Newsletters > CP Daily: Monday January 29, 2024

CP Daily: Monday January 29, 2024

Published 00:58 on January 30, 2024  /  Last updated at 00:58 on January 30, 2024  / Carbon Pulse /  Newsletters

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

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TOP STORY

EU extends first CBAM deadline for companies impacted by registry tech issues

Companies currently facing difficulties in submitting data for the first reporting deadline of the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) due to technical issues with the registry will benefit from a one month extension, the European Commission said on Monday.

EMEA

EU politicians shift focus to winning popular support for climate policies after backlash

Members of the European Parliament across political groups were in rare agreement on Monday about the need to keep people and industry on board while the bloc tries to reach climate neutrality, in what will likely be the main focus for climate policy in the EU’s next political term.

EU carbon management strategy must set concrete actions for CCS -trade group

The EU’s upcoming industrial carbon management strategy needs to call for concrete actions by member states, not just analysis, an EU carbon capture and storage (CCS) association has said in a letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

London insurer offers product to derisk carbon capture and storage expansion

A London-headquartered insurance firm has launched a novel product covering the leakage of CO2 from commercial-scale carbon capture and storage (CCS) facilities, also derisking related carbon credit and compliance permit purchases.

European voluntary carbon insurance startup raises $12 mln in seed round

A carbon credits insurance startup, set up by three former Allianz executives, has closed a seed funding round at over $12 mln, it said Monday.

Deep learning enhances EU carbon price forecasting, researchers find

Researchers have developed a new approach to forecasting EU carbon prices, using advanced deep learning techniques to generate what they believe will be more accurate short-term predictions.

Danish investors announce funding into Nordic carbon storage hub

Investors, backed by a Danish pension fund, have closed funding of a Nordic carbon storage hub that is developing a CO2 transportation and storage facility, they announced in a release.

European demand driving $1tln investment in gas production over next decade -report

The fossil fuel industry is forecast to spend more than $1 trillion globally over the next decade on producing gas for European markets, including investing in new extraction, despite warnings from climate scientists and policy advisers, according to a report published on Monday.

New regional African alliance launches to promote carbon markets

A group of central African states has formed a new alliance for carbon markets and climate finance as the critical outcome of a regional conference, according to an official announcement.

Euro Markets: EUAs settle at 22-month low after afternoon drop, while UKAs set new record low

European carbon prices dropped sharply in afternoon trading on Monday, posting their weakest settlement in 22 months after some speculative buying and a recent key support level melted away, while demand from utilities remained sluggish amid negative generation margins, and UK allowance prices fell to a new record low.

ASIA PACIFIC

NZ Green Party co-leader, former climate change minister steps down

New Zealand MP and former Minister for Climate Change James Shaw will step down from his position as co-leader of the Green Party in March, he announced Tuesday.

India launches framework to introduce voluntary carbon markets to agriculture

India has launched a framework to introduce a voluntary carbon market in the agriculture sector so that particularly small- and mid-sized farming businesses can benefit from the sale of carbon credits, the country’s agriculture minister said on Monday.

Singapore to help Laos get carbon market access, eyes Article 6 partnership

Singapore is looking to work with Laos to help it export carbon credits to the international market, while also eyeing the opportunity to set up a bilateral partnership under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement.

Taiwan regulator wraps up draft blue carbon methodology

Taiwan’s top marine regulator has finished a draft methodology on blue carbon, which will serve as the basis for including the island’s ocean-based carbon sinks in the national greenhouse gas inventory and quantifying emission reductions as carbon credits.

Australian carbon developer flags PNG project eligible under Singapore’s whitelist

An Australian carbon project developer is working on a cookstoves project in Papua New Guinea it believes will be one of the first projects eligible to supply carbon credits to Singaporean companies under the country’s whitelist.

Asia Pacific power demand going nowhere but up, as China oversupplies solar PV market

China, India, and Southeast Asia will see the strongest growth in power demand this decade and the next, a consultancy forecast Monday.

AMERICAS

New Jersey senators introduce state clean fuel standard legislation

A pair of New Jersey Democratic senators introduced Monday clean fuel standard legislation, in what would be the first such state programme on the US eastern seaboard if implemented.

