The CO2 Market – 22.09.2015

The ICE exchange from London currently trades as follows:

• EUA spot:  € 8.00
• EUA Dec 15 futures: € 8.02
• CER Dec 15 futures closed: € 0.50
• Brent Crude spot: $ 48.19
• German Power Front Month (Oct. 15): € 33,10

The EU ETS Market

The EU environment ministers decided on Friday, 18.09.2015, the final formal adoption of the Market Stability Reserve (MSR) as expected. Six countries – among them Hungary, Poland and Bulgaria – voted against the draft resolution. Thus, the MSR will be introduced on schedule from 2019 and the 900 million allowances from the backloading can flow directly into the MSR.

Also last Friday the EU environment ministers agreed, after long debates, on a common EU position for the UN climate talks in Paris later this year. By the end of this century, a sustainable climate neutrality should be realised worldwide in order to keep the goal of limiting global warming to 2 ° C, according to the proposals of the EU environment ministers.

A reduction target of 50% below the greenhouse gas emissions from 1990 to 2050 is therefore considered to be an important milestone for all countries; all countries should reach their peak emissions by 2020 for the latest and from then on gradually reduce emissions.

As has been feared by the environmental groups and as has been demonstrated here again, the EU environment ministers only managed to agree on the lowest common denominator, which are not expected to lead to ambitious results in Paris. In particular, Greenpeace called for strong efforts in terms of ending the use of fossil energy sources such as coal, gas and oil by the year 2050.

Since many countries around the world have built their economic system on the use of fossil fuels – such as Poland or Australia – and have not yet begun the expansion of renewable energies in sufficient numbers, this will probably remain wishful thinking.

Source: European Commission – DG Clima, Brussels, and Advantag Brokerage Gmbh., Germany

The CO2 Market 15.09.2015

The ICE exchange from London currently trades as follows:

• EUA spot:  € 8.22
• EUA Dec 15 futures: € 8.25
• CER Dec 15 futures closed: € 0.49
• Brent Crude spot: $ 46.51
• German Power Front Month (Oct. 15): € 33

Carbon Expert, Romania – Allcot Group, Switzerland Strategic Partnership

We are glad to announce Carbon Expert – Allcot Group strategic partnership with the objective of developing sustainability and environment common projects in Eastern Europe.

Created in 2009, ALLCOT is focused on carbon markets as well as environmental consulting, management and in particular, the business of corporate sustainability.

ALLCOT Group has its headquarter in Switzerland, having an international team working in London, Madrid, Warsaw, Sao Paolo, and most recently, Bucharest. (http://www.allcot.com/key-personnel/)

Having been an active participant in the environmental industry for about half of the environmental sector’s lifetime, ALLCOT Group has perfected a know-how that allows us to offer a wide range of solutions for our customers and partners. Especially, in working with the development and implementation of environmentally and socially sustainable solutions, we have developed an all encompassing full value chain concept.

ALLCOT is a proud member of the International Emission Trading Association (IETA) as well as the Climate Markets and Investment Association (CMIA), the leading associative bodies and lobbies within our industry. Further, the company operates under the Quality Management System ISO 9001:2008 certified by Lloyds Register.

The voluntary projects promoted by Carbon Expert and Allcot Group are certified by international standards, which are recognised by the United Nations, and verified by certified, third-party organisations, such as Tüv or Lloyds Register.

Allcot Group services in the voluntary sector offered in Romania and other countries from Eastern Europe through Carbon Expert are the followings:

– Corporate sustainability services

o Environmental impact assessment
o Carbon inventory management
o Emissions reduction strategies
o Efficiency strategies
o Environmental initiative communication and stakeholder engagement strategies

– Project development services

o Project development under leading standards (eg. VCS, Gold Standard, and supplementary certifications)
o Crediting standard switch services (eg. VCS to Gold Standard)
o Marketing and Sales via B2B channels and stakeholder engagement
o Innovative B2C monetization and sales tools

For more information on Allcot Group: www.allcot.com

For more information on Carbon Expert: www.carbonexpert.eu

Top 20 Voluntary Offset Buyers

US car marker General Motors has topped a global list of voluntary offset credit buyers, according to NGO Ecosystem Marketplace.

In a report drawing from company data disclosed via surveys to not-for-profit group CDP, Ecosystem Marketplace found that 265 companies bought offsets voluntarily over 2012-2013, typically from sectors not covered by carbon regulation such as transportation, banks, finance and insurance, services and technology.

This amounts to around 11% of the 1,882 companies that disclosed data to CDP over the period, buying some 16.5 million tonnes in 2013.

General Motors bought 4.6 million carbon offsets over the period from carbon-saving projects in the US as part of an initiative to offset up to 8 million tonnes by 2015 to match the emissions from its Chevrolet division’s US new car sales.

UK-based bank Barclays was the second biggest buyer, with US utility PG&E Corporation and Brazilian cosmetics firm Natura tied for third. They are followed by Marks & Spencer Group, Bombardier Inc., Delta Air Lines, Microsoft Corporation, ANZ Banking Group, Allianz, Qantas Airways, Interface Inc, Deutsche Bank, National Australia Bank, Credit Suisse, Entergy, Bank of Montreal, TransAlta Corporation, TUI Group, British Sky Broadcasting.

