Methods and code
The computation of the balances belongs to the knowledge commons. Anyone may obtain it, run it and check the published figures against their own result.
Article 96(5): the Secretariat publishes its methods and code as part of the knowledge commons.
Article 109(5): public bodies work upon free and open software whose source is public.
Article 10: the knowledge commons, and what belongs to it.
| Component | What it does | Published |
|---|---|---|
| Aggregation of declarations | Sums the need declarations by category and territory, anonymised at source | Source, tests and configuration |
| Material balance | Reconciles inputs and outputs across branches in tonnes | Source, coefficient tables, tests |
| Energy balance | Reconciles generation, conversion and use in TWh | Source, conversion factors, tests |
| Labour balance | Sets offered hours against required hours by branch | Source, tests |
| Emissions accounting | Attributes emissions to branches and counts imports against the budget | Source, emission factors, tests |
| Variant generator | Produces the variants from a stated objective and the constraints in force | Source, assumptions, tests |
Reproduction of a published balance
The inputs, the coefficients and the code are published together, so a published balance can be recomputed independently. Two research institutions and one branch federation recompute the balances at each round and publish their own results. Divergences are examined and answered in writing.
One divergence has been resolved this cycle. A federation obtained a different steel figure through a coefficient the Secretariat had not updated since 2023. The coefficient was corrected and the balance republished.
Assumptions
An assumption is a figure chosen where measurement is unavailable: the rate at which labour transfers between branches, the availability effect of a deferred overhaul, the emission factor applied to an imported material. Each is published separately from the computation, with its source and the date it was last reviewed.
The assumptions of every variant are published with it, so an objection may be directed at an assumption alone.
Audit
The Secretariat is answerable to the Congress and to the oversight organs of Title IX. The Audit Office audited the computation of provisional balances in the period ending April 2026 and published its findings in full. The Ecological Budget Authority verifies the ecological accounts under Article 100(3).