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TOP STORY
FEATURE: Countries set to spurn UN chief’s calls for more climate ambition
World leaders are unlikely to heed the UN secretary-general’s calls for countries to ramp up their Paris Agreement ambition next month, as domestic concerns and indifference from the US administration and other global heavyweights outweigh increasingly alarming evidence of a climate emergency
AMERICAS
ANALYSIS: Traders see oddity in WCI advance auction result as demand wanes
The Q3 WCI advance auction settlement has surprised market participants, who had anticipated the Vintage 2022 sale to clear closer to the current vintage auction price with stronger bids.
EMEA
Big-emitting German power plant faces operation squeeze as mine ordered closed
One of the largest emitters in the EU ETS is likely to come under pressure to cut its normally round-the-clock operations after a German court ordered its neighbouring mine to close due to environmental concerns.
EU Market: EUAs fade late on to notch 11% August loss as full auctions loom
EUAs fell back after hitting an eight-session high on Friday, with carbon ending the month 11% lower than where it began amid bearish economic prospects, Brexit risks, and a looming hike in auction supply.
ASIA PACIFIC
US trade war clouds prospects for China’s climate ambition, official says
The trade war with the US and the general downturn in China’s economy is making it tougher for China to act on climate change, a senior government official said Friday, dodging questions from reporters on whether Beijing would respond to calls from the UN Secretary-General to raise ambition levels at a summit in New York next month.
Australian weekly offset issuance swells as energy firm collects credits
Australia’s Clean Energy Regulator issued more than 730,000 carbon credits week, nearly seven times as many as the previous week as energy firm LMS applied for a large amount.
CN Markets: Pilot market data for week ending Aug. 30, 2019
Closing prices, ranges and volumes for China’s regional pilot carbon markets this week.
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BITE-SIZED UPDATES FROM AROUND THE WORLD
Blaze ban – Brazil has banned the setting of fires to clear land for 60 days in response to the massive number of recent fires in the Amazon, BBC News reports. The ban, signed by President Jair Bolsonaro, comes as a leading environmentalist warned the news agency that the worst of the fires are yet to come as the region’s dry season approaches. Bolsonaro’s administration has come under international pressure this week as a result of the fires, with the president having refused a $20 mln aid package from last week’s G7 meeting to alleviate the conflagrations. (Carbon Brief)
Power push – The Canadian federal government and provincial utility BC Hydro on Thursday announced an agreement to push the electrification of British Columbia’s natural gas industry to lower emissions. As part of the agreement, the two governments and BC Hydro will form a committee to push projects that increase power transmission. However, environmental groups have criticised BC Premier John Horgan’s NDP government for boosting the LNG industry, with emissions from the sector making up 18% of the province’s GHGs and a C$40 bln plant from LNG Canada still in the works. (CBC)
Bailout to the ballot – Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost on Thursday announced he approved ballot summary language for a state-wide referendum to overturn the state’s new nuclear bailout law. The Republican-led legislation, passed with some Democrat support this summer, will keep open two nuclear plants from utility FirstEnergy but gut and eventually eliminate Ohio’s Alternative Energy Portfolio Standard. Analysts ClearView Energy Partners predicted in a note Thursday that opponents would eventually secure enough signatures to make the 2020 ballot. (Axios)
Clean steel cash – The UK has announced a £250 million Clean Steel Fund, a £100 mln fund to develop emission-free hydrogen production, and £40 mln for smaller clean industrial projects. The government has also issued a call for evidence from the steel industry to help it design the industry’s new fund. (Reuters)
And finally… Friday the 13th – A splinter group of UK-based climate activists Extinction Rebellion announced a plan Thursday to disrupt London’s Heathrow Airport on Sep. 13 with toy drones. The Heathrow Pause group hopes that the activity will ground flights and put pressure on the government to take tougher action to reduce CO2 emissions. Heathrow Pause said it will fly toy drones within a 5km restricted area around the airport but outside the flight paths, adding that they would not fly the vessels higher than head level and give the airport one hour’s advance notice. Meanwhile, the airport said the plan was illegal and counterproductive but noted it had robust plans in place to make sure the airport could continue to operate. (Climate Home)
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