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TOP STORY
China set to drop absolute emission cap on ETS, says government advisor
China is likely to avoid setting an absolute cap on CO2 when it launches its emissions trading scheme next year, and instead opt for an intensity-based approach, according to a Tsinghua University professor who is advising the government on designing the market.
AMERICAS
Quebec aims to release draft forestry offset protocol in 2020
Quebec is aiming to release a draft forestry protocol for its WCI-linked cap-and-trade programme by early next year, with the approach utilising a different accounting mechanism and permanence requirement than is featured in California’s own methodology under the ETS.
North Carolina not ruling out ETS for higher CO2 reduction goals
North Carolina’s Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) raised its power sector carbon reduction target recommendation on Friday, with academic institutions slated to help the agency research how a cap-and-trade programme or other clean energy policies may reach that target.
TCI draft framework will offer scant details on final ETS proposal –sources
The Transportation and Climate Initiative (TCI) draft framework will provide few specific details about the final structure of the proposed fuel sector ETS in the Northeast US, but it could delve into equity issues and broader programme elements, sources told Carbon Pulse.
EMEA
EU Market: EUAs hit 2-wk low below €25, notch near-5% weekly loss
EUAs slipped to a two-week low under €25 on Friday amid projections of a weakening economy and as the energy complex continued to signal a bearish outlook.
UK fines two oil companies almost £300k for EU ETS-related infractions
The UK government has fined two large oil companies nearly £300,000 in total for infractions related to the EU ETS.
ASIA PACIFIC
SK Market: KAUs climb higher as sellers maximise profits from compliance laggards
South Korean 2018 allowances on Friday completed two full weeks of daily gains as sellers sought to squeeze every possible won out of the few emitters still short ahead of Monday’s compliance deadline.
CN Markets: Pilot market data for week ending Sep. 27, 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
Energy consumption trade – China’s Sichuan province this week launched its pilot trading scheme for energy consumption credits. Sichuan is one of four provinces that have been picked by Beijing to pilot such a market, the other being Fujian, Henan, and Zhejiang. The idea is to roll out a nationwide scheme after 2020 if the pilots go well, though a number of observers have warned that planned trading programmes for CO2, energy consumption, renewable energy, and air pollution might overlap and damage each other’s effectiveness. The Sichuan pilot initially covers steel, cement, and paper makers that consume more than 10,000 tonnes of standard coal per year, and might be expanded over time. (IdeaCarbon, story in Chinese)
Difference strokes – Carbon Contracts for Differences (CCfDs) could be an important tool to reduce Europe’s heavy industry emissions, according to researchers DIW. CCfDs offer governments the possibility to reward climate-friendly technology projects and practices by guaranteeing investors a fixed price for CO2 emissions in excess of prices in the EU ETS. CCfDs thus have the advantage of lowering costs of climate-friendly investments, as well as giving creditors higher security for their loans. At the same time, introducing project-based CCfDs would send a clear signal of the government’s long-term commitment to its climate policy goals. (Clean Energy Wire)
REGO egos – UK consumer watchdog Which? says many UK energy companies are guilty of greenwashing and risk misleading customers by not generating any renewable electricity themselves nor buying it direct from renewable generators. Instead, they are purchasing REGO or guarantee of origin (GO) certificates and likely just purchasing electricity from the wholesale market, which could come from any source.
Teens, trees, and Trudeau – Swedish teenage climate activist met with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau ahead of the mass climate rally in Montreal on Friday, telling him that his government wasn’t doing enough to mitigate climate change. As climate strikes were held across Canada on Friday, Trudeau announced his Liberal Party would plant 2 billion trees if they are elected next month. The costs of the plan, totalling C$300 mln in annual investments through 2030, would be offset by revenues from the government’s expansion of the Trans Mountain Pipeline. (CBC)
And finally… Denial departure – High-level oil and gas executives have concluded the “ship has sailed” on manipulating the public with climate denial, The Washington Post ($) reports. In a recording of a closed-door June meeting of the Independent Petroleum Association of America obtained by the Post, Mark Barron, a chief energy litigator at Baker Hostetler, told gathered executives that everyone under the age of 40 thinks climate change is “an existential crisis that we need to address…That ship has sailed from a political perspective”. (Climate Nexus)
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