the UNECE region

• UNECE region accounts for half of global emissions

• The region is diverse: comprised of high and low income countries, countries that are energy rich and energy poor and countries that are in economic transition www.unece.org

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UNECE Sustainable Energy Division

Committee on Sustainable Energy – Energy for Sustainable Development:

1. Assist countries in implementing the Hammamet Declaration

2. Develop normative instruments (best practices/standards /regulations) that will enable needed investments.

3. Provide countries with a platform to compare notes: what works/what doesn’t work

Expert Groups:

• Energy Efficiency

• Renewables

• Resource Classification and UNFC

• Cleaner Electricity Production from Fossil Fuels

• Natural Gas

• Coal Mine Methane

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On 25 September 2015, the 193-Member United Nations General Assembly

formally adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, along with a set

of bold new Global Goals 6

Why the United Nations?

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● Sustainable Development Goals and Sustainable Energy for All

● UNECE provides a regional forum for Governments to develop practical instruments in the form of conventions, regulations, norms and standards

● Neutral platform, all stakeholders involved

● Convening power – no comparable forum exists

● Open and transparent process

● UNFC is a voluntary system, not mandated by the UN

● UNFC is a global project (ECOSOC Decision 2004/233)

United Nations Framework Classification for Fossil Energy and Mineral

Reserves and Resources

Global, generic, principles-based system

‒ Applicable to both solid minerals and fluids

Based on three criteria

‒ Economic and social viability

‒ Field project status and feasibility

‒ Geological knowledge

Developed by Expert Group on Resource Classification at UN

Economic Commission for Europe, Geneva – with a global mandate

Significant progress to broaden application to encompass renewable

energy and injection projects for geological storage of CO2

UNFC-2009

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UNFC-2009 – How it works

E axis categories

F axis categories

G axis categories

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UNFC is responding to

a need! 10

Domains of application of UNFC

Renewable energy

Policy

Water Policy

Petroleum

Coal Minerals

Underground storage

UNFC

Source: Petronavit a.s . 11

UNFC and ECOSOC

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ECOSOC Decision 2004/233

“At its 42nd plenary meeting, on 16 July 2004, the Economic and Social Council, recalling its decision 1997/226 of 18 July 1997, welcomed the endorsement by the Economic Commission for Europe of the United Nations Framework Classification

for Fossil Energy and Mineral Resources and decides to invite the Member States of the United Nations, international organizations and regional commissions to consider taking appropriate measures for ensuring worldwide application of the Framework Classification. The Council notes that this new classification for fossil energy and mineral resources, which now includes energy commodities (for example, natural gas, oil and uranium), is an extension of the earlier framework developed for solid fuels and mineral commodities, on which the Council took similar action in 1997 upon endorsement and recommendation by the Economic Commission for Europe.”

Where does the Expert Group on Resource Classification fit in the UN system?

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General Assembly, Security

Council, International Court of

Justice, Secretariat

Economic and Social Council

(ECOSOC)

Committee on Sustainable Energy

UN Regional Commissions

UNECE

Expert Group on Resource

Classification (EGRC)

Intergovernmental body

Advisory body

Intergovernmental body

United Nations

Expert Group on Resource Classification

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● UNFC (development and governance)

● Inclusive … open to all stakeholders worldwide

- Solid minerals, petroleum and uranium

- Application to renewables and injection projects

- Close collaboration with CRIRSCO (solid minerals) and SPE (oil & gas) – alignment and specifications

- Close collaboration with IAEA on nuclear fuel resources

- Renewables – MoU with International Geothermal Association

- Works on consensus

● Five year mandate, reports to Committee on Sustainable Energy – annual meeting in Geneva

UNFC-2009

UNFC stakeholders

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UNFC

Governments

Industry

Financial Community

Creators of energy & mineral studies

management of

resources

to provide information

necessary to allocate

capital appropriately so

reducing costs

to provide data and

information necessary to

deploy technology,

management and finance

in order to serve their host

countries, shareholders

and stakeholders

to facilitate

formulation of

consistent and

far-sighted

policies

EGRC … a global forum

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“The Expert Group on Resource Classification provides the only forum anywhere in the world where global

experts in resource classification covering solid minerals and petroleum,

and now also renewables, meet and share information and ideas.”

