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TOP STORY
Dutch Supreme Court advisors support higher GHG target ruling
Advisors to the Dutch Supreme Court on Friday recommended that a judicial ruling ordering the country’s government to set a deeper emissions reduction target be upheld, in a move that could help establish a global precedent in forcing states to act to prevent climate change.
EMEA
UK to get free pass on 2019 EU ETS compliance with January Brexit date -expert
A delay of the Brexit deadline to Jan. 31, 2020 will not translate into UK emitters having EU ETS compliance obligations for 2019, according to an expert familiar with the British government’s post-EU preparations.
EU Market: EUAs give up early gains but still notch 5% weekly rise
EUAs gave back early gains on Friday as investors lowered their expectations of a no-deal Brexit but still hung on for a 5% weekly rise on a bullish energy complex.
ASIA PACIFIC
NZ Market: NZUs edge down as buyers take a step back
New Zealand carbon allowances recorded a sixth consecutive session of minor losses on Friday, with buyers taking their feet off the pedal after prices rose back above the NZ$25 fixed price option level last week.
CN Markets: Pilot market data for week ending Sep. 13, 2019
Closing prices, ranges and volumes for China’s regional pilot carbon markets this week.
AMERICAS
Rhode Island awards $250k contract to study carbon pricing
Rhode Island has awarded a $250,000 contract to a consultancy to perform a statewide study to determine ways to reduce carbon emissions in line with previously approved GHG targets, a regulatory source said.
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BITE-SIZED UPDATES FROM AROUND THE WORLD
Spend it better – Efforts to help the most vulnerable countries cope with the impacts of the climate crisis remain under-funded compared with emissions cuts, according to a report from donor countries. Analysis by the OECD found that only 19% of climate finance mobilised in 2017 went to projects that helped communities adapt to climate change. The vast majority of the money went to efforts to reduce emissions with 8% identified as serving both goals. Developing countries have long pushed for climate finance to be evenly split between helping them to reduce emissions and to adapt to existing climate impacts. The UN’s Green Climate Fund aims to deliver a 50/50 split. (Climate Home)
Show me the money – California utility Pacific Gas & Electric announced an $11 billion settlement agreement Friday with the Ad Hoc Subrogation Group in connection to insurance wildfire claims, according to a press release. The announcement marks the second wildfire settlement by the embattled utility since filing for bankruptcy in January. PG&E agreed to a $1 billion settlement in June with 18 local public entities. The company submitted a restructuring plan Monday that outlined an estimated $18 billion in wildfire claims.
Powering up – California’s Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) proposed a 2.5 GW procurement between 2021 to 2023 to increase electricity reliability in the state. Under the proposal released Thursday, power utilities and community choice aggregators would be required to solicit generation, including existing natural gas-fired power, for the three year period. The CPUC said it believes battery storage and renewable power could compete well with more carbon-intensive sources. “Deploying renewable energy and battery storage, as well as gas-fired generation, to meet the reliability needs identified by the CPUC and stakeholders will advance California toward a low-carbon, reliable future,” the CPUC wrote. The agency could vote on the measure on Oct. 24. (Utility Dive)
Not how it should go – Record heatwaves in Europe and Asia this summer are leading fund managers to buy shares of air conditioning manufacturers, betting that the public health risks of rising temperatures will compel businesses and apartment building owners to install cooling systems. Shares of Johnson Controls International, United Technologies, and Ingersoll-Rand, are all up 25% or more since the start of the year, compared to the 19% added by the US benchmark S&P 500 index. Fund managers and analysts say the recent outperformance will likely continue due to the necessity of cooling systems as temperatures rise globally. However, coolants and power used by air conditioning contributes to climate change, creating a perverse and vicious cycle. (Reuters)
Annulled – A further 190,000 Colombian CERs were cancelled against the country’s carbon tax on Friday, according to UN data. At 189,000, the largest batch was retired by Puma Energy. This further squeezes the already extremely short market for eligible offsets. Read Carbon Pulse’s latest take on the subject.
And finally… Eco-friendly enrolments – The chief of the general staff of the British Army says it could phase out petrol and diesel vehicles in a bid to attract recruits, the Telegraph reports. The paper quotes General Sir Mark Carleton-Smith speaking at a defence and security event in London, saying today’s military equipment would probably be the last to be “dependent on fossil fuel engines”, and that a move towards clean energy would be beneficial logistically and put the military “on the right side of the environmental argument”. The general also noted that establishing an eco-friendly reputation was essential to future recruitment, as younger people “increasingly make career decisions based on a prospective employer’s environmental credentials”. (Carbon Brief)
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