The list did not include the Livelihoods Fund, which is aiming to source 8 million tonnes over 20 years on behalf of 10 European companies- Danone, Schneider Electric, Credit Agricole, Michelin, Hermes, SAP, CDC Climat, La Poste, Firmenich and Voyageurs du Monde.

Ecosystem Marketplace is an initiative of industry, investor and NGO coalition Forest Trends that promotes market-based approaches to forest protection.

Source: Allcot Group, Switzerland

The CO2 Market 27.08.2015

The ICE exchange from London trades on CO2 instruments:

EUA spot:  € 8.11
EUA Dec 15 futures: € 8.14
CER Dec 15 futures closed: € 0.50
Brent Crude spot: $ 44.76
German Power Front Month (September 15): € 32.40

International News

This week is World Water Week in Stockholm, Sweden, where experts, practitioners, decision-makers, business innovators and young professionals from a range of sectors and countries have come together to network, exchange ideas, foster new thinking and develop solutions to the most pressing water-related challenges of today.

In the world, there is enough freshwater on Earth to meet global demand. Yet, according to recent UNICEF published data, each day 663M people go without safe water.

The Gold Standard has launched “Water Benefit Standard” that will drive funding and long-term governance to critically important water projects. By applying a Gold Standard results-based finance, or ‘payment for performance’ model, proven for a decade in financing successful clean energy projects, the investment will drive into programmes that supply, purify, and conserve water.

Water Benefit Standard Goals are the following:

• To provide safe water to local communities
• To conserve water by decreasing consumption
• To ensure other environmental and social benefits to local communities

Carbon Expert offers you advice in developing such projects or other projects of CO2 emissions reductions.

The Carbon Market 13.08.2015

The ICE exchange from London closed up its CO2 operations. In fact, the carbon price did not follow the trend of other related markets.

• EUA spot:  € 8.15
• EUA Dec 15 futures: € 8.20
• CER Dec 15 futures closed: € 0.47
• Brent Crude spot: $ 49.49
• German Power Front Month (September 15): € 32.91

Climate Change Agreements

Representatives of the 193 UN member states agreed on 17 very ambitious targets for equitable and sustainable development, which will be adopted of the heads of governments at a summit in New York at the end of September. Among other things, the UN agreement provides that the countries of the world will eliminate by 2030 “poverty anywhere in the world and in any of its forms” and hunger. Moreover, access to health care and education should be improved and the gender equality should make progress. The program also calls for “sustainable modes of production and consumption”, and promoting “peaceful and open for all companies.”

One of the 17 objectives is the fight against climate change. In this context the importance of the negotiations on a binding international agreement on climate change has been highlighted again, which should be performed in December at the UN Climate Change Conference in Paris to a successful conclusion. In contrast to the other 16 points the implementation of the agreement in Paris would mean a binding contract. All other points are voluntary and their implementation is expected to be a major effort not only for financial reasons.

Positive sounds the news from last week that a number of well-known US companies decided for voluntary investments totaling more than $ 140 billion on the initiative of the American president. At the same time, US President Barack Obama announced significant measures to combat the greenhouse effect. As a central point of the proposed rules, existing power plants must for the first time reduce their emissions – until 2030 by 32 percent compared to 2005.

The Carbon Market 14.07.2015

The ICE exchange from London closed up its CO2 operations. In fact, all exchanges rose up yesterday as a consequence of the Greek compromise.

• EUA spot:  € 7.76
• EUA Dec 15 futures: € 7.80
• CER Dec 15 futures closed: € 0.44
• Brent Crude spot: $ 58.51
• German Power Front Month (September 15): € 32.10

The International CO2 Voluntary Market

According to 2015 Ecosystem Marketplace Report, voluntary buyers (companies and individuals) spend nearly USD 4.5 billion on offsets to combat climate change impacts. Also, in the last 10 years, the voluntary carbon market reached 1 billion tonnes of CO2, according to the same Report.

The voluntary carbon market represents all voluntary initiatives of private companies and individuals who, not being constrained by any imposed or mandatory legislation, devote their efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by calculating and offsetting their carbon footprint through purchases of voluntary CO2 certificates, issued by certified standard organizations, such as Gold Standard from Switzerland and Verified Carbon Standard from the US.

Business benefits of these voluntary actions of sustainability consist in promoting their image as leaders in the emerging market trend “zero CO2 or zero carbon”, that will become, eventually, a prerequisite.

We remain at your disposal for further details or you can read more here.

The Carbon and Energy Markets 25.06.2016

The ICE exchange from London opened up its CO2 operations:

• EUA spot: € 7.54
• EUA Dec 15 futures: € 7.60
• CER Dec 15 futures: € 0.40
• Brent Crude spot: $ 63.49
• German Power Front Month (June 15): € 31.04

The Energy Market

Over 7.7 million people worldwide are currently employed in the renewable energy industry, according to a new report released by the International Agency for Renewable Energy (Renewable Energy and Jobs – Annual Report 2015, IRENA). This represents an increase of 18% over last year, when there were 6.5 million employees.

