Newsletters > CP Daily: Wednesday August 3, 2022

CP Daily: Wednesday August 3, 2022

Published 22:54 on August 3, 2022  /  Last updated at 22:54 on August 3, 2022  / /  Newsletters

A daily summary of our news plus bite-sized updates from around the world.

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TOP STORY

India introduces bill to establish carbon market, mandate green energy use

The Indian government on Wednesday introduced to parliament its Energy Conservation (amendment) bill, which seeks to establish a national framework for carbon markets and mandate the use of green and low carbon energy use.

VOLUNTARY

Voluntary carbon market value approaches $2 bln in 2021

The annual value of voluntary carbon market (VCM) transactions skyrocketed to nearly $2 billion last year, with both VER prices and traded volume increasing markedly year-on-year, a recent report showed.

Verra proposes tough KYC checks for tokenising VCS credits

Crypto companies must undertake extensive know-your-counterparty (KYC) checks if they wish to tokenise Verra credits in the future, the registry has proposed.

Price gap widening between OTC and futures market for new nature-based VERs

Nature-based, standardised spot and futures VER values remained in the doldrums Wednesday amid inflation-triggered economic uncertainty, widening the gap below a bespoke voluntary carbon market (VCM) where prices are climbing higher for newer vintage credits.

Crowdfunded crypto venture to pre-fund offset projects

An upstart crypto group based around crowdfunding mechanisms is seeking to provide carbon offset developers with project pre-funding via vetted buyers.

Ship coating project given a low chance of avoiding a tonne of CO2

An energy efficiency project that makes ships run sleekly through water has been awarded a low chance of actually avoiding or removing a tonne of CO2 by a ratings agency.

EMEA

Low Rhine level impact downplayed as tight hydro already priced into EU markets

Energy and carbon markets have already priced in the drought conditions in Europe, sources told Carbon Pulse, which has drained reservoirs for hydro power, and may soon leave the Rhine impassable for barges transporting coal to Germany.

Euro Markets: EUAs reach two-week high as sellers hold back despite heavy fund liquidations

EUA prices forged higher for a third consecutive day, reaching their highest in two weeks as the annual August auction supply cut continued to drive the market even as investment funds cut long positions, while energy prices reversed early gains as gas inventories appeared to improve and demand has declined.

ASIA PACIFIC

Australian Market Roundup: Greens to support govt’s climate bill as ERF sees quiet period

Australian Greens leader Adam Bandt has announced his party will guarantee safe passage of the Labor government’s climate bill through the Senate, including the target to reduce emissions by 43% from 2005 levels by 2030, but has also vowed that the party’s fight to stop new coal and gas projects will go on.

Australian oil & gas company secures rights to Zimbabwean REDD+ projects

An Australian upstream oil and gas company has secured the right to develop and generate carbon credits from three REDD+ projects in Zimbabwe spanning over 300,000 hectares.

Ahead of GX League start, Mitsui launches lifecycle CO2 platform for Japanese market

Trading house Mitsui has launched a platform to visualise and estimate lifecycle CO2 emissions on a product level, which it will offer to clients linked to decarbonisation services, such as carbon credit sales.

INTERNATIONAL

Singapore signs MoU with Colombia for Article 6-guided cooperation on carbon credits

Singapore has signed another Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for bilateral collaboration on carbon credits in alignment with Article 6 guidelines, this time with Colombia, Singapore’s Ministry of Trade and Industry has announced.

AMERICAS

Bahamas’ blue carbon market lets developed world off the hook for CO2 emissions -scientist

The Bahamas is letting the developed world avoid addressing its disproportionate responsibility for climate change by creating a ‘blue carbon’ market to protect the Caribbean islands’ large seagrass meadow, a scientist has warned.

