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Information Paper
Reference: CRU/18203 Date Published: 14/09/2018 Closing Date: N/A
An Coimisiún um Rialáil Fóntas
Commission for Regulation of Utilities
Fuel Mix Disclosure 2017
www.cru.ie
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Executive Summary
This information paper sets out the 2017 fuel mix disclosure for suppliers licensed in Ireland and
operating in the Single Electricity Market (SEM). In addition the All Island fuel mix for the whole
island of Ireland (including both jurisdictions; Northern Ireland and Ireland) is presented.
Fuel mix disclosure presents reliable information regarding the sources of electricity, i.e. the fuel
mix that suppliers have chosen to meet their customers’ demand and the related environmental
impact. It does this by disclosing the fuel mix as the percentage of a supplier’s demand that is
met by various electricity sources and the associated carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions
(tonnes/MWh). Suppliers must present this data on their customer bills.
It is important to note that these figures are for a supplier’s entire customer base rather than on
an individual customer basis. As such, they represent a supplier’s average fuel mix and not that
of a specific product that the supplier is selling. There is a responsibility on suppliers to explain
the fuel mix of its individual products to customers as well as providing clear marketing
information. For those suppliers who offer specific ‘green products’, and whose fuel mix is not
100% renewable, the CRU carry out a verification process to ensure the accuracy of the green
claims. The results of this process are published in a separate ‘Green Source Product
Verification’ Paper each year.1
The fuel mix calculations are conducted by the Single Electricity Market Operator (SEMO) in
accordance with an approved methodology (see SEM-11-095 for more details). Suppliers must
make a submission to SEMO in order to have their own fuel mix calculated. If they choose not to
make a declaration, they will be allocated the residual fuel mix. This residual fuel mix is that fuel
mix which is left over from the All Island fuel mix after individual supplier’s fuel mixes have been
calculated.
In line with the methodology, tradable certificates called Guarantees of Origin (GOs) can be
used towards a supplier’s fuel mix. A Guarantee of Origin (GO) certificate is an instrument
defined in European legislation2 that certifies that electricity generated is from renewable energy
sources. This year, as with previous years, suppliers from Ireland have purchased GOs from
other European countries. The use of GOs in the fuel mix increases the overall renewable
percentage. Therefore the fuel mix in the graphs and tables in this report do not accurately
reflect the actual generation of electricity in Ireland.
1 Regulation of Green Source Products in the Electricity Retail Market, CER/15/205 2 EU Directive 2009/28/EC
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Public Impact Statement
The fuel mix disclosure shows consumers where the electricity they purchase from their supplier
is coming from. The main sources of electricity are renewables, gas, coal and peat.
This provides consumers with a valuable insight into the environmental impact of the electricity
they purchase and enables them to distinguish between suppliers based on the source of their
electricity and the associated carbon emissions.
If a supplier’s fuel mix is 100% renewable then consumers can be confident that this supplier will
provide them with electricity that is fully sourced from renewables. A supplier with a fuel mix that
is not 100% renewable can still offer Green Source products to individual consumers – there is a
separate process which ensures that such suppliers source enough electricity from renewables
to provide these Green Source products, called the Green Source Product Verification process.
This paper sets out the 2017 fuel mix disclosure for the whole Island of Ireland (Northern Ireland
and Ireland) and for individual suppliers licensed in Ireland. Suppliers must make a declaration
in order to have their own specific fuel mix calculated. If they choose not to do this, they must
use the residual fuel mix (i.e. what is left over after all the individual supplier fuel mixes are
calculated).
Suppliers must present their fuel mix on their bills to customers. The fuel mix presented must be
updated with the 2017 figures within 2 months of publication of this information paper.
It should be noted that Irish suppliers import Guarantees of Origin (GOs), which certify that a
MWh of electricity has been generated from renewable energy sources, from other countries in
the EEA. This means that the Fuel Mix for Ireland has a higher percentage share of renewable
energy sources than exists in the actual physical generation in Ireland.