Global constituency representing all users of resource information

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Governments (UNECE &

non-UNECE) Academia

International organizations

Industry

Professional Societies &

Associations

EGRC

Financial Sector

Incl. standard setters

Bureau of the Expert Group

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● Bureau works on behalf of EGRC between meetings

● Chair, Chair Ex-Officio, First Vice Chair, Vice Chairs

● 21 members (including CRIRSCO, SPE and IAEA)

● Broad stakeholder representation and geographic coverage

● Very active

● Monitors activities of EGRC Sub-groups

● Develops white papers eg competent person

● Reports to Expert Group at annual meetings

Sub-groups

Technical Advisory Group

U & Th

Renewables

Geothermal

Bioenergy

Injection Projects

E axis – social and environmental issues

G axis

Communications

Resourcing Strategy

UNFC History

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1992 • Started development of

system

1997 • UNFC for solid fuels and mineral

commodities published

2004 • UNFC extended to cover

oil, natural gas and

uranium

UNFC History (continued)

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2007 • Mapped UNFC-2004 to

CRIRSCO Template and

PRMS

2007 • Proposed simplification of definitions

and other changes to ensure

harmonization

2009 • UNFC-2009

approved in late-

2009

UNFC History (continued)

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2010 • UNFC-2009

published

2013 • Specifications approved

by EGRC April 2013

2013 • ECE Energy Series No.

42 published

2014

2014

• Red Book and UNFC Bridging Document published

• Application to renewables started

UNFC-2009 with 2014 Specifications and Bridging to SPE PRMS, CRIRSCO Template and IAEA/NEA Red Book

Purpose:

1. General raw material studies

2. Government resource management

3. Industry business processes

4. Financing

Made by and for preparers and users under a global UN mandate

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UNFC milestones

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1992 UNECE task force created

2009 UNFC-2009 adopted

2013 UNFC incorporating specifications for its application

2014 Red Book uranium bridging document

2015 Draft generic specifications for application of UNFC to

renewable energy completed and kept under review

2015 Guidelines for application of UNFC to uranium and

throrium resources – public comment period concluded

2015 Specifications for application of UNFC to injection

projects for the purpose of geological storage – Public

comment period expired

Expert Group Priorities

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Governance

Case studies

& testing

Uranium &

thorium

Specifications:

solid minerals

& petroleum

Renewables

Guidance:

environmental

& social issues

Education &

outreach

Guidance:

competent

person

Guidance:

G axis

Delivering on SDG7 and SE4ALL

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Securing affordable and sustainable energy for the future requires a

common standard for:

‒ Global communications about energy

‒ Recognition of environmental and social considerations

‒ Developing long-sighted policies for global markets

‒ Government resources management for security and efficiency

‒ Cost effective allocation of financial

resources

‒ Industry processes to ensure

common understanding of impact

of new technologies and optimization

of project management decisions

“We do not need natural resources as such, but we need their functions or physical and chemical properties. To find solutions for functions, there are three reservoirs: the combined resources of the geosphere and the technosphere and the unlimited resource of human ingenuity. With these, enough time, and the wisdom to plan ahead, we can find the necessary solutions for sustainability on Earth”

Friedrich-W. Wellmer in Non-Renewable Resource Issues – Geoscientific and Societal Challenges. Springer 2012

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Thank you for your attention

UNFC – A global classification for mineral and energy asset management Join the next meeting of the Expert Group on Resource Classification: UN Palais des Nations, Geneva, 27-29 April 2016, with a UNFC Workshop on 26 April

reserves.energy@unece.org

www.unece.org/energy/se/reserves.html

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Any questions?

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