The CO2 Market – EU ETS 31.03.2021

The EUA price on London based exchange ICE ECX opened on 31.03.2021 at 42.05 euro/tCO2. EUAs lifted slightly on Monday as last week’s late comeback and a stronger auction encouraged to bulls that prices could re-test the record levels seen earlier this month.

Morgan Stanley raises EU carbon price outlook to €50
Carbon Pulse from London published on 30.03.2021 that Morgan Stanley has raised its near-term outlook for EU carbon prices to above €50 on “positive” political signals and continued inflow of new investor capital into the market.

Brussels launches consultation on transnational CO2 transport networks

The European Commission has launched in March 2021 a consultation on cross-border CO2 transport networks, which could get priority access for EU funding as the bloc intends to kickstart the first large-scale CCS projects by the end of the decade, while environmentalist NGOs aim to expand the current scope to other modes of transport.

Moreover, the European Commission’s upcoming June package of energy and climate laws will “propose the extension of the emission trading scheme to sectors such as building and road transport,” the EU’s energy commissioner Kadri Simson said on Thursday, 25th  March.

The inclusion of both road transport and buildings into the EU’s cap and trade scheme for greenhouse gas emissions has been mooted ever since the new Commission took office, in December 2019.

Source: Carbon Pulse, London & Euractiv, Brussels

The CO2 Market 16.03.2021

The EU ETS Price

EU Allowances hit a record high above 43€ on Tuesday (15.03.2121), surging late on higher power, gas, and equities and as a Brussels official urged caution on possible carbon price controls.

The price of the EUA certificate on the ICE ECX London opened this morning (16.03.2021) the EUA trade sessions at  € 42,21 / tCO2.

The expectation of higher carbon prices may have prompted industrial firms to start hedging their emissions early this year. That added to demand for allowances—as did unusually cold weather, which boosted the demand for heating (the ets does not cover boilers in homes, but it includes large ones, such as those that heat many buildings). Speculators may have accelerated the price rise, by buoying futures prices. Around 230 investment funds hold futures linked to allowances, up from 140 in 2019. They account for only about 5% of the futures market, but it is a growing, bullish share. Long positions, or bets that the price will rise, have doubled since November.

Source: ICE ECX & Carbon Pulse London, Carbon Pricing Leadership Coalition

The CO2 Market 02.03.2021

The EU ETS Price

The price of the EUA certificate on the ICE ECX London opened this morning (02.03.2021) the EUA trade sessions at 37,17 € / tCO2.

Air pollution is killing thousands more people than Covid in the world’s biggest cities

The Covid-19 pandemic has led to a temporary fall in air pollution in many parts of the world, as economic activity has ebbed and movement restrictions have de-clogged congested cities. But smog was still a big killer in 2020, according to analysis from environmental group Greenpeace and Swiss air quality technology firm IQAir.

In the world’s five biggest cities, Shanghai, Tokyo, Dehli, Mexico City, and São Paulo, small particulate matter in the air known as PM2.5, which penetrates deep into the lungs, killed 160,000 people prematurely in 2020.

Particulate pollution causes health problems such as lung cancer, heart disease, stroke, and even diabetes.

Some studies have shown that air pollution makes it easier for people to contract the coronavirus, as well as develop more severe symptoms. One paper suggested that 15 per cent of Covid deaths worldwide, and up to 27 per cent of Covid deaths in East Asia, could be attributed to long-term exposure to air pollution.

Source: ICE ECX London & Eco-Business

The CO2 Market 23.02.2021

The EU ETS Price

The price of the EUA certificate on the ICE ECX London opened this morning (23.02.2021) the EUA trade sessions at 38,30€ / tCO2, continuing its downtrend from Fiday (19.02) as nice weather conditions are coming in Europe.

The EU started the infringement procedure in Romania for the legislation on industrial emissions

The European Commission sent a letter of delay to Romania on Thursday, 18.02.2021, asking it to bring its national legislation in line with the EU Directive on industrial emissions. This letter of formal notice is, in fact, the formal opening of the infringement procedure. Romania now has two months to remedy the shortcomings identified by the Commission. Otherwise, the Commission may decide to send them a motivated warning.

“The Romanian legal system does not guarantee the implementation of key objectives of the Directive, especially that the installations can operate only if they have authorization. On the one hand, in the current form, the Romanian legal system provides very small and inadequate penalties, which do not prove the efficiency, the proportionality and the deterrence required by the Directive. On the other hand, the Romanian authorities fail to implement current legislation in a coherent administrative way, implementing the imposed sanctions “, underlines the European Commission. Profit.ro
 

Source: ICE ECX London & Profit.ro

The CO2 Market 18.02.2021

The EU ETS Price

The price of the EUA certificate on the ICE ECX London opened this morning (18.02.2021) the EUA trade sessions at 38,18 € / tCO2.

