The regulator can also prosecute people for improperly created certificates.

Canberrans who lost their certificates when a solar products company went broke have called for tighter controls on the ownership of small scale renewable energy certificates.

The Federal Court has reserved its decision on what should happen to solar credits left after Enviro Friendly Products went into administration owing more than $750,000.

Liquidator Worrells Solvency & Forensic Accountants wants the court to direct how it should deal with the small-scale technology certificates, known as STCs.

Klaus Matthaei and his wife spent about $24,000 on panels, with an incentive of earning about $8000 from the STCs in the future, only to discover that many were missing.

The Clean Energy Regulator validates STCs and facilitates their release into the market. This involves manually checking the registration details of every set of STCs submitted for creation.

In a statement, the regulator's office said penalties for improperly created certificates could include suspension of the responsible agent from the scheme.

"If improperly created certificates have already been traded in the market, the Clean Energy Regulator can require the surrender of the same number of validly created certificates by the agent.

"The Clean Energy Regulator does not become involved in commercial disputes between owners and agents."

These are matters for the courts, it said.

"Payments for STCs or the rights to create STCs is a contractual matter between owners and their agent."