Bioethanol producer links with CO2 pipeline awaiting approval in US Midwest

A major biofuels producer announced on Monday a partnership with a US CO2 pipeline developer facing regulatory hurdles to transport and store carbon dioxide from bioethanol production in South Dakota and Iowa.

RGGI Market: RGAs rally to new records, CCR replay expected at Q1 auction

RGGI allowances (RGAs) reached all-time highs over the week on the highest volumes so far this year, as market participants mostly expect the Cost Containment Reserve (CCR) to be triggered at the Q1 auction similar to the last quarterly sale.

Oregon environment commission grants $10 mln to GHG mitigation

An environment commission in Oregon approved on Friday disbursements totalling $10 million to projects aimed to reduce the state’s GHG emissions.

INTERNATIONAL

Benefits of renewables clearly outweigh adverse effects, says report

A new report analysing the potential negative impacts of scaling up renewables concludes that the benefits of clean energy largely outweigh any potential adverse effects they may have, particularly when projects adopt a ‘best practice’ approach.

Green iron from waste is viable, study says

The red sludge that once troubled the Danube could be key to greening one of the most necessary but emissions-heavy industries in the world, according to a new paper.

VOLUNTARY

VCM Report: Carbon credit prices edge lower, cookstoves shrug off bad press

A few big ticket bids kept interest alive in the voluntary carbon market last week that generally edged lower amid thin liquidity, bashed by another bout of bad press.

Thinning of forests thickens carbon stocks, study finds

Forest thinning can significantly enhance ecosystem carbon stocks, according to a new study.

Carbon ratings firm forms partnership with Australian project developer

A carbon ratings and data provider has teamed up with an Australian carbon credit provider to offer its assessment on the company’s listed voluntary carbon products, the two companies announced Monday.

South Pole hires head of carbon project risk, restructures senior team

Voluntary carbon market project developer and investor, South Pole, has hired a Chief Risk Officer and restructured its leadership team, it announced Monday.

BIODIVERSITY (FREE TO READ)

INTERVIEW: Italian company to pilot biodiversity monitoring in spring as credit launch edges closer

Italian-based climate tech company 3Bee will start piloting its newly verified biodiversity monitoring protocol in spring, moving one step closer to the launch of the “first certified biodiversity credits”.

New Zealand to push for more bottom trawling, WWF claims

New Zealand has indicated it wants to continue scraping the seafloor with nets in vulnerable marine areas at an intergovernmental meeting, WWF has claimed.

Trading platform to list Terrasos biodiversity credits

A US-based environmental trading platform will start listing voluntary biodiversity credits generated by Colombian company Terrasos.

UNEP FI: Nature disclosure standards need more consistency on metrics

Nature-related disclosure standards need more consistency across their requirements for metrics for measuring the state of nature, the UN Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) has said in a market report.

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BITE-SIZED UPDATES FROM AROUND THE WORLD

INTERNATIONAL

Accounting ethics – The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) on Monday launched a public consultation on a new ethical benchmark for sustainability reporting and assurance. The consultation proposes a framework for expected behaviours and ethics for all sustainability assurance practitioners and accountants involved in sustainability reporting, IESBA said. It is designed to help practitioners and accountants evaluate whether an external expert has the necessary competence, capabilities, and objectivity to do their intended work. Sustainability information is becoming increasingly important in capital markets, consumers, corporations, and their employees, as well as governments and society at large, the board said. Comments on using the benchmark for external experts are due by Apr. 30, and on the sustainability provisions by May 10.

EMEA

Farewell F-gases – The Council today has given its final stamp of approval on two regulations to phase down fluorinated gases (F-gases) and other substances that cause global warming and deplete the ozone layer. Under the new rules, the consumption of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) will be completely phased out by 2050. The production of HCFs will be phased down to 15% as of 2030. The two regulations will now be signed by the Council and European Parliament and will be published in the EU’s official journal and enter into force 20 days later.

Flying low – Ryanair cut its annual profit forecast after it was forced to lower fares to try to fill empty seats amid a row with online travel agents and high fuel prices, the FT reports, though remains on course for a 9% growth in passenger demand for the 12 months ending March 2024. The carrier also recently signed a large SAF deal with Italian oil firm Eni for offtake of 100,000 tonnes of the fuel between 2025 and 2030. It added that it expects the current quarter ending March to be impacted by the partial unwind of free EUA allocations.

