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BRIEFING: EU states split into factions ahead of ETS reform talks

EU countries are splitting into two camps for the looming battle over how far to strengthen, or weaken, the bloc’s Emissions Trading System (EU ETS).

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DAILY NEWS TICKER

CP Daily News Ticker: 21 July 2026

The CP Daily News Ticker is a running list of all our news updated in real-time throughout the day. This is also the home to our ‘Bite-sized updates from around the world’, which previously featured in our CP Daily newsletter.

EMEA

ANALYSIS: ETS reform proposals suggest EU’s Article 6 demand could reach 650 Mt by 2040

The European Commission’s proposed reforms to the EU’s Emissions Trading System (ETS), which include provisions linked to the procurement of up to 260 million international credits, should mean the total demand for Article 6 units from the bloc reaches as high as 650 mln, experts have noted.

In European Parliament, resistance builds to plans to add int’l carbon credits and removals to EU ETS

A left-of-centre coalition is emerging in the European Parliament to oppose plans to integrate international carbon credits and removals into the EU’s Emissions Trading System (ETS) unless strict environmental conditions are met.

Germany launches first auction for backup gas-fired power capacity

Germany’s energy regulator on Tuesday launched the first tender for long-term electricity generation capacity from gas plants designed to maintain security of supply during prolonged periods of low renewable output or limited electricity imports.

Euro Markets: EUAs consolidate Monday’s gains despite fading momentum

European carbon future held onto Monday’s gains, despite a weaker afternoon that saw price consolidation, while front-month gas again broke beyond €60/MWh amid concerns over ongoing fighting in the Middle East, and lower than average storage levels across the continent.

FEATURE: EU’s methane guidance fills in gaps, but not enough for oil and gas industry

New recommendations on how EU governments can implement the bloc’s Methane Regulation should clear the way for oil and gas producers to comply with incoming reporting rules, even though the industry would still prefer to see them written in law, according to experts.

EU ETS proposal for waste raises warnings of loopholes and delays

The European Commission’s proposal to extend the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) has been hailed as an important step in pricing emissions from municipal waste incineration, but some warn the transition would be too gradual.

UK seventh carbon budget faces legal challenge over science, equity

The UK government has been threatened with legal action over its seventh carbon budget, with a scientist alleging the emissions limit relies on outdated climate science and fails to adequately account for the country’s historical contribution to global GHG emissions.

New UK prime minister to cut VAT from electricity bills

The new British prime minister, Andy Burnham, will cut the UK’s value-added tax (VAT) from electricity bills from October, saving households an average £45 a year, he said Tuesday.

UK first country to report CO2 absorbed by concrete

Concrete buildings and infrastructure in the UK absorbed 1.5 Mt of CO2 in 2024, as the UK became the first country to report an estimate of the concrete carbon sink in its National Inventory Document submitted to the UN.

Heating technicians urge bigger role in EU electrification drive ahead of ETS2

Europe’s heating and plumbing professionals have welcomed the European Commission’s new Electrification Action Plan but warned that the EU risks missing its clean energy targets unless technicians are placed at the centre of the transition from fossil fuel boilers to heat pumps.

Biochar sector urges EU to open carbon market to all permanent removals

The EU should allow biochar carbon removal (BCR) into the EU ETS alongside other EU-certified permanent carbon removal pathways, an industry association has said, warning that a CCS-only approach would undermine competition and raise costs.

AMERICAS

BRIEFING: California corporate disclosure rule’s Scope 3 phase-in draws competing calls on coverage, flexibility

California regulator ARB would initially require large companies covered by its corporate climate disclosure rule to report five of the 15 Scope 3 emissions categories from 2027, under a proposed phase-in that drew competing calls on Tuesday for broader coverage and greater industry flexibility.

Twenty states join lawsuit against Trump administration over HFC regulation rollback

Twenty states and local governments, including Colorado, New York, and Washington, filed a lawsuit against the US EPA on Tuesday challenging the weakening of regulations intended to phase out the cooling chemicals with a larger climate pollution potential than CO2 – hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs).

Data centres could consume a fifth of US electricity within a decade -report

Data centre growth in the US could account for a fifth of the nation’s electricity consumption by 2035, according to a Tuesday report.

Canada must bridge C$1.15 per litre cost gap to push cost-competitive sustainable aviation fuel -study

Policy levers and tax credits could support the growth of a domestic sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) production market in Canada, with an additional C$1.15 ($0.80) incentive required per litre to keep SAF competitive with conventional jet fuel, according to Airbus study launched Tuesday.

Area affected by fire in Brazil fell 58% in 2025, with Amazon registering the smallest burned area in 41 years -report

Brazil registered 12.7 million hectares burned in 2025, a 58% decrease from the previous year when the country experienced an extreme surge in fires, while the area burned in the Amazon hit a multi-decade low, a Tuesday report showed.