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Table of Contents
1. Glossary of Terms and Abbreviations .............................................................. 4
2. Introduction ........................................................................................................ 5
2.1 Statutory Requirement ................................................................................................ 5
2.2 Related Documents ..................................................................................................... 5
2.3 Structure of Paper ....................................................................................................... 5
3. Background ........................................................................................................ 6
3.1 What is Fuel Mix Disclosure (FMD) ............................................................................... 6
3.2 All Island Mix ............................................................................................................... 6
3.3 Residual Mix ................................................................................................................ 6
3.4 Fuel Sources ................................................................................................................ 7
3.5 GOs ............................................................................................................................. 8
4. All Island Mix .................................................................................................... 10
5. Supplier Mix ...................................................................................................... 13
6. Disclosure of Fuel Mix ..................................................................................... 15
7. Appendix 1: Presentation of Information on Bills ......................................... 16
8. Appendix 2: All Island Fuel Mix 2005 - 2017 .................................................. 17
9. Appendix 3: GOs Imported/Exported ............................................................. 18
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1. Glossary of Terms and Abbreviations
Abbreviation or Term Definition or Meaning
FMD Fuel Mix Disclosure
GO Guarantee of Origin
SEMO Single Electricity Market Operator
CRU Commission for Regulation of Utilities
ROI Republic of Ireland
Ofgem Office of Gas and Electricity Markets
AIB Association of Issuing Bodies
UR Utility Regulator
SEM Single Electricity Market
EPA Environmental Protection Agency
DAERA Department of Agriculture, Environment and
Rural Affairs
EU European Union
EECS European Energy Certificate System
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2. Introduction
2.1 Statutory Requirement
Fuel Mix Disclosure is required by Article 3(9) of Directive 2009/72/EC. The transposing
legislation in Ireland, S.I. number 60 of 2005, requires the Commission for Regulation of Utilities
(the “CRU”) to ensure suppliers provide reliable fuel mix information on all bills and promotional
materials issued to customers.
The SEM Committee Decision Paper (SEM-11-095) sets out the enduring methodology for
calculation of the fuel mix. Suppliers publish their own information, as well as the All Island
information, on all bills and promotional materials.
The purpose of this paper is to set out the updated fuel mix and CO2 emissions figures for 2017
for suppliers licensed in Ireland and operating in the SEM. The fuel mix and CO2 emissions data
are taken from data provided to the CRU by SEMO.
2.2 Related Documents
The SEM All Island Fuel Mix Disclosure for previous periods can be found here.
The CRU Fuel Mix Disclosure for previous periods can be found here.
SEM-09-081 Interim Arrangements: Fuel Mix Disclosure in the SEM. Decision paper on
the methodology and principals for the calculation of fuel mix disclosure in the SEM.
SEM-11-095 Fuel Mix Disclosure in the Single Electricity Market: Calculation
Methodology Decision Paper.
CRU Decision on Supervisory Framework for Administration of Guarantees of Origin
CER/11/824.
For further information on this paper, please contact Oisin O’Sullivan ([email protected])
at the CRU.
Information on the CRU’s role and relevant legislation can be found on the CRU’s website at www.cru.ie
2.3 Structure of Paper
The structure of this information paper is as follows
Section 3 Sets out the background of the report explaining the components that are presented in the paper.
Section 4 Presents the All Island Fuel Mix.
Section 5 Presents the individual Fuel Mix of suppliers operating in Ireland.
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Section 6 Outlines suppliers’ obligations in terms of disclosing their fuel mix.
3. Background
3.1 What is Fuel Mix Disclosure (FMD)
FMD is the annual publication of the mix of fuels involved in electricity production on a supplier
basis and an All Island basis. FMD calculations are done on a calendar year basis by SEMO on
behalf of the CRU. In addition CO2 emissions data for each supplier and All Island is also
calculated. The verification process of each suppliers FMD is carried out independently, so
consumers can be confident upon the FMD validity for each supplier.
The purpose of FMD is to provide consumers with the information necessary to distinguish
between suppliers based on fuel mix and emissions data. The FMD calculation is the only way
of independently verifying the source of electricity that suppliers claim to provide to their
consumers, consequently enabling consumers to choose the fuel source of their electricity if
they so desire.
All licensed suppliers with retail customers are obliged to submit a fuel mix declaration. Other,
non-retail suppliers can choose to make a declaration to have their own fuel mix calculated if
they wish. Suppliers that do not submit declarations must disclose the residual fuel mix (i.e. what
is left over after all the individual supplier fuel mixes are calculated).
All suppliers (with retail customers) are obliged to present FMD data on their bills and
promotional materials (irrespective of whether they declared their fuel mix for FMD calculation).
The fuel mix presented must be updated with the 2017 figures within 2 months of this
publication.
3.2 All Island Mix
This is the mix of fuels involved in electricity production for the island of Ireland as a whole,
including both jurisdictions; Ireland and Northern Ireland. For individual suppliers’ FMD this
paper only concerns their operations in Ireland.3
3.3 Residual Mix
The Residual Mix is calculated for Ireland, Northern Ireland, and on an All Island basis.
