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189th Executive Board Meeting Minutes

10-11 December 2025, Amsterdam

Author: Fergal Cunningham
Publication date: 12 January 2026
Status: Draft

Attendees:

  • Randy Bush (RB), Member
  • Ondřej Filip (OF), Chair
  • Maria Häll (MH), Member
  • Raymond Jetten (RJ), Treasurer
  • Sander Steffann (SS), Member
  • Harald A. Summa (SU), Member
  • Piotr Strzyżewski (PS), Secretary

  • Mirjam Kühne (MK), RIPE Chair

  • Daniella Coutinho (DC), Executive Assistant, RIPE NCC (topics 1-3, 6-12)
  • Fergal Cunningham (FC), Head of Membership Engagement, RIPE NCC (topics 1-3, 6-8, 10-12)
  • Athina Fragkouli (AF), Chief Legal Officer, RIPE NCC (topics 1-3, 6-12)
  • Simon-Jan Haytink (SJH), Chief Finance Officer, RIPE NCC (topics 1-3, 6-12)
  • Hans Petter Holen (HPH), Managing Director, RIPE NCC (topics 1-4, 5.1-12)
  • Hisham Ibrahim (HI), Chief Community Officer, RIPE NCC, (topics 1-3, 6-8,10-12)
  • Eleonora Petridou (EP), Chief Information Security Officer, RIPE NCC (topics 2, 7.3)
  • Carolien Vos (CV), Chief Human Resources Director, RIPE NCC (topics 1-3, 6-12)
  • Gabor de Wit (GdW), Chief Registry Officer, RIPE NCC (topics 2, 8)

Guests:

  • Stefan Peij, Governance Academy (topic 9)
  • Arthur Hol, Governance Academy (topic 9)

Day 1: 10 December 2025

1. Welcome and Agenda

Ondřej Filip, RIPE NCC Executive Board Chair, opened the meeting at 12:35 (UTC+1) and welcomed attendees. Ondřej also noted that a productive meeting was held with the Executive Board and the RIPE NCC Works Council (Ondernemingsraad, OR) directly prior to the start of the formal Executive Board meeting. This was a meeting in addition to the two mandated consultation meetings (bijzondere overlegvergadering, BOV) to introduce the newly elected OR members. The OR appreciated the accessibility of the Board. There was a discussion on what the Board can do to help the OR, and a request for an update on the progress of the proposed governance structure changes. The OR also raised concerns regarding inflation.

1.1 Apologies, New agenda points

There were no apologies.

1.2 Approval of minutes

The minutes of the previous meeting were approved by the Board.

Resolution EB#189-R-01

The RIPE NCC Executive Board approves the minutes of EB#188.

The RIPE NCC Executive Board unanimously adopted the resolution.

1.3 Conflict of Interest

No conflicts of interest were noted. Harald Summa, Executive Board member, said he was now an independent director of WorldLink Communications in Nepal. Ondřej noted that he had resigned as Chair of the Euro-IX Executive Board since the last Board meeting.

2. Report, Risks and OKRs 2025 from the RIPE NCC

2.1 Introduction from the MD

Hans Petter Holen, RIPE NCC Managing Director, said his Executive Team would present on their areas and give updates on progress on the year’s goals.

2.2 Information Security, Risk & Compliance

Eleonora Petridou, RIPE NCC Chief Information Security Officer, gave a report on the Information Security, Risk & Compliance area. She noted that the SOC 2 Type II audit was completed with an unqualified assurance report, which is the highest level of assurance an auditor can provide. This is a big achievement that the whole organisation contributed to. She said the overall security posture of the organisation had improved, driven by stronger governance. The organisation is also heavily engaged in the ISO 27001 certification. She said 80% of risk treatment plans were executed on time. And she said no material security incidents were reported.

Eleonora then gave an overview of risks in the Information Security and Compliance area. She also talked about the objectives from her area for 2025 and how successfully those objectives were met.

A Board member said that getting certified is relatively easy, but getting it renewed is always a challenge. It was noted that there are difficulties in getting all staff to buy into ISO certification, and Eleonora agreed that this is indeed difficult. She added that implementing automation where possible is something that can help with these efforts, and there needs to be a balance between manual work and streamlining processes.

Hans Petter said the efforts to gain compliance have driven improvements to be made, although many staff are keen to focus again on core work.