ASIA PACIFIC

BRIEFING: Australia should interpret environmental law in line with ICJ ruling, UN rapporteur urges in gas approval case

Legal challenges in Australia’s Federal Court launched Tuesday will hear international arguments about the government’s interpretation of emissions impacts regarding its approval of Woodside Energy’s North West Shelf licence extension.

Rio Tinto signs biochar offtake agreement to use at Australian alumina refineries

Miner Rio Tinto announced Wednesday it has signed a five-year offtake agreement with a bioenergy company to supply locally produced bio pellets for use at its alumina refineries in Gladstone, Queensland.

New Zealand increasing its risk of missing post-2030 emissions targets, ETS not pulling its weight, climate commission warns

Current policies and plans are not sufficient for New Zealand to meet its post-2030 emissions goals, while the risk of missing the 2026-30 second emissions budget (EB2) is growing, the Climate Change Commission (CCC) warned again, as it also called out inefficiencies in the country’s carbon market.

NZ Market: NZU price reaches seven-month high on large day of trading

The New Zealand carbon price climbed some 3.86% on Tuesday, reaching a seven-month high following a day of large trading volumes.

Rising NZ ETS costs cited in govt support for cement plant

Increasing carbon costs were the main reason for the New Zealand government’s bailout of the country’s sole cement plant, to maintain its competitiveness with imports that are not subject to an emissions price, according to statements Monday.

Draft Singapore bill could spur carbon credit demand from data centres

Singapore’s draft Digital Infrastructure Bill, currently under public consultation, would allow regulators to penalise data centre operators that fail to meet environmental sustainability requirements, including by requiring them to surrender carbon credits to compensate for any resulting increase in emissions.

Senior executive leaves APAC carbon project developer as it looks to “sharpen” international strategy

A senior executive in charge of international projects has left an Asia Pacific carbon developer, as the company said it intends to “sharpen” its overseas strategy.

Australia’s CCUS ambitions undercut by policy gaps -report

Australia’s policy environment for carbon capture, utilisation, and storage (CCUS) is “among the least enabling” out of all high-income countries, despite positioning itself as a leader in the technology, a report found.

EU framework creates opportunities for Japan’s green steel, but product-level data capacity is crucial -report

The EU’s proposed assessment framework for low-carbon steel products may create new opportunities for Japan’s steel industry, but building the capacity to submit emissions data at the product level will be crucial, a new report has argued.

VOLUNTARY

CCP label now applies to at least 13% of fresh carbon credit issuance, says ICVCM head

High-integrity stamped credits now cover at least 13% of the new issued volume, the chief executive of the Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market (ICVCM) said on Tuesday.

Open interest in CORSIA carbon futures curve breaches 1 mln units

Trading and open interest has continued to pick up in CORSIA futures after the European Commission proposed a compromise to extend the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) to some international flights.

Ethiopia issues first credits under World Bank jurisdictional forest programme

Ethiopia has become the first country to issue carbon credits under a World Bank-managed programme supporting jurisdictional forest activities, with 12.4 million units available for carbon market transactions.

Carbon credit prices reflect who buys more than what’s delivered -study

Carbon credit pricing is significantly influenced by who the buyer is more than what the credit actually does for the climate, a recent study has argued.

Puro issues first verified carbon removal credits from biogas-based BECCS

A Norwegian bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) project has become the world’s first to generate verified carbon removal credits from biogas production, the certifier, Finnish registry Puro.earth, announced Tuesday.

Carbon ratings agency backs scientific study of global wildfire risks

A carbon ratings agency is funding an initiative to analyse the causes and impacts of extreme wildfires, which represent a growing risk for nature-based projects, it announced on Tuesday.

Marine CDR needs government support to scale, researchers say

Marine carbon removal (mCDR) will struggle to reach commercial scale without stronger government action to create reliable long-term demand beyond voluntary carbon markets, researchers argue.

INTERNATIONAL

New Zealand, Philippines agree to develop climate cooperation, including on Article 6

New Zealand has agreed to explore Article 6 opportunities as part of a to-be-established climate collaboration framework with the Philippines despite the Kiwi government still not committing to purchase international credits.

No ‘big-ticket’ negotiated outcomes expected at COP31, UN climate chief says

This year’s COP31 climate summit in Turkiye is not expected to produce any “big-ticket” negotiated outcomes, with the UN process instead shifting its focus towards implementing existing commitments and examining reforms to strengthen the three decade old system, UN climate chief Simon Stiell said.

AVIATION

ICAO affirms ACR jurisdictional power sector carbon credit programme as CORSIA-eligible

The ICAO has deemed carbon credits under ACR’s jurisdictional power sector programme as eligible under UN aviation offsetting scheme CORSIA, the registry announced on Tuesday.

COMMENT

Should Cookstoves Meet Permanence Requirements? The Question Article 6.4 Has Yet to Ask

A draft reversal-risk tool under Paris Article 6.4 is cementing permanence requirements to clean cooking credits for the first time. But before debating the numbers, the market should ask whether this category belongs in a permanence framework at all.

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