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California court rules in favour of ARB’s cap-and-trade programme
California’s Air Resources Board (ARB) won a landmark case targetting its cap-and-trade system, temporarily lifting a long-lingering shadow over the future of the market ahead of a probable state Supreme Court challenge.
Market mixed on whether California CO2 prices can sustain post-verdict gains
Traders and analysts are mixed as to whether California Carbon Allowances (CCA) prices, which jumped by as much as 5% after a state appeals court on Thursday dismissed a crucial legal challenge to the cap-and-trade scheme, can hold onto those gains.
BRIEFING: Smokescreen or silver bullet? The good, the bad, and the ugly of internal carbon pricing
Ever more companies worldwide are adopting internal carbon pricing amid mounting pressure from investors, but some apply so little rigour that they are able to get away with greenwashing.
Energy Aspects lift EUA price forecasts by up to 90% on ETS reform deal
Analysts at London-based Energy Aspects have raised their EU carbon allowance price forecasts by as much as 90% following the post-2020 EU ETS reform deal struck by lawmakers in late February.
Global renewable investment kept falling in 2016 as costs tumble -BNEF
As the cost of clean technology continues to fall, the world added record levels of renewable energy capacity in 2016 at an investment level 23% lower than the previous year, according to research by UNEP and Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF).
EU Market: EUAs fall below €5 after late sell-off, still notches 4.3% weekly gain
EUAs slipped back below the €5 mark on Friday in a late sell-off amid falls in power prices but still managed a 4.3% weekly gain as trading eased ahead of the Easter holiday.
Ontario brewers see allocation boost in proposed ETS rule changes
The Ontario government is proposing a number of rule amendments in its nascent ETS, with beer brewers and a handful of other industries poised to be affected by the changes.
Ontario to offer 25.3 million allowances in second auction
Ontario will offer 25.3 million vintage 2017 allowances in its second carbon auction, which will take place on June 6, the provincial government said Friday.
CN Markets: Pilot market data for week ending Apr 4, 2017
Below is a table of the closing prices, ranges and volumes for China’s regional pilot carbon markets this week. All prices are in RMB, and volumes in tonnes of CO2e. Data sourced from local exchanges.
Voluntary carbon market data from CTX for Apr. 7, 2017
A table of Verified Emission Reduction (VER) prices and offered volumes, based on voluntary market data provided by Carbon Trade Exchange (CTX).
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BITE-SIZED UPDATES FROM AROUND THE WORLD
Welcome to the snake pit – Trump White House senior officials hold up to $12.3 million in energy company stocks, according to a Politico and Center for American Progress (CAP) analysis of White House financial disclosure forms. While six staffers hold a majority of the shares, around a dozen White House staffers have some holding in energy stocks, including shares of companies like Exxon Mobil and Chevron. “At best, these financial disclosures call into question the extent to which White House staff can be even-handed in their approach to energy and environmental issues and, at worst, they illustrate a snake pit of potential ethical violations,” CAP senior campaign manager Claire Moser told Politico. (Climate Nexus)
Green light for green sale – Australian investment bank Macquarie looks set to acquire Britain’s Green Investment Bank (GIB) after a court rejected the claim of a rival bidder on Friday, Reuters reported. The British government set up GIB, which backs green projects with public funds, in 2012 as a commercial venture to spur private sector investment in green projects. It has invested more than 2 billion pounds ($2.5 billion) in projects such as offshore wind farms and waste management. The government decided to sell a majority stake in 2015, saying it would give the bank greater freedom to borrow, removing state aid restrictions, and allow it to attract more capital. Some British lawmakers have opposed a sale to Macquarie, worried that it could lead to job losses.
Seaweed saviour – Seaweed could become a promising source of aviation biofuels if sustainably produced and economic and policy challenges can be overcome, according to Norwegian NGO Bellona. They belong to the fastest growing species in the world and do not compete for valuable land space or fresh water during cultivation. Using biofuels to help power jet engines reduces particle emissions in their exhaust by as much as 50-70% and so can help reduce contrail formations that produce climate warming effects, say research scientists led by NASA published in journal Nature. (GreenAir Online)
The REDD gap – Mongabay profiles the Choco-Darien Conservation Corridor, the first REDD project to be registered in Colombia. Despite its success on the ground, the project has struggled to keep afloat due to the lack of demand compared to what was anticipated when the scheme was designed in 2009. A floor price of $10/tonne for REDD would do the trick, the developer says.
And finally… Well, this is awkward – The Kentucky Coal Mining Museum in the small US town of Benham is installing rooftop solar panels, Kentucky news station WYMT reported. “We believe that this project will help save at least $8,000-10,000 off the energy costs on this building alone,” museum spokesperson Brandon Robinson told the station. (AP)
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