The European Union and the United States registered a decrease of jobs in renewable energy in the world: 25% in 2014 compared to 31% in 2012. The figures show that more and more countries, especially in Asia, have developed renewable technologies.

In correlation with this data, Carbon Tracker shows that the main electricity utilities in Europe (E-on, Enel, RWE, GDF Suez, EDF), with a current European energy market share of 60%, fell by 37% in 2008-2013, as a result of green technologies.

The European Carbon Market 16.06.2015

The ICE exchange from London opened down its CO2 operations:

• EUA spot:  € 7.46
• EUA Dec 15 futures: € 7.49
• CER Dec 15 futures closed: € 0.39
• Brent Crude spot: $ 64
• German Power Front Month (June 15): € 31.55

The International Carbon Market

German Chancellor Angela Merkel with her counterparts at this year’s G7 summit, in front of the picturesque Alpine scenery, achieved a commitment of the participants to maintain the 2 ° C objective, which was previously considered rather unlikely. Critics, of course, remain in abundance as the realisation of the plans no longer fall in the electoral term of the current actors.

On the other hand, however, there was also praise from an unlikely source – environmental activists Greenpeace sees the G7 decision as a breakthrough and many other observers of the action see this as an important and strong signal for this year’s UN Climate Change Conference in Paris.

The path to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and to end the use of fossil fuels by the end of the century for the maximum decarbonisation in this century is an ambitious goal, but one which does not seem unattainable, if, for example, one thinks of the renunciation of the use of CFCs in aerosol cans and refrigerators, which contributed to the creation of the ozone hole in the 1980s.

For more information, please click here.

The CO2 Emissions Market 02.06.2015

The ICE exchange from London opened down its CO2 operations:

• EUA spot opened at € 7.24
• EUA Dec 15 futures opened at € 7.28
• CER Dec 15 futures opened at € 0.44
• Brent Crude spot: $ 64.90
• German Power Front Month (June 15): € 29.24

International Events: Carbon Expo Barcelona

The most important conference on climate change, Carbon Expo 2015 was held last week in Barcelona (26 – 28 May 2015).

Main topics discussed were: the price on carbon, climate change financing, transforming the energy sector into a green one, the EU ETS after 1o years of existence, climate decision transparency, and the Road to Paris.

“If until now we have seen international meetings that were disparate in terms of expectations and interests of participants, this year we have observed in Barcelona how business and political leaders have joined forces to promote the reduction of global emissions, unifying local and regional carbon markets into a global one, green technologies and ways to finance climate techmologies and innovations. Moreover, the World Bank has created a working group composed of various stakeholders interested in climate change, which focus on creating a single market analysis for carbon, as well as the design of this future market” said Casiana Fometescu, Carbon Expert consultant.

In recognition of the importance of protecting the environment, His Majesty King Felipe VI of Spain, opened the event. The conference was attended by approximately 2,200 visitors from 109 countries, 300 speakers from around the world and 100 exhibitors, representing a 30% increase compared to the last year.  At the same time, there were 27 workshops and several other side events.

The European CO2 Market 19.05.2015

The ICE exchange from London opened down its CO2 operations:

• EUA spot closed at € 7.53
• EUA Dec 15 futures closed at € 7.57
• CER Dec 15 futures closed at € 0.48
• Brent Crude spot: $ 65.49
• German Power Front Month (June 15): € 29.80

King of Spain tops the bill at this year’s Carbon Expo in Barcelona

Geneva, 18 May 2015: IETA is honoured to announce today that His Majesty King Felipe VI of Spain will be opening this year’s Carbon Expo trade fair and conference.

His Majesty King Felipe VI of Spain will speak at the opening plenary of the three-day event on 26 May in Barcelona at 11am CET.

Other high-level speakers at Carbon Expo 2015 include Christiana Figueres, UNFCCC executive secretary, Miguel Arias Cañete, the European Commissioner for Climate Action & Energy, Spain’s environment minister Isabel Garcia Tejerina, France’s Special Representative for the 2015 Paris Climate Conference and French Ambassador for Climate Negotiations Laurence Tubiana and World Bank vice-president Rachel Kyte.

More than 35 CEOs will also be present at the event, as well as several environment ministers and leading policymakers – making Carbon Expo the essential milestone on the road to the Paris climate agreement at the end of this year.

“As we enter the final months of negotiations for the Paris climate agreement, having a forum for discussion between business and government such as Carbon Expo is crucial, particularly with regards to market matters,” says IETA President and CEO Dirk Forrister. “The presence of His Majesty King Felipe VI is a sign of how high the importance of the global response to climate change has escalated.”

Carbon Expo 2015, organised jointly by IETA, the World Bank Group and Fira de Barcelona, features more than 220 speakers in nine plenary sessions and 27 workshops. Carbon Expo will also host 36 side events featuring the latest products and services for climate and carbon finance, including industry case studies, new reports and networking opportunities. The side events will be open to all participants.

Our consultant, Casiana Fometescu will be present at Carbon Expo Barcelona and will keep you posted on all relevant news about climate change.

For the full programme and to register, please see www.carbonexpo.com.