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BITE-SIZED UPDATES FROM AROUND THE WORLD

Carbon Pulse has teamed up with CME Group to provide its clients with regular updates on the global carbon markets. Check out these briefs for the latest insights on pressing trends and events impacting markets, published every other week. Registration required

INTERNATIONAL

This investment goes to 11(%) – Global investment in renewable energy spiked 11% in the first half of this year, relative to the same period in 2021, rising to $226 bln and setting a new record according to data from BloombergNEF.  It was the “best-ever first half for renewables investment,” the firm said in a research note published Tuesday. The bulk of that spending went to finance solar and wind projects, analysts said. Investment in large- and small-scale solar projects reached $120 bln, up 33% over the first six months of 2021. Financing for wind projects jumped 16% to $84 bln. (Utility Dive)

EMEA

Power trucks – Volvo plans to build a large-scale battery plant in Sweden to meet an expected surge in demand for electric trucks and buses, as reported by Bloomberg. The Swedish manufacturer, which currently sources cells from Samsung, said Wednesday it started a process to obtain approvals to set up its own production. It did not disclose how much the factory would cost. The world’s second-biggest truckmaker plans to gradually increase capacity and reach large-scale series production by 2030. Volvo reiterated its target that at least 35% of its products should be electric by the same year.

Biomassive funding – Innovative biomass projects across the UK have been awarded £37 mln in funding as the government drives forward its plan to scale up domestic renewable energy. Increasing the growth of elephant grass, farming seaweed off the North Yorkshire coast, and increasing the harvesting capacity for willow, are among 12 projects receiving a share of £32 mln funding under Phase 2 of the Biomass Feedstocks Innovation Programme – aiming to find new ways to increase biomass production in the UK. Also announced today are 22 winners of the first stage of the so-called Hydrogen BECCS programme, with £5 mln funding to help develop innovative technologies to produce hydrogen, a clean fuel that emits only water vapour when combusted, from sustainable biomass and waste.

ASIA PACIFIC

Hydrogen target – State-owned Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) is aiming to replace at least a tenth of its current fossil-fuel-based hydrogen at its refineries with carbon-free green hydrogen as part of a decarbonisation drive, Economic Times reports. To start with, the nation’s largest oil firm is setting up green hydrogen plants at its Panipat and Mathura refineries, IOC said in its latest annual report. “The company is venturing into green hydrogen production and is targeting 5% of hydrogen produced to be green hydrogen by 2027-28, and 10% by 2029-30,” it said.

Policy proposal – New Zealand’s primary industries ministry has launched a consultation on extending the deferral of a penalty fine issued to ETS participants for failing to surrender or repay units by the due date, according to its consultation page. The penalty, set at three times the carbon price for each overdue unit, originally came into effect in Jan. 1, 2021 but was pushed back to avoid small foresters facing serious financial hardships while new options were developed. The government plans to extend the deferral to allow time to educate participants and develop a new policy in the short term. The two policy proposal options include either a strict liability penalty, paid in cash, based on the price of carbon, which would not apply if the participants can prove total absence of fault, or a discretionary penalty, which the EPA could have control over in terms of cost, depending on the participant’s culpability. Submissions are due by 17:00, Tuesday Aug. 30 local time.

Directions set – Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission has issued its agenda for green and sustainable finance, supporting the city’s ambition to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 and transform itself into a regional green finance centre. The regulator’s work will focus on enhancing corporate disclosures, improving existing measures relating to ESG funds, and developing a regulatory framework for proposed carbon markets, according to an official filing. The move came after Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX), the world’s sixth largest stock exchange, last month announced partnerships with several banks to establish HK as an international carbon trading hub.

AMERICAS

Rooting for RGGI – More than 30 of Pennsylvania’s lawmakers and environmental advocacy organisations presented on Tuesday “A Shared Vision for Pennsylvania’s Environment and Communities” – a plan identifying policy solutions for several areas of environmental concern and energy justice. The plan included requests to invest proceeds from the state’s contested participation in RGGI’s cap-and-trade programme to help lower energy costs for low-income families and create jobs in underserved communities. (Pennsylvania Capital-Star)

AND FINALLY…

The endgame is the beginning is the endgame – An international team of experts has argued the world needs to start exploring the impacts of a “climate endgame”. A perspective published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences argues that the consequences of warming the planet beyond 3C have been “dangerously underexplored” with few quantitative estimates of worldwide societal collapse or even eventual human extinction. “We know least about the scenarios that matter most,” lead author Luke Kemp told the Guardian. The researchers warn that unchecked global warming could trigger other catastrophes like war or pandemics, and worsen existing vulnerabilities like poverty, crop failure and lack of water. The research suggests countries may fight over geoengineering plans or the right to emit carbon as up to 2 bln people deal with extreme temperatures in some of the most densely populated and politically fraught areas. The researchers call on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change to dedicate a future report to catastrophic climate change to incentivize future research and inform policymakers and the public. (Climate Nexus)

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