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TOP STORY
US election result unlikely to derail TCI carbon market, while RGGI linkage may hinge on consensus
The Transportation & Climate Initiative (TCI) would not halt its plan for a regional cap-and-trade system if Democratic nominee Joe Biden is elected president next month, while New Hampshire’s opposition to the proposed sectoral carbon market could thwart a linkage with RGGI, a workshop panelist said Wednesday.
EMEA
EU Market: EUAs drop 4% to below €24 on weak auction, more technical selling
EUAs tumbled more than a euro to further deepen their four-month low on Wednesday, as a weak auction clearance followed by technical selling pushed carbon below another key support.
CORRELATIONS: EU carbon moves continue to mimic power while oil, stocks links dissipate
EU carbon prices have maintained their close correlation to German power in recent weeks, while weakening the somewhat tight relationship to crude oil and US stocks observed earlier this year.
AMERICAS
California gasoline demand rises in August, as YoY pace slows for second straight month
California fuel consumption inched up slightly in August even as the year-on-year trend widened for the first time since April, according to federal data released this week.
US needs more besides carbon pricing to spur GHG cuts -report
The US will need complementary policies to drive long term deep decarbonisation because a federal carbon tax over the next decade would concentrate near-term emissions cuts within the electricity sector, according to a report published Tuesday.
ASIA PACIFIC
NZX, EEX win bid to operate New Zealand carbon auctions
New Zealand’s NZX and Germany-based EEX have been picked to develop and operate the platform that will handle carbon allowance auctions in New Zealand.
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BITE-SIZED UPDATES FROM AROUND THE WORLD
10…9…8… – Japan’s new prime minister, Yoshihide Suga, is set to announce next week that Japan will set a net zero emissions target for 2050, Nikkei reported Wednesday evening. There was no further information at this stage, other than an expectation that the announcement will include specific measures to promote renewable energy. Japan is in the process of carving out a long-term low-carbon strategy, so more news on this should be available in the weeks and months to come. Its current goal is to reduce GHG emissions 80% by mid-century and to reach net zero as soon as possible after that.
Seal of ag-proval – The EU’s agriculture ministers have this week endorsed a European Commission plan to establish an initiative to incentivise farmers and foresters to sequester carbon, expected in mid-2021. At a ministerial meeting on Monday, the 27 agriculture ministers said that the move “could be an important contribution to the EU climate ambition”, while adding that the upcoming certification system for removals should avoid “leakage effects and adverse impacts on the environment”. Read Carbon Pulse’s latest on the EU carbon farming initiative to find out more.
SME support – Organisations are slowly stepping in to help small businesses that are increasingly facing a choice between radically cutting GHG emissions or the risk of losing their largest clients. Industry giants including Apple, Microsoft, and Unilever, have pledged to reduce emissions along their supply chains, which are made up of the kinds of SMEs that account for over 90% of companies in Europe and employ nearly half of all workers. Non-profit We Mean Business recently helped launch the SME Climate Hub, a platform for small- and medium-sized enterprises to halve their emissions before 2030 and reach net zero before 2050. It will start by offering training and later add services to help businesses calculate and cut their emissions. The EU also wants SMEs to have direct access to funding vehicles including the €650 bln InvestEU program, Commission VP Frans Timmermans said last week. Leaders for Climate Action, a non-profit that’s expanding rapidly across Europe from its base in Berlin’s tech community, says it’s helped over 500 companies offset a combined 270,000 tCO2, including Cabify – Spain’s leading rideshare company, and French carpooling firm Blabla Car. (Bloomberg)
Mapping out – GHGSat released a new methane map on Wednesday that uses data from the company’s two satellites, which were launched earlier this year and can detect methane emitted by oil and gas wells, coal mines, power plants, farms, and factories. It’s part of a wave of climate surveillance that will make it possible to hold countries and companies accountable for meeting targets to reduce and eventually eliminate GHGs. (Bloomberg Green)
Going for the gigawatts, part I – Avangrid, a subsidiary of Spanish energy giant Iberdrola, is buying the big New Mexico-based power company PNM Resources in a $4.3 bln deal. The companies said the deal, valued at $8.3 bln including debt, will form the third-largest renewable power company in the United States, with a combined market value of roughly $20 bln. The companies hope to complete the transaction in about a year, as the deal still requires approval by PNM shareholders and a suite of state and federal agencies. (Axios)
Going for the gigawatts, part II – Corporate buyers of renewable energy will drive the development of 44 GW to 72 GW of new wind and solar projects in the US over the next decade, according to research published Tuesday by IHS Markit. The company found corporate-driven power purchase agreements (PPAs) could represent 20% of all utility-scale renewable power additions from 2021 to 2030. Simultaneously, PPA offer prices “are on the rise for both wind and solar projects” according to new research from LevelTen Energy. (Utility Dive)
South by Southeast – Forest carbon offset developer Finite Carbon and wood bioenergy company Enviva on Wednesday announced they will team up to engage small landowners across the Southeast US to engage in voluntary offset markets. The partnership, leveraging Finite Carbon’s CORE Carbon online platform, will help address climate change while generating new annual income for small landowners based on forest stewardship and extended rotations of mature bottomland hardwood forest. The initial phase of CORE Carbon will focus on a deferred harvest methodology, co-authored with American Carbon Registry (ACR), focusing on high conservation value forests such as mature bottomland hardwood stands in the southeast.
Live at version five – The Alberta environment ministry on Wednesday published the Version 5.0 Standard for Validation, Verification and Audit under the province’s Technology Innovation and Emissions Reduction (TIER) regime. Effective Nov. 15, all submissions to the Alberta Emission Offset Registry must use this updated standard.
And finally… Bad bacteria – Climate change is leading to a spike in cases of deadly, flesh-eating bacteria as warming temperatures, sea level rise, and storm surges move the Vibrio strains further north and further inland. For example, cases nearly doubled in the Chesapeake Region between 2007 and 2019 with over 1,000 people infected in Maryland and Virginia, while there has been a startling increase in cases in Pennsylvania. Nationally, cases have doubled in the last 11 years and are a growing threat to people who swim and work in the coastal waters. An investigation by Columbia Journalism Investigations, McClatchy Newspapers, and the Center for Public Integrity found that state and county health departments are ill-prepared and reticent to recognise this growing climate health problem. Center for Disease Control and Prevention data shows that every year about 1,200 Americans fall ill from the various Vibrio species, while it estimates that the actual caseload could be up to 66 times higher than reported. Studies also show that Vibrio cases can grow exponentially after hurricanes. (Climate Nexus)
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