Essentially it is the mix of all unclaimed electricity in the system. It is calculated as the sum of:
Any generation attributes not assigned to, and submitted by, a supplier;
Surplus GOs declared by suppliers; and
3 Suppliers NI business FMD is published separately and can be found in the SEM All Island Fuel Mix CO2 Emissions 2017 report.
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Unused (deemed cancelled) certificates which were expired in the relevant Disclosure
Period4.
At a European level a residual mix is also calculated. The European Residual Mix is a
combination of the residual fuel mixes from all the Member States.
If the all-island demand is greater than the sum of all the suppliers’ declarations plus the
Residual Mix, the European Residual Mix would be applied to the remaining demand and
included in the All Island Residual Mix. In the case that demand is less than the sum of all the
suppliers’ declarations the surplus claimed generation attributes will be included in the European
Residual Mix.
3.4 Fuel Sources
The electricity that is provided to homes and businesses to power daily needs is generated
using a number of different fuel sources. It is these different fuel sources that make up the Fuel
Mix.
The main fuel sources for electricity generation in Ireland are:
coal;
gas;
peat; and
renewables.
Ireland also uses oil and Non-Biodegradable Fraction of Waste (waste energy i.e. the non-
renewable portion of electricity generated from burning municipal waste). However in 2017, their
contribution to the All Island Mix mix is below 1%, so for the purposes of this report they are
grouped in the ‘other’ category.
Renewable fuels are all those that comply with the list of fuels defined under the term “Energy
from Renewable Sources” in S.I. no.147 of 2011. Namely: wind; solar; aerothermal; geothermal;
hydrothermal and ocean energy; hydropower; biomass; landfill gas; sewage treatment plant gas;
and biogases. Ireland’s renewable energy is predominantly sourced from wind.
4 GO certificates will automatically expire 12 months from the end of the production period. Suppliers
must cancel GO certificates before they expire and declare what Disclosure period the certificates are going to be used for. Certificates can only be used for FMD for the year they were issued or the following year e.g. January 2016 GOs could have been used for 2016 FMD or 2017 FMD. If not used they expired by end of January 2017 and would have been included in the deemed cancelled GOs figures.
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3.5 GOs
A Guarantee of Origin (GO) certificate is an instrument defined in European legislation that
certifies that electricity generated is from renewable energy sources. The GO guarantees that
one MWh of electricity has been produced from renewable energy sources. Electricity suppliers
buy GOs to certify that their electricity demand is covered by certified renewable sources.
GOs are electronic certificates issued for energy generated from renewable sources and are
issued to renewable generators that are not in support schemes (such as the PSO in Ireland)
per MWh of generation. These are tradeable instruments and do not need to follow the flow of
energy. In Ireland SEMO is the body that issues GOs to generators.
GOs are traded at a European level. SEMO is a member of the Association of Issuing Bodies
(AIB). AIB is a European body that provides a standardised system, the European Energy
Certificate System (EECS) - which includes GOs. The AIB operates a hub where such
certificates can be traded between countries. Suppliers can purchase GOs to use as proof of the
share or quantity of energy from renewable sources in their Fuel Mix. GOs can be imported and
exported between Ireland and the rest of Europe.
GO certificates automatically expire 12 months after the end of the production period. Suppliers
must cancel GO certificates before they expire and declare what Disclosure period the
certificates are going to be used for. GOs can only be used for FMD the year they were issued
or the following year; e.g. January 2017 GOs can be used for 2017 or 2018 FMD. Once a GO
has been declared for a Disclosure period, it is cancelled and cannot be used again.
The inclusion of GOs results in the FMD not accurately reflecting the actual generation of
electricity in Ireland due to imported GOs. In Ireland suppliers buy a large amount of GOs,
therefore the Fuel Mix for Ireland has a higher percentage share of renewable fuel sources than
exists in the actual physical generation in Ireland.
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Fuel Mix
Sources
Coal
Gas Peat Renewable Other
Imported Certificates (Guarantees of Origin)
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4. All Island Mix The following section outlines the All Island Fuel Mix and CO2 Emissions per MWh of electricity
for 2017.
All Island Fuel Mix 2017
The use of fossil fuels as fuel sources for electricity generation has decreased from 2016 to
2017. Correspondingly the share of renewable fuel sources has increased by approximately 11%
between 2016 and 2017. This has been a continuous trend over the past number of years (as
outlined in the graph below).