Hey big spender – The European Investment Fund signed a €150 mln commitment to the White Summit Capital Decarbonisation Infrastructure Fund II, backed by the InvestEU programme. This initiative will help fill a gap in the energy transition middle market by supporting infrastructure companies across Europe – for instance in the area of energy, but also circular economy and sustainable transport – to scale up their asset base and support their development.

What’s the hold-up? – Grid congestion due to a lack of new onshore power lines has led the output of Germany’s offshore wind turbines in the North Sea to decrease by 9% last year compared to 2022 levels, according to grid operator TenneT. At a total output of 19.2 TWh, the country’s offshore turbines contributed the equivalent of the annual power consumption of 6 mln households to the German power mix last year, helping to push the share of renewables to over 50% throughout a whole year for the first time ever. Yet the amount in 2022 was higher than that at 21.1 TWh. Grid expansion in the past two years has reportedly started to accelerate, but many low years prior to that mean that grid congestion and wind curtailment still present a problem. (Clean Energy Wire)

Floats your boat – An upcoming amendment to the Greenhouse Gas Emissions Trading Act (TEHG) in Germany will implement the amendments to the EU Emissions Trading Directive. A draft bill prepared by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection will be submitted for consultation with the federal states and associations as soon as possible following the initiation of interministerial coordination. Delays in the national legal implementation will not lead to disadvantages for shipping companies that are subject to reporting obligations. The monitoring obligations that apply to the shipping companies concerned are regulated in the EU Maritime Transport Regulation, which does not require transposition into national law and is directly applicable.

ASIA PACIFIC

More help from kelp – An international research collaboration between New Zealand’s Cawthorn Institute, Sequench, the Netherlands Kelp Forest Foundation, and Nature Metrics, has been funded by Oceankind and aims to better understand how kelp contributes to carbon sequestration in the world’s oceans. Traditional methods of measuring kelp-derived carbon in marine sediments, such as stable isotope, pigments, and lipid analysis, have been limited in their ability to accurately detect and identify kelp-derived carbon in marine sediments, the organisations said. This project’s approach leverages the power of environmental DNA (eDNA), which involves the extraction of genetic material directly from environmental samples without any obvious signs of biological source material. If the project demonstrates eDNA is a reliable and traceable marker for tracking giant kelp-derived carbon, it will allow for more accurate assessments of carbon sequestration potential in kelp forests, they said.

Fault line – The precarious finances of Taiwan’s sole electricity utility are threatening the island’s renewable energy ambitions and tarnishing its attractiveness as an international semiconductor manufacturing hub for major players including TSMC, the world’s largest chipmaker, according to Bloomberg. State-owned Taipower, likely to post another massive loss in 2023, has been unable to fully pass on higher costs for gas and coal to domestic customers due to political pressure to keep power prices low. Given that TSMC has set a target of using 100% renewables by 2040, Taiwan could potentially lose some of its allure as a destination for chip manufacturing if Taipower fails to make sufficient progress on renewables generation.

AMERICAS

Onward with Omnibus – Argentina’s government, led by new president Javier Milei, submitted an updated, presumed final copy of its cross-sectoral ‘Omnibus Law’ Sunday night for discussion on Tuesday in the lower chamber of the country’s congress, according to Argentine newspaper Cronista on Monday. The new bill contains several major changes, but only minor ones to its provisions establishing the executive right to create a compliance carbon market. Changes include new reference to provincial governments, which will now be involved in “technical meetings” in addition to national public sector representatives, academics, civil society organisations, and the private sector. The opinions offered in these meetings will not be legally binding.

Freshly CO2 reduced coffee – Several organisations in Costa Rica have launched an initiative to reduce the carbon footprint of coffee and vegetable farming in the nation, Tico Times reported. Dubbed “Project One”, the Coffee Producers Cooperative, in conjunction with the Center for Advanced Applied Research and the Tropical Agronomic Research and Higher Education Center, established the project with the aim to reduce CO2 and increase crop yields in the regions of Dota, Tarrazu, and Leon Cortes. As part of the project, teams will plant “Trees of Life” near coffee crops to absorb carbon emissions.

