More than 200 companies covered by the Beijing ETS missed a Mar. 20 deadline to report their 2014 CO2 emissions to the government, the municipal Development and Reform Commission said.

A total of 214 firms, around 40% of the scheme’s participants, missed the deadline and face a 50,000 yuan ($8,000) fine unless they comply by Mar. 27, the market regulator said in a statement on its website.

The DRC published a list of the non-compliers, which included big names such as state-owned energy firms Datang and Sinopec, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), China Mobile Group and Beijing Wumart, a supermarket chain.

The large number illustrates the challenges of imposing environmental regulations on a regional level in China.

Last year, the deadline for surrendering permits to the DRC to cover for 2013 emissions was postponed as a number of companies initially refused to participate, challenging the local government’s right to regulate them.

Permits in the Beijing ETS trade at around 51-52 yuan, the highest of China’s seven pilot carbon markets.

By Stian Reklev – stian@carbon-pulse.com