2.3 External Engagement and Community

Hisham Ibrahim, RIPE NCC Chief Community Officer, gave the report on the External Engagement and Community area for 2025. He presented an overview of the work carried out through the year to elevate experience, as well as the progress that has been achieved in terms of objectives for this area.

He talked about all the RIPE NCC-organised events carried out through the year, including RIPE Meetings, regional meetings, RIPE NCC Days, Government Roundtables, training courses and online events. He explained that the RIPE NCC also had a good presence in events organised by others in the community.

Hisham then gave an overview of Learning and Development activities, noting that we have seen good take-up of certifications throughout the year. Hisham also talked about the efforts we have made to engage with governments and other external organisations in our service region, noting that many strong ties have been built in 2025.

Hisham mentioned all the work that has been done throughout 2025 to provide insights to various stakeholders around the world based on the unique and authoritative data that we hold.

Finally, Hisham covered some of the risks that he sees in this area, and he talked about treatment plans for these risks.

The Board complimented the RIPE NCC on its engagement efforts throughout the year and noted the benefits of attending events to meet members as well as government representatives.

There was a general discussion on the difficulties involved with making sure that governments are aware of the technical aspects of Internet governance and the need to have strong relationships with them. It was pointed out that governments are responsible for their own citizens’ well-being, and we need to be aware that this is their main consideration. Hisham said that this could be seen with the increased involvement of ministries for economic and foreign affairs in Internet governance matters.

The Board discussed the factors involved in choosing RIPE Meeting locations and noted the importance of making sure that there was published criteria for the selection of RIPE Meetings so that external parties could see what is necessary to arrange meetings that accommodate the interests of the service region. The Board said that ensuring representation from all regions in RIPE was very important, as their input was valuable and necessary.

2.4 Registry

Gabor de Wit, RIPE NCC Chief Registry Officer, gave a report on the Registry area.

He noted the high satisfaction ratings in NPS and CES from members. He talked about the status of the annual objectives, noting that things went very well in 2025. He said that the ticket workload is currently very high. He noted that user research is leading to improvements across the Registry systems and processes. End User verification is ongoing and will continue into 2026. He also noted that there was an external assessment of the Registry that was expected to be completed by the end of the year.

Gabor said that he wanted to have more automation for easier and regular processes so that staff could spend more time on the complicated processes or providing valuable expertise.

Gabor also talked about plans to investigate data escrow services and he said work on this would start in 2026. There was a general discussion about how escrow might work, how collaboration with other RIRs might take place and what the impact of the revised ICP-2 might be.

2.5 Technology

Hans Petter gave the report from Technology. He gave an overview of the situation with Internet Infrastructure, Internet Measurements, Business Applications and IT.

Hans Petter outlined the challenges currently facing the Technology division and what might be done to address them. He also outlined the risks in this area and the treatment plans in place to mitigate them. The Board discussed these challenges, particularly in relation to services connected to the cloud and the need to have adequate staffing in order to be able to address challenges and risks.

Hans Petter then went through the objectives for 2025 and how successful we have been in meeting them. The Board thanked Hans Petter for the report and asked that time be allocated at a future meeting to discuss K-root and Root Server System Governance.

A Board member questioned the use of cloud services for core services, and Hans Petter responded that we currently use cloud services for some services. The Activity Plan and Budget for 2026 states the principle that the RIPE NCC needs to remain in full control of the information and services we provide on behalf of our members.

We will do this with trustworthy and independent partners to:

  • Avoid single points of failure for critical services
  • Be resilient beyond national borders

This means that we will reassess our current architecture in the development of our next five-year strategy and will already start the most pressing initiatives in 2026.

2.6 HR and Central Support

Carolien Vos, RIPE NCC Chief Human Resources Officer, went through risks in this area and then gave an overview of the objectives in this area for 2025 and how successfully they have been met.

There was a discussion about the safety ratings of countries RIPE NCC staff might need to travel to and how the RIPE NCC ensures staff safety. Hans Petter noted that staff safety is critical, so all issues relating to travel risks are handled professionally and systematically.

Carolien also shared results from the recent staff survey, noting that the results are very good. She also talked about possible actions that might be taken to further improve scores.