Sources
Coal Gas Peat Renewable Other
9.83% 39.96% 4.86% 44.47% 0.88% % Change from 2016
-28.60% +0.75% -9.11% +10.94% -22.85%
10% Coal
40% Gas
5% Peat
44%Renewable
(including imported GOs)
1%Other
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The increase in renewable fuel contribution in 2017 can be accounted for due to the following
reasons:
The amount of GO certificates used by suppliers for their fuel mix figures increased from
2016 to 2017. In 2017 there were 3,181,098 Irish GOs Used plus 8,151,671 GOs
imported5. In 2016 there were 2,606,551 Irish GOs Used plus 8,339,443 GOs imported.6
The installed capacity of wind increased between 2016 and 2017. This has been an
ongoing trend as outlined in the table below.
Wind Capacity (MW) at Year End (2017) 7
Year Northern Ireland
Republic of Ireland
All Island
2011 515 1,585 2,100 2012 603 1,703 2,306 2013 644 2,008 2,652 2014 733 2,279 3,013 2015 755 2,447 3,203 2016 948 2,779 3,727
2017 1,160 3,311 4,471
5 Trends of GOs imported/exported over time can be found in Appendix 3 of this document 6 SEMO source data 7 EirGrid’s Annual Renewable Energy Constraint and Curtailment Report 2017
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
All Island Fuel Mix over Time
Coal Gas Renewables Peat Other
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In accordance with SEM-11-095, the ‘other’ category consists of all fuels in a given year that
represent less than 1% of the final overall generation. Oil (0.60%) contributes to the ‘other’ figure,
with Non-Biodegradable Waste.
CO2 Emissions
Emissions data for each generator in the SEM is supplied annually to SEMO by the EPA
(Environmental Protection Agency) and the DAERA (Department of Agriculture, Environment and
Rural Affairs).
The emission figures are grouped according to fuel type and divided by metered generation to
give specific emission factors for each fuel. These values can then be used to calculate the All
Island CO2 Emissions Factor and each individual suppliers’ CO2 Emissions Factor.
The average All Island CO2 Emissions per MWh of electricity decreased by 13% between 2016
and 2017, from 0.367 t/MWh to 0.325 t/MWh. This is in line with a downward trend in CO2
emissions as a result of the increase in renewable share, as shown in the table below.
0.30
0.35
0.40
0.45
0.50
0.55
2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Average All Island CO2 Emissions (t/MWh)
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5. Supplier Mix The following table shows suppliers’ Fuel Mix and CO2 Emissions per MWh of electricity for
2017. For comparison purposes, the All Island figure is provided in the first row. Suppliers in
Ireland who did not make declarations for the purposes of fuel mix disclosure are assigned the
All Island Residual Mix.
Two self-suppliers8 made declarations for the purposes of fuel mix disclosure. Their fuel mix has
been included at the end of the table. However, it should be noted that the purpose of this paper
is to provide clarification to customers on the fuel mix of their electricity supply. Therefore, only
suppliers serving domestic customers are required to disclose their assigned fuel mix.
Submissions received from self-suppliers have been accepted and included in this report due to
the low volumes of such submissions received. However, if the number of these increase in
subsequent reports, then their inclusion may be reviewed as it is considered that they may not be
best placed for inclusion in this report, and may detract from the intended aim of the report.
Note: The fuel mix calculation is carried out on an individual licence basis. Where a supplier
operates as a single company but holds separate licences (such as a supplier that operates in
Ireland and Northern Ireland) any excess generation attributes from one licence can be allocated
to the other licence. This paper is only displaying the FMD for suppliers’ licenced in Ireland.9
Supplier Coal Gas Peat Renewable Other Total tCO2 /MWh
All Island Fuel Mix
9.8% 40.0% 4.9% 44.5% 0.9% 100.0% 0.325
0.0% 76.6% 0.0% 23.4% 0.0% 100.0% 0.330
8.4% 54.4% 4.1% 32.4% 0.7% 100.0% 0.365
0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 100.0% 0.0% 100.0% 0
0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 100.0% 0.0% 100.0% 0
8 A Self Supplier is a Supplier who supplies energy only to their own sites, where those sites are not open to competition from other Suppliers, who does not compete to supply energy to any third party and who does not use Market Messages to support their operations. 9 Suppliers NI business FMD is published separately and can be found in the SEM All Island Fuel Mix CO2 Emissions 2017 Report.