EUAs continued their record-breaking rally into a fifth day on Monday (15.02.2021) in the last decade, with 40,60 € / tCO2. EUAs rebound to new high above 40€ on both Monday and Tuesday (15 &16.02) after intervention panic fades, clawing back ground lost late on Thursday and Friday (11&12.02) as traders dismissed the prospects of regulators curbing speculative trade anytime soon. EUAs fell for the third straight day on Wednesday (17.02) as a falling energy complex weighed, with carbon defying prevailing bullish sentiment and data showing speculative funds have become the market’s largest segment.

Fossil fuel subsidies amount to hundreds of billions of dollars a year

Despite an agreement at the G20 in 2009 to eliminate fossil fuel subsidies, the US, China and Russia alone spent US$909 billion (£656 billion) on them in 2017, the most recent year available – that’s nearly 40% more than in 2009.

A global study of gasoline prices between 2003 and 2015 showed that net fossil fuel subsidies increased by 5% each year.
Eliminating fossil fuel subsidies is not an optional extra in the effort to decarbonize the global economy, it’s central to the entire transition. But achieving widespread support for this will take political leadership, policy innovation and far greater funding.

Pollution from fossil fuels twice as deadly as thought, scientists warn

Air pollution from burning fossil fuels is causing more than twice as many deaths as thought, a study has found.
They calculated that in 2012 fine particles were a contributory factor in 99,000 deaths in the UK, more than double the estimate published in 2016 by the Royal College of Physicians of 40,000 deaths a year from all sources of outdoor air pollution. Almost one in five deaths in the UK is linked to fine particle pollution from road traffic, power generation and other activities that involve burning petrol, diesel, coal and gas, according to scientists from Harvard University and University College London.

Source: ICE ECX, Carbon Pulse, Bloomberg, & Energy in Demand, London

The CO2 Market 09.02.2021

The EU ETS Price

The price of the EUA certificate on the ICE ECX London opened this morning (09.02.2021) the EUA trade sessions at 38,10 €/tCO2.

EUAs continued their record-breaking rally into a fourth day on Monday in the last decade, with 39,80€ / tCO2, bolstered by higher energy prices as freezing conditions set in in parts of Europe and some observers predicted further gains for this week.

Exchange operator ICE announced today that it will relocate its EU carbon allowance trading from its London-based hub to the Netherlands in Q2 of this year due to Brexit-related limitations, it announced Monday.

ZF Live: Romania is the last EU country on investments in the environment

In an interview with ZF Live, the founder of Carbon Expert, Casiana Fometescu, stated that “Romania is the last EU country on investments in the environment, although there was funding. The situation of industrial polluting companies is a dramatic one, because they have to buy over 2 million carbon certificates by the end of April, each with a price of 38 euros”

You can watch the full interview in Romanian here :

https://m.zf.ro/zf-live/zf-live-casiana-fometescu-fondatoarea-carbon-expert-romania-ultimul-19906498

For more information on Romania’s situation compared to other European countries on pollution in recent years, as well as the percentage of revenues from CO2 certificate auctions in every EU country and invested in environmental projects, you can access the European Commission Report “2020 EU Climate Action Progress Report 2020“.

Source: ICE ECX, Carbon Pulse & Bloomberg, London & Ziarul Financiar

The CO2 Market 03.02.2021

The EU ETS Price

The price of the EUA certificate on the ICE ECX London opened this morning (03.02.2021) the EUA trade sessions at 34,97 €/tCO2 and has jumped to 37.11€/tCO2 at 14.00h with 6.12% increase.

EUAs leap 6.5% to eye record as fund fever triggers technical breach and EUAs jumped more than 2€ to near-record levels above 35€ on Tuesday, 02.02.2021, as reports of bullish fund managers and a strong auction pushed carbon to a technical breakout.

Investments in Decarbonization Increased in 2020

The world committed a record $501.3 bln to decarbonisation in 2020, beating the previous year by 9% despite the economic disruption caused by the pandemic, according to BloombergNEF’s newly published Energy Transition Investment Trends report in January.

Global investment in renewable energy capacity moved up 2% to $303.5 bln in 2020. This was the second-highest annual figure ever – after 2017’s $313.3 bln – and the seventh consecutive total of more than $250 bln.

France Exists from Coal in 2024

In the pursuit of decarbonization, the French central bank said on Monday, 18th January, that it would exit from coal and limit exposure to gas and oil in its investment portfolio by 2024, as part of a shift towards more environmentally friendly assets. It said in a statement that by the end of this year it will no longer invest in companies that generate more than 2% of their revenues from coal, and reduce the threshold – currently standing at 10% – to zero by the end of 2024. It added it would also exclude by 2024 companies with more than 10% of revenue coming from oil or 50% from gas, which could potentially mean the central bank would have to shun firms like French energy major Total.