Athina Fragkouli, RIPE NCC Chief Legal Officer, gave an update on the legal objectives for 2025 and how they have been met, including the compliance with applicable regulations such as the EU Data Act, the eEvidence Directive, EU Directives related to RIPE Atlas probes and our efforts to support our members’ compliance with DORA. She also gave a report on Law Enforcement Authorities requests, GDPR-related (right to be forgotten) requests and DSA related (removal of illegal content) requests received so far and noted that up to this point there were no personal data breach incidents this year. Finally, she gave an update on court cases that the RIPE NCC has been involved with.

There followed a general discussion about the legal issues related to reclaiming resources.

3. Finance

3.1 Finance

Simon-Jan Haytink, RIPE NCC Chief Financial Officer, gave the November 2025 financial update. He then covered objectives and key results for 2025, the forecast for 2025, returns on investments and risks in the Finance area.

Simon-Jan then explained the amendment made to the RIPE NCC Treasury Statute, which was to move to a more generic investment strategy following the advice of our new investment partner, and the Board approved this amendment.

Resolution EB#189-R-02

The RIPE NCC Executive Board resolves to approve the amendments to the document “RIPE NCC Treasury Statute”.

The RIPE NCC Executive Board unanimously adopted the resolution.

Simon-Jan then presented a document describing the goals of the RIPE NCC Clearing House (reserves). There was a discussion on possibilities with the RIPE NCC reserves.

Simon-Jan noted that his intention is to publish a version of the document with the goals of the Clearing House for the membership as a RIPE Document. The Board agreed and thanked Simon-Jan for the work to add clarity around this topic.

4. MD Report, MD Objectives 2025

Hans Petter summarised the performance in relation to the company-wide objectives for 2025 in a closed session with the Board only.

5. Executive session

The Board had a closed session to review the performance of the Managing Director and to decide on the annual bonus and annual salary increase.

5.1 Feedback to MD

The Board Chair shared the feedback with the Managing Director.

Day 2: 11 December 2025

6. RIPE

Mirjam Kühne, RIPE Chair, gave an update on developments in the RIPE community.

She thanked the Board for its support with the process around the selection of the new RIPE Chair Team. She said the RIPE NomCom report would be published as a RIPE Document.

She then gave a review of RIPE 91, noting the positive feedback on the organisation of the meeting and the great content presented there. She noted that the RACI talks were well received at the meeting. She also thanked RIPE NCC staff for their work to provide an excellent meeting. She noted that the RIPE NCC Training team is working on a tutorial on public speaking - as suggested by the RIPE Programme Committee and RIPE Meeting participants

Mirjam then spoke about the new, extended RIPE Fellowship Programme. She said there has been a great reaction from the community and that she is very pleased with the number of volunteers and fellows who have already signed up for the new programme. She said she would work closely with the RIPE NCC to further develop the Fellowship Programme.

She did note that there was a medical emergency at the RIPE Meeting, and said she is in contact with the RIPE NCC Chief Community Officer who is working on a proposal to implement measures that can ensure excellent levels of safety for all attendees should a medical issue arise in future.

Mirjam said that RIPE Meetings are scheduled up to RIPE 94, and meetings beyond that are currently being scouted.

Mirjam then gave a working groups (WGs) and policy update.

She said there was a discussion in the Address Policy Working Group to clarify the non-transferability of legacy space. This was not a policy proposal yet, but the pre-discussion showed that it was a topic people cared about. She thought that the way the discussion was progressing showed it would be difficult to find consensus on the topic.

Mirjam then gave an overview of policy implementations and proposals that were currently under discussion. She said that “Revocation of Persistently Non-functional Delegated RPKI CAs” was currently being implemented and was likely to be accepted as a policy in other regions, although this would not be a global policy. She also said that “Revised IPv6 PI Assignment Policy”, “IPv6 Initial Allocations /28 and extension to /28”, and “ASN assignment criteria revisited” were being discussed.

Mirjam gave an update on efforts to “clean up” policy, saying policies were now better structured on the website. She said next steps were to agree on a more consistent format for future policy documents, possibly combine existing policies for IPv4, IPv6 and ASNs, and possibly create a "definitions" document. She added that there might be a Policy Development Process (PDP) update to amend certain timelines and deadlines, as well as to provide guidelines for working group chairs on how to deal with policy proposals.