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0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 100.0% 0.0% 100.0% 0
0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 100.0% 0.0% 100.0% 0
0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 100.0% 0.0% 100.0% 0
10 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 100.0% 0.0% 100.0% 0
Suppliers asigned All Island
Residual Mix Coal Gas Peat Renewable Other Total
tCO2 /MWh
24.8% 37.4% 12.3% 23.3% 2.2% 100.0% 0.526
24.8% 37.4% 12.3% 23.3% 2.2% 100.0% 0.526
24.8% 37.4% 12.3% 23.3% 2.2% 100.0% 0.526
24.8% 37.4% 12.3% 23.3% 2.2% 100.0% 0.526
Self-Supplier Coal Gas Peat Renewable Other Total tCO2 /MWh
BRI Green Energy Supply
0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 100.0% 0.0% 100.0% 0
Killowen Biogas 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 100.0% 0.0% 100.0% 0
10 Vayu has changed its name to Naturgy in 2018
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6. Disclosure of Fuel Mix A supplier’s fuel mix information must be presented on bills in accordance with SEM-11-095. This
must observe the following points:
Where fuel mix information is presented on the back of bills, reference must be made to it
on the front of the bill.
Radioactive waste information is required by S.I. No. 60 of 2005. This figure is 0.000
t/MWh for all suppliers in 2017 and therefore need not be included with the 2017 fuel mix
disclosure information on bills.
To ensure consistency across suppliers, percentages should be rounded to one decimal
place.
CO2 information should be given in the units tonnes of CO2 per MWh (t/MWh).
In addition to the fuel mix disclosure requirements, section 3.5.3 of the CRU’s decision
paper on the Regulation of Green Source Products in the Electricity Retail Market,
CER/15/2015, governs display of information for suppliers who offer green source
products.
The 2017 fuel mix information must be presented on all customer bills within two months of the
publication of this paper.
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7. Appendix 1: Presentation of Information on Bills
Default Presentation of Information11
Supplier Z Disclosure Label
Applicable Period: January 2017 to December 2017
Electricity supplied has been sourced from the following fuels:
% of total
Electricity Supplied by Supplier Z
Average for All Island Market (for comparison)
Coal X % X %
Natural Gas X % X %
Nuclear X % X %
Renewable X % X %
Peat X % X %
Oil X % X %
EU Fossil X % X %
Other X % X %
Total 100 % 100 %
Environmental Impact
CO2 Emissions X t/MWh X t/MWh
Your specific fuel mix may differ to the fuel mix shown because SUPPLIER Z offer green source products. For information on your fuel mix and on the environmental impact of your electricity supply visit www.SupplierZ.ie or, for further details call 00XXX X XXX XXXXX 12
11 Please refer to SEM-11-095 for further detail on presentation requirements. Note that the fuel categories used each year can vary. 12 Please see section 3.5.3 from the CRU’s decision paper on the Regulation of Green Source Products in the Electricity Retail Market, CER/15/205, for suppliers who offer green source products.
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8. Appendix 2: All Island Fuel Mix 2005 - 2017
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Coal 24.00% 19.00% 18.00% 17.00% 14.24% 15.98% 14.44% 19.89% 18.42% 15.71% 16.02% 13.76% 9.83%
EU Fossil 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 3.12% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
Gas 46.00% 50.00% 55.00% 61.00% 61.85% 64.06% 56.16% 47.74% 44.09% 41.66% 36.36% 39.66% 39.96%
Oil 12.00% 9.00% 6.00% 4.00% 2.53% 1.59% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 1.06% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
Renewables 9.00% 11.00% 11.00% 11.00% 14.23% 12.11% 17.21% 23.74% 30.24% 34.46% 41.06% 40.09% 44.47%
Peat 8.00% 7.00% 6.00% 7.00% 6.70% 5.78% 5.88% 6.86% 6.49% 6.95% 5.90% 5.35% 4.86%
Other 1.00% 4.00% 4.00% 1.00% 0.45% 0.48% 3.18% 1.77% 0.75% 0.17% 0.65% 1.14% 0.88%
Note:
Figures from 2007 relate to Ireland only and calculations are based on pre-SEM methodology.
Figures for 2008, 2009 and 2010 relate to ROI and NI and are based on the Interim Arrangements Methodology (SEM-09-081) referenced
in the Related Documents section of this paper.
Figures for 2011 onwards relate to ROI and NI and are based on the SEM Committee Decision Paper Fuel Mix Disclosure in the Single
Electricity Market: Calculation Methodology Decision Paper (SEM-11-095) referenced in the Related Documents section of this paper.
The “Other” category consists of: Oil; the Non-Biodegradable Fraction of Waste (NBDFW) and EU Fossil (only for 2011).
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9. Appendix 3: GOs Imported/Exported
Imports to Ireland by Country of Origin 2016-2017
2016 2017
UK 7,628,313 7,209,276
Norway 491,970 942,395
Spain 19,160 -
Belgium 200,00 -
Exports from Ireland by Country of Destination 2016-2017
2016 2017
UK 554,514 -
Norway 307,332 493,606
Switzerland 48,073 -
Netherlands 2 -
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