DOE request – The US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FERC) released Monday a Request for Information (RIF) that seeks input intended to assist DOE in the planning of priorities and initiatives to catalyse the development, demonstration, and deployment of carbon capture, conversion, and storage technologies to decarbonise the US industrial sectors. According to the announcement, DOE is interested in sector-specific input, particularly from the production of aluminium, ammonia, cement, glass, iron and steel, lime, petrochemicals, paper, refining, soda ash, and liquified natural gas. Input is encouraged from both domestic and international entities, but feedback from stakeholders on potential industrial carbon capture demonstration and deployment projects could include ideal locations for these projects in the US. The information collected may be used across DOE’s research, development, demonstration, and deployment portfolio, including, but not limited to, determining potential new areas of focus and innovation, identifying challenges and knowledge gaps, identifying regional opportunities, and determining the potential for clean energy and carbon management careers. Responses to the RFI must be submitted no later than 1700 Eastern on Mar. 14, 2024.

Gas stoves – The US Department of Energy (DOE) finalised on Monday energy efficiency standards for residential cooking products that will reduce CO2 emissions by 4 Mt and save consumers $1.6 bln on their utility bills over 30 years. The standards will take effect in 2028 and includes electric and gas cooktop and oven ranges as well as its stand-alone counterparts. The finalised standards are a product of pushback to a 2023 proposal that would have impacted 50% of gas stove models, whereas the announced regulations impact only 3%, E&E News reported.

Cement CCUS – Oil service multinational Halliburton on Monday announced that it has added CorrosaLock cement system to its carbon capture, utilisation, and storage (CCUS) portfolio. The CorrosaLock cement system is designed to provide chemical resistance to CO2 and offer mechanical properties that minimise the impact of cyclic loading on the mechanical integrity of the cement barrier. The technology is a composite of Portland-based cement and Halliburton’s proprietary WellLock resin system resulting from a mixture of a specified volume of the WellLock resin and cement to “yield a system that provides significant permeability reduction”. CorrosaLock is said to minimise debonding, which can cause gas migration and integrity loss, and is also more crack-resistant to better withstand downhole forces during cyclic injection.

VOLUNTARY

Transition tracking – Allianz has launched a new dashboard to provide granular analysis of the transition pathway needed to reach net zero for over 50 industry sectors worldwide. The dashboard, known as Allianz SAMEpath, plots the emissions reductions and investments needed to achieve commitments made by countries under the 2015 Paris Agreement, and can be consulted by stakeholders and the general public. Users of SAMEpath can conduct customized data searches to display and download data on a requested variable, region, and/or scenario. For example, they could quickly find the GHG emissions of the US in different climate scenarios up until 2050 and beyond, according to the press release.

INVESTMENT

Turn back now – BP is facing pressure to ditch its commitment to cut oil and gas production by 25% by 2030 compared with 2019 levels, from activist investor Bluebell Capital Partners, who claims that the move is destroying shareholder value by moving away from hydrocarbons faster than society, the FT reports. BP’s pledge remains the only hard target in the oil and gas sector to shrink the size of its hydrocarbon business. The strategy was launched by former CEO Bernard Looney in 2020 but failed to convince investors. BP has fallen behind rivals Shell, TotalEnergies, ExxonMobil and Chevron in terms of total returns to shareholders over the past four years. Bluebell is also pushing for BP to should reduce investments in bioenergy, hydrogen, and renewables between 2023 and 2030 by $28 bln, or approximately 60%.

AND FINALLY…

Wisdom of the crowds – A recent study from the Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change examines the public perception of CO2 removal (CDR) methods using Twitter (X) data from 2010 to 2022. It found an exponential increase in attention, particularly for conventional CDR methods, and an overall shift towards more positive sentiments, except for Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS). The study analysed different user groups, revealing that infrequent users focus more on biological sequestration methods while frequent users, assumed to be more familiar with the topic, concentrate on novel CDR methods. The authors believe their findings provide insights into public awareness and perception trends related to CDR, suggesting growing public interest and acceptance of these technologies as part of climate change mitigation strategies.

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