Finally, Mirjam gave an update on RIPE governance. She said that the RIPE Programme Committee Charter was updated to include the option for a representative from the CAPIF community. She also said there was a review ongoing of the working group chair job description and the selection process for chairs. She also said there would be a review of working group charters together with the respective WGs.

The Board thanked Mirjam for the update and they discussed several items that had been brought up.

7. Corporate Governance

7.1 Review RIPE NCC General Meeting Oct 2025

Fergal Cunningham, RIPE NCC Head of Membership Engagement, gave the review of the RIPE NCC General Meeting (GM) October 2025. He noted that the GM had run very smoothly, although there was a low turnout with no contentious issues to vote on. He said the GM analysis article was published on RIPE Labs, which gives an insight into the voter make-up at this meeting.

7.2 Executive Board Elections 2026

Fergal presented a proposed timeline for the RIPE NCC General Meeting (GM) May 2026 Executive Board elections. He said that the timeline was dependent on the Board’s decision regarding a proposal for an improved process for selecting volunteers for the Executive Board Election Code of Conduct Team (EB Election CoC Team).

Fergal explained that there was an existing action from the Board to propose a process that did not involve the Board selecting the members of the EB Election CoC Team and that ensured members of the team would have some experience in handling reports of Code of Conduct violations. He said that the GM Organisation Team had met with the RIPE Chair Team and the RIPE Code of Conduct Team (RIPE CoC Team) to investigate whether the RIPE CoC Team (minus RIPE NCC staff or those who declared a conflict of interest) would be willing to carry out the role of the EB Election CoC Team.

The Board was pleased to hear that the RIPE CoC Team agreed to carry out this role and stated its appreciation. It was also noted that two members of the team had previously been on the EB Election CoC Team, which provided valuable continuity from previous incarnations of the EB Election CoC Team.

Finally, Fergal said that without the need to solicit volunteers from the membership, the nomination period could begin earlier than usual in 2026, which would allow candidates more time to consider putting their names forward for the Board.

Resolution EB#189-R-03

The RIPE NCC Executive Board resolves that the members of the RIPE Code of Conduct Team, who are not RIPE NCC staff or who do not declare a conflict of interest, shall form the Code of Conduct (CoC) Team for the Executive Board elections.

For the Executive Board elections taking place during the General Meeting (GM) May 2026, the following members will form the CoC Team for the Executive Board elections:

  • Sebastian Becker
  • Florian Hibler
  • Franziska Lichtblau
  • Robert Lister
  • Cynthia Revström
  • David Verolme

The RIPE NCC Executive Board unanimously adopted the resolution.

7.3 Arbiters

Athina explained that at the upcoming General Meeting (GM), there would be an appointment of new arbiters following the expiration of Keith Mitchell’s term in 2026. She said that a Board resolution was necessary to start this process.

The Board stated its appreciation for the work Keith has done on the Arbiters panel and asked that the call for volunteers also note this.

Resolution EB#189-R-04

The RIPE Executive Board resolves to publish an invitation for people that wish to become arbiters according to Section B.2.2 of the RIPE NCC Conflict Arbitration Procedure.

The RIPE NCC Executive Board unanimously adopted the resolution.

7.4 Risk Appetite

Eleonora presented the Risk Appetite Update 2025, noting that revisiting their risk appetite regularly is good practice. She said the organisation and the geopolitical landscape have evolved, and the current risk appetite is not addressing all risk types. She then guided the Board through the proposed risk classifications for the RIPE NCC: averse, cautious, balanced, open, and “big bets”. She also talked about risk acceptance criteria, where very high residual risks should be avoided in general, and can only be accepted by the Board. She explained that the Board was being asked to accept the overall risk appetite. She also gave an overview of the whole risk universe that the RIPE NCC faces. Finally, she presented the proposal for the new risk appetite.

Eleonora explained the difference between cautious and averse risk appetite, highlighting that an averse risk would heavily hinder operations, as it would involve investing time and effort to address even low residual risks.

Eleonora explained that, once a year, teams review their risk registers, and if a risk is identified, a timeframe is set to address it depending on the urgency level. Hans Petter added that goals were in place to handle risks that fell outside the risk appetite in 2026.

Resolution EB#189-R-05

The RIPE NCC Executive Board approves the risk appetite statements as presented during EB#189.

The RIPE NCC Executive Board unanimously adopted the resolution.

