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TOP STORY
NA Markets: WCI prices move up as market ponders auction result
WCI prices continued to rise even after Tuesday’s quarterly auction as traders considered several factors in predicting the result of the year’s first joint sale without Ontario.
EMEA
Soaring EU carbon drives fuel-switching, gas price holds key to more
A trebling of EU carbon prices over the past year has driven emission reductions as more power generators opt to switch from coal to cleaner gas, with only a recent hike in gas prices preventing even deeper cuts.
EU Market: EUAs dip below €18 following week-long bull run
European carbon prices dipped below €18 on Thursday, easing back following a week-long rally that had pushed prices to a 10-year high amid some of the tightest auction volumes of the year.
ASIA PACIFIC
China set to release guidance on power sector test ETS
China will shortly release technical guidance to power companies slated to be brought into the sector’s simulation cap-and-trade programme, an official said Thursday, a sign that work on the carbon market might be moving ahead after months of organisational uncertainty.
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TECHNICAL ANALYSIS COURSE
PRACTICAL & RELEVANT CPD BY FUTURESTECHS
City of London, Royal Exchange – Thursday Sep. 6, 12pm to 6pm
This “intro” course will cover Support and Resistance, Trendlines, Chart Patterns, Fibonacci, Candlestick Charts, Moving Averages, Bollinger Bands, Momentum Studies, and an introduction to Market Profile.
Clive Lambert has been teaching traders about Technical Analysis for over 20 years. He is widely regarded as one of the best Technical Analysis trainers you will find. As well as a practical approach Clive is also able to share how to apply the charts to specific markets in the energy complex. All attendees will also receive a signed copy of Clive’s book “Candlestick Charts”.
SPECIAL CARBON PULSE READER RATE: £695 +VAT per person (Save £100!)
Places will be limited so book now!
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CARBON FORWARD 2018
SAVE THE DATE: Carbon Forward 2018 – Survive and thrive in the global carbon markets
Don’t miss the 3rd annual Carbon Forward conference and training day – Oct. 16-18, 2018 in London.
Spend two days with top experts, players, and decision-makers from the global carbon markets as they address today’s most attractive opportunities and pressing challenges. And join us for the EU ETS pre-conference training day organised by carbon market experts Redshaw Advisors, where you will learn how to effectively manage your carbon risk ahead of the looming overhaul of the bloc’s emissions trading scheme.
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BITE-SIZED UPDATES FROM AROUND THE WORLD
Still reachable – Germany can still meet its domestic 2020 goal of 40% emissions reductions while ensuring a stable energy supply, provided that several brown-coal-fired power plants are immediately retired and others are throttled back, according to a Greenpeace-commissioned study by the Fraunhofer Institute. (Clean Energy Wire)
Pipe down – A federal judge in Montana on Wednesday ordered the US State Department to conduct a full environmental review of a revised route for the Keystone XL pipeline, bringing more possible delays to the controversial crude oil project. Although the State Department had found in a draft environmental assessment last month that the alternative route would cause no major harm to wildlife or water supplies, US District Court Judge Brian Morris ruled in favour of the Indigenous Environmental Network and other plaintiffs that a more in-depth analysis must be carried out. Project operator TransCanada had hoped to start preliminary work on the pipeline in Montana in the coming months, with construction beginning in the second quarter of 2019. (Reuters)
Parting with exports? – Iowa senator and prominent Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) advocate Chuck Grassley (R) told reporters on Wednesday that the US EPA is no longer considering a controversial provision to allow exported biofuels to qualify for Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs). Grassley’s statement came after recent dialogue with EPA Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler, who had previously said that any changes to the federal biofuels programme would need to move as part of a package deal to satisfy opposing refiner and agriculture interests. While former agency head Scott Pruitt had sent a letter to Capitol Hill in October saying that the EPA had not and would not pursue any efforts to incorporate exported RINs into the programme, the idea was reportedly up for consideration earlier this year. Refiners have argued that the provision would help limit RIN prices and improve blending, while agriculture and biofuels groups have countered the move could constitute an illegal export subsidy and further sink biofuel credits from their current levels near five-year lows. (Agri-Pulse)
Electric backslide – The Canadian arm of California-based automaker Tesla is suing the Ontario government for “substantial harm” and lost sales after Premier Doug Ford cancelled the province’s Electric and Hydrogen Vehicle Incentive Program (EHVIP). The initiative, which was funded in large part by the shuttered cap-and-trade scheme, offered rebates of up to C$14,000 on qualifying vehicles as long as they were valued under C$75,000. However, while the province initially promised to honour the incentive for those who had their vehicle delivered, registered, and plated if it was purchased from a dealer before Sep. 10, the company alleged that the government changed its wording to “expressly exclude Tesla Canada and its customers from the transition plan”. Tesla Canada, which says it is an Ontario-licensed dealer, filed its lawsuit with the Ontario Superior Court of Justice. (CBC)
Sea sick – Marine heatwaves could become 41 times more likely by 2100 if little is done to stop GHG emissions, a new study has found. Research published in the journal Nature suggested that under 3.5 C of global warming, underwater heatwaves that were likely to occur once in every 100 days in the pre-industrial era could occur once in every three days by the end of the century, with the average area covered by the temperature surge expected to be 21 times larger and last 100 days longer. However, limiting global temperature increases to the aspirational Paris Agreement target of 1.5 C would only result in these heatwaves becoming 16 times more likely, while also covering a smaller area and spanning less time on average. (Carbon Brief)
Risk resumption – Oil major Exxon Mobil must face a lawsuit by investors who blamed a drop in the company’s shares on the disclosure that regulators were scrutinising its reserve accounting related to climate change. This comes after a US District Judge denied Exxon’s bid to dismiss the suit. (Bloomberg)
And finally… Pick me a winner – The US Department of Interior (DOI) and a major coal company teamed up to try and save the West’s largest coal-fired power plant, reports E&E News. According to emails obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request, Peabody Energy asked the DOI last September to pressure the Central Arizona Project (CAP) to continue buying energy from the Navajo Generating Station instead of ramping up its renewable purchasing. Peabody owns the coal mine that supplies the Navajo station, and the CAP is Navajo’s largest customer. In turn, the DOI sent a letter to the CAP in June that mirrors Peabody’s request, while Peabody also asked the department to check with the EPA about waving requirements for costly new emissions controls for the plant. The station is scheduled to close by 2019 if the Navajo Nation cannot close a deal with a new buyer. (Climate Nexus)
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