Mexico and Quebec on Monday signed an agreement that will allow Mexico to learn about its Canadian counterpart’s carbon market as it thrashes out its climate change policies.
The agreement was signed as President Enrique Peña Nieto visited Quebec Monday.
“Under the terms of the agreement, the exchange of information on different aspects of cap-and-trade emission allowances in Quebec will enable the Mexican side to understand the process and benefits of the development and implementation of a carbon market,” said a statement from Quebec Premier Philippe Coulliard.
“The success of Quebec-California carbon market sets a precedent that encourages the development of a wider market encompassing new players, including Mexico,” the premier said.
The agreement came three months after Quebec Environment Minister David Heurtel said on Twitter that Mexico would establish a carbon offset market in 2017 and seek links to the markets in California, Quebec and Ontario, following a meeting with Rodolfo Lacy, Mexico’s undersecretary for environmental policy and planning.
Monday’s statement contained no further news or details on potential linking, but the two leaders did discuss carbon trading personally in their meeting, according to the statement.
Mexico in 2014 introduced a $3.50/tonne tax on CO2 emissions from fossil fuels, and plans to allow using offsets from carbon-cutting projects as a compliance option for emitters.
Coulliard told reporters on Monday that Peña Nieto remained committed to using a carbon market to meet Mexico’s climate targets, although it was not clear whether the president was considering an actual cap-and-trade scheme.
Mexico plans to keep its GHG emissions at 30% below BAU levels in 2020 and 25% below BAU in 2030 according to its INDC, but has said it can deepen the 2030 goal to -40% provided a global climate agreement is reached that addresses various issues including an international carbon price, carbon border adjustments, technical cooperation, access to low-cost financial resources and technology transfer.
By Stian Reklev – stian@carbon-pulse.com
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