7.5 Charging Scheme 2027

Simon-Jan gave an update on the development of charging scheme model proposals to share with the membership. He started by presenting budget forecasts with a projected 2% yearly inflation, which would lead to an income of 45 million euros by 2031. He also gave an update on the plan to publish two models (one a category model and one a formula model) for members in December. He said that under both models, around 60% of members would pay less than they do now. He explained that calculator spreadsheets would be provided that allow members to see their own fees under the two models and that allows them to explore different fee spreads. He added that it was important to note that both models adhered to our interpretation of the principles recommended by the Charging Scheme Task Force.

The Board discussed potential discounts for least developed economies and for educational networks based on the analysis provided. Hans Petter noted that the UN definitions for least developed economies would not be helpful for us, as only one country in our service region is on this list. If this suggestion were to be implemented, a different definition must be chosen or developed.

7.6 Activity Plan and Budget 2026 Approval

Fergal outlined the changes to the Activity Plan since the draft version was published, and Simon-Jan gave the same update for the Budget. Both noted that changes made were minimal.

Resolution EB#189-R-06

The RIPE NCC Executive Board approves the RIPE NCC Activity Plan and Budget 2026 and the publication of the document.

The RIPE NCC Executive Board unanimously adopted the resolution.

8. Strategy

8.1 RIPE NCC Strategy 2027-2031

Fergal gave an update on the development of the RIPE NCC Strategy 2027-2031. He noted that there had been a consultation with the members and community involving an Open House, a member survey, presentations at the RIPE NCC Services Working Group and General Meeting, and a dedicated Strategy BoF at RIPE 91. He said feedback was mostly positive, with input focusing mainly on future RIPE NCC engagement with governments. He said work was now ongoing to develop more detailed service-level strategies that would be incorporated into the overall strategy.

Hans Petter said that the aim was to complete work on the strategy before work starts on the Activity Plan and Budget 2027.

8.2 Long-term strategy

Randy Bush, RIPE NCC Executive Board member, gave a presentation on the long-term outlook for RIPE NCC strategy. Issues covered in the presentation included efforts to maintain trust in the Internet governance system, how the RIRs will look in 25 years, the commoditisation of Internet number resources, self-service and automation, meeting demands from national governments, problems associated with increased RPKI complexity, maintaining services that serve the public good and how they are funded, long-term issues relating to legitimacy, data sovereignty issues, and the impact of geo-political unrest and climate change. Randy finished his presentation with some questions for the Board to consider. The Board then discussed the issues presented.

9. Governance Academy

The Board held a governance workshop with Stefan Peij and Arthur Hol from Governance Academy. The Board carried out a self-evaluation and identified topics for the Board training session scheduled for January 2026.

10. Resilience of Joint Internet Number Registry

10.1 Updates to “Criteria for Establishment of New Regional Internet Registries” (ICP-2)

Athina gave an update on progress with “Criteria for Establishment of New Regional Internet Registries” (ICP-2) following a meeting in Montevideo with the ASO AC and staff from RIRs. She explained that the proposed next steps in the process have been sent to the NRO EC following the meeting. She said a new draft was not expected at this stage. Rather, there would be a focus on addressing the most important issues raised from comments on the current draft and ensuring the involvement of AFRINIC representatives now that there was an Executive Board and an ASO AC representation in place there. She said the overall timeline was that the ASO AC would present a final document in Summer 2026, after which the NRO EC would aim for final approval by the end of 2026.

The Board stated its appreciation for the work that the ASO AC is doing to progress this work and committed to ensuring adequate funding was in place to support its efforts.

10.2 AFRNIC

Athina gave an update on developments in AFRINIC following the election of an Executive Board. Hans Petter noted that a request had been received from AFRINIC to meet with their new Executive Board in 2026.

10.3 APNIC-NCC Joint Meeting of the Boards

Hans Petter gave an update on the development of an agenda for the joint meeting of the RIPE NCC and APNIC Executive Boards that will take place in February 2026. He said that APNIC would send a survey to all Board members to solicit additional topics for discussion at the meeting. There was a discussion on what outcomes were expected and how to ensure that the meeting would be useful for both organisations.

11. Actions and Upcoming Meetings

11.1 Dates of next meetings

Hans Petter went through the list of upcoming meetings and Board members noted their preferences on the schedule.

