Presenting CP Daily, Carbon Pulse’s free newsletter. It’s a daily summary of our news plus bite-sized updates from around the world. Subscribe here
TOP STORY
ANALYSIS: California offset prices still lagging behind allowance run on lower demand
California Carbon Offset (CCO) prices are continuing to lag behind the recent bull run in the California Carbon Allowance (CCA) market, but some believe that trend could change if permit prices keep outpacing historic norms.
ASIA PACIFIC
Labor budget plan indicates instant death for Australia’s ERF with government change
Australia’s opposition Labor party on Friday released its budget plan should it win the May 18 election, with numbers showing that the planned July auction for the Emissions Reduction Fund likely would be cancelled, but with funds set aside to develop new methodologies.
South Korea picks two banks to fill ETS market maker role
South Korea on Friday announced it has chosen two government-owned policy banks as market makers in the nation’s emissions trading scheme in a bid to boost market liquidity.
CN Markets: Pilot market data for week ending May 10, 2019
Closing prices, ranges and volumes for China’s regional pilot carbon markets this week.
EMEA
Willing EU nations should unite on non-ETS carbon pricing -Merkel
European nations should form a “coalition of the willing” to expand carbon pricing beyond EU ETS sectors, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Thursday, bolstering the prospects for intergovernmental emissions trade in sectors such as buildings and transport.
EU Market: EUAs slide back below €26 for near 2% weekly gain as gas retraces
EUAs continued to slip on Friday to give back most of the week’s gains as prices crashed through technical supports, natural gas prices turned south, and auction demand continued to weaken.
Germany’s EnBW keeps ahead on its Q1 hedging
German utility EnBW advanced its hedging rates over Q1 2019 to maintain its stance of having a larger share of its expected output hedged than a year earlier, giving a slightly bearish signal for EUAs.
AMERICAS
US Carbon Pricing Roundup for week ending May 10
A summary of legislative and regulatory action on carbon pricing and clean energy at the US subnational level taken this week, including New York adopting regulations to eliminate coal power next year, California’s governor proposing a study to limit fossil fuel supply, and Washington’s governor endorsing a suite of climate policies.
ECOSYSTEM MARKETPLACE
How carbon markets can boost biodiversity and slow climate change
We must take advantage of natural climate solutions if we are to avoid the worst effects of climate change. Yet setbacks – such as an incomplete Paris Rulebook – have raised concerns amongst stakeholders, worried that without UN guidance on carbon markets, they cannot confidently scale up the required policies and programs. The Nature Conservancy has released a new guide that highlights why many are already taking action to make use of markets in funding NCS, and how businesses can thoughtfully take similar steps today amidst a developing regulatory landscape.
———————————
CARBON FORWARD 2019
SAVE THE DATE: Carbon Forward 2019 – Survive and thrive in the global carbon markets
Learn how to survive and thrive in carbon markets by joining us at the 4th annual CARBON FORWARD conference & training day where we will be joined by the pre-eminent experts to discuss a programme developed by environmental market experts and based on feedback from companies like yours.
———————————
BITE-SIZED UPDATES FROM AROUND THE WORLD
British zero – A UK government announcement embracing a 2050 net zero emissions target is likely in the next two months, according to unnamed officials citing yet-to-be finalised plans. Within the Brexit-embattled Conservative administration, finance minister Philip Hammond is on board but the unknown factor is transport minister Chris Grayling. (Bloomberg)
Eire emergency – Ireland on Thursday became the second country in the world to declare a climate emergency, joining its neighbour the UK. Both the Irish government and opposition parties agreed in parliament to the declaration, providing cross-party support for biodiversity and the climate emergency. Politicians acknowledged the increasing pressure from the direct-action movement Extinction Rebellion and student-led protests in their rationale to act. (Climate Nexus)
No coal Guterres – At his September world leaders’ summit, UN chief Antonio Guterres wants countries to build no new coal power plants after 2020 and to put a price on the use of carbon. Additionally, he ultimately wants to make sure that by 2050 the world is no longer putting more greenhouse gases into the air than nature sucks out. (AP)
Climate corps call – Washington governor and 2020 Democratic presidential nominee hopeful Jay Inslee on Thursday called for the creation of a “Conservation Climate Corps” to help flight climate change both in the US and internationally. The idea is modelled after the Civilian Conservation Corps formed during the Great Depression under President Franklin Roosevelt (D), and Inslee’s strategy is broken down into three programmes: a “National Climate Service Corps” for young people in the US, a “Global Climate Service Corps” to allow Americans to join an overseas service working in sustainable development and climate resilience, and a “Green Careers Network” that would focus on creating permanent jobs in a clean energy economy. (Politico)
And finally… Stuck in the middle with Joe – Former US vice president and 2020 Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden will take a ‘middle ground’ approach to climate policy – potentially including support for fossil fuels – that he hopes will appeal to both environmentalists and blue collar voters, a revelation that drew vehement criticism from environmental groups and activists on Friday. According to two sources speaking with Reuters, the backbone of Biden’s policy will likely centre on the US re-entering the Paris Agreement after 2020 and preserving regulations on emissions and vehicle fuel efficiency, which the Trump administration has sought to undo. However, campaigners and others seized upon the second source citing Biden’s possible support for natural gas and carbon capture technology, with some pointing out that the former VP’s informal climate policy advisor quoted in the article, Heather Zichal, sat on the board at natural gas company Cheniere from 2014-2018, where she received nearly $1.1 mln in compensation. Zichal, who previously served in the Obama administration and is now green group The Nature Conservancy’s vice president of corporate engagement, took to Twitter to respond. “I expect as president Joe Biden would enact a bold policy to tackle climate change in a meaningful and lasting way. Reuters got it wrong. Any suggestion that it wouldn’t is in direct contradiction to his long record of understanding climate change as an existential threat,” Zichal tweeted. That didn’t allay the concerns of other environmental organisations, with campaigners Sunrise Movement calling the middle ground climate policy “a death sentence for our generation”. RL Miller, political director of political action committee Climate Hawks Vote, cited her experience surviving one of the fires that torched California last year in hitting back against Biden’s reported plan. “I’m a Woolsey Fire survivor,” Miller said in a statement. “Does Biden mean that the next wildfire will compromise with me which half of my home emerges unscathed?”
Got a tip? Email us at news@carbon-pulse.com