11.2 Action list review

Hans Petter went through the action list.

12. AOB

There was no other business.

The Board thanked all those who presented and gave updates. Ondřej closed the meeting at 17:03 (UTC+1).

Resolutions

Resolution EB#189-R-01

The RIPE NCC Executive Board approves the minutes of EB#188.

The RIPE NCC Executive Board unanimously adopted the resolution.

Resolution EB#189-R-02

The RIPE NCC Executive Board resolves to approve the amendments to the document “RIPE NCC Treasury Statute”.

The RIPE NCC Executive Board unanimously adopted the resolution.

Resolution EB#189-R-03

The RIPE NCC Executive Board resolves that the members of the RIPE Code of Conduct Team, who are not RIPE NCC staff or who do not declare a conflict of interest, shall form the Code of Conduct (CoC) Team for the Executive Board elections.

For the Executive Board elections taking place during the General Meeting (GM) May 2026, the following members will form the CoC Team for the Executive Board elections:

  • Sebastian Becker
  • Florian Hibler
  • Franziska Lichtblau
  • Robert Lister
  • Cynthia Revström
  • David Verolme

The RIPE NCC Executive Board unanimously adopted the resolution.

Resolution EB#189-R-04

The RIPE Executive Board resolves to publish an invitation for people that wish to become arbiters according to Section B.2.2 of the RIPE NCC Conflict Arbitration Procedure.

The RIPE NCC Executive Board unanimously adopted the resolution.

Resolution EB#189-R-05

The RIPE NCC Executive Board approves the risk appetite statements as presented during EB#189.

The RIPE NCC Executive Board unanimously adopted the resolution.

Resolution EB#189-R-06

The RIPE NCC Executive Board approves the RIPE NCC Activity Plan and Budget 2026 and the publication of the document.

The RIPE NCC Executive Board unanimously adopted the resolution.

Action Items

Ongoing action items

Action EB454 / 24/06/2024 / SJH
To list the main risks and the related substantive reasoning for the goals of RIPE NCC reserves.

Status 20/09/2024: Ongoing. In the meeting, it was noted the reserves were created to get the organisation through difficult times. An update will be included in the Executive Board report at the autumn GM.

Status 12/12/2024: Ongoing. An update at the autumn GM was given, and at EB#179, input from the Board was gathered.

Status 21/03/2025: Ongoing. It was noted that a document covering the reasoning behind the RIPE NCC reserves would be provided to the Board before the RIPE 90 Meeting.

Status 28/06/2025: Ongoing. A first draft of the document was shared with the Board and comments and feedback are being processed.

Status 05/09/2025: Ongoing.

Status 11/12/2025: Ongoing. The document on goals of the RIPE NCC reserves was finalised and discussed during EB#189 in topic 3.1. The Board agreed with the document and the intention to publish it as a RIPE Document.

Action EB455 / 20/03/2025 / HPH
To develop a proposal to transition from an Executive Board to a Supervisory Board, taking into account a transition plan, employment consequences, remuneration and the relevant amendments to the Articles of Association for GM approval.

Status 28/06/2025: Ongoing. The Board discussed the proposal for transition in topic 5 of EB#186 and agreed to move forward with the proposed actions.

Status 05/09/2025. Ongoing. The Board discussed the proposal in topic 7 of EB#188 and agreed to further in the training session that will be planned for the Board in January 2026.

Status 11/12/2025: Ongoing. As part of the transition plan, the Board conducted a self-evaluation during EB#189 at topic 9 and a training session is planned for January 2026.

Closed action items

Action EB456 / 20/03/2025 / AF
To propose an improved process for selecting volunteers for the Executive Board Election Code of Conduct Team.

Status 28/06/2025: Ongoing.

Status 05/09/2025: Ongoing.

Status 11/12/2025: Done. An improved process was discussed at agenda item 7.2. It suggests that volunteers come from the RIPE Code of Conduct (CoC) Team and the Board and CoC team agreed to the new process.

Action EB457 / 05/09/2025 / SJH

Simon-Jan to prepare three models for Charging Scheme 2027 to discuss with the task force and then members at the October 2025 GM.

Status 11/12/2025: Done. Models for the Charging Scheme 2027 have been prepared and shared with the Charging Scheme Task Force and during the October 2025 General Meeting.