Source: ICE ECX, Carbon Pulse & Bloomberg, London

CO2 Market – 26.01.2021

EUA Price

The price of the EUA certificate on the ICE ECX London stock exchange closed Friday, 22.01.2021, at 34,63 € / tCO2, and opened this morning (26.01.2021) the EUA trade sessions at 32,95 € / tCO2.

This compliance period is particularly difficult for many companies and most of the EU analysts expect a trading range of 31-36 eur/EUA for the next 4 months of trading.

Net-zero, carbon-neutral, carbon-negative – confused by all the carbon jargon?

You might have heard a lot of talk about “going net-zero” in the media lately. China recently announced it intends to achieve the goal by 2060. The European Union, the United Kingdom and New Zealand will go net-zero by 2050. In Australia, all states and territories have a net-zero strategy and the federal government is under pressure to make a national commitment.

You might also have heard references to “zero emissions”, “low emissions” and going “carbon-neutral” So let’s get clear on what all these terms mean in practice. To understand the term “net-zero emissions”, we must also understand what it is not. It should not be confused with the following related, but separate, concepts:

Zero emissions

This refers to a process where no CO₂ is released at all. In fact, in our current global mining and manufacturing system, no technology produces zero emissions.

Technologies such as solar panels and wind energy are often said to be zero-emissions but technically, they’re not. They have what are known as “embedded emissions” – those created in manufacturing the technology. However wind and solar produce no ongoing emissions after installation, unlike fossil fuel energy.

Low emissions

Generating greenhouse gases at a lower rate than business as usual. Examples include switching from coal-fired to gas-fired power to generate the same amount of electricity, but with fewer emissions.

Carbon-negative

This means removing CO₂ from the atmosphere, or sequestering more CO₂ than is emitted. This might include a bioenergy process with carbon capture and storage.

So, what are net zero emissions for countries or companies?

Net zero emissions

At the global or country level, we will achieve net-zero emissions when any remaining human-caused GHG emissions are balanced out by removing GHGs from the atmosphere in a process known as carbon removal.

When we are speaking about net zero emissions of companies, emissions are still being generated byt they are offset by the same amount elsewhere. The term „carbon-neutral” is sometimes used instead of net-zero, and they broadly mean the same thing.

The move towards net-zero is crucial to avoid a climate catastrophe. And the time to move is not tomorrow or “by 2050”. It is now, as most of scientist affirms it.

Source: ICE ECX & Energy in Demand, London

CO2 Market – 05.01.2021

EU ETS begins 2021 with record highs

EU emissions trading system (ETS) allowances made a strong start to 2021, rallying to all-time highs in the first ans second week of the year, after taking direction from upward moves in the wider energy complex and on a backdrop of constricted permit supply.

The EU ETS December 2021 contract ended week 1 at €34.91/tCO2, the highest close for the front-year product since the EU ETS began. This was up by €2.19/t CO2 from where it ended 2020, marking the contract’s 10th consecutive week-on-week rise and its largest since the week beginning 24 August.

The prices went up in the second week till €35.65/tCO2 on 12.01.2021 and, then started to decrease. The EUA price on the ICE ECX exchange from London has been trading today, 18.01.2021, at €32/tCO2.

EU ETS emissions see big drop in 2019, latest EEA assessment shows

In 2019 the number of EU ETS emission allowances auctioned decreased by 36 % compared to 2018. However, total revenues from auctions increased by EUR 447 million because of higher carbon prices.

The EEA briefing ”The EU Emissions Trading System in 2020: trends and projections” found that the drop in emissions from facilities covered by the EU ETS was again driven by a strong shift in the fuels used for electricity generation, from coal towards less carbon-intensive energy sources such as gas and renewables. However, emissions from aviation, also covered by the ETS, continued to increase (1 %), reflecting the increasing demand for air travel in 2019.

The observed reduction in emissions between 2018 and 2019 was due to the increased price of CO2, which made coal less attractive, combined with the rising share of renewables in the total energy supply. Many countries also saw a switch from coal to natural gas.

Continued decreased in EU ETS emissions have been forecast for 2020 and 2021, but these projections do not take into account some of the most recently planned measures, and the impact of COVID-19 pandemic.

Source: ICE ECX, London & EEA, Paris

CO2 Market – 05.01.2021

This morning 05.01.2021, the ICE ECX exchange in London opened with € 33,44 / tCO2. Yesterday, 04.01.2021, the EUA price reached the threshold of 34 € / tCO2, which the highest value reached up until now.

Causes of EUA increase

EUAs hit a new all-time high on Monday as cold weather prospects lifted the energy complex and allowance supply curbs continue to drive bullish sentiment.

Driving the latest uptrend rally is also the recent decision by the European Union to cut greenhouse-gas emissions by at least 55% of 1990 levels by 2030. Traders are also expecting regulations on the burning of fossil fuels will be tightened to meet the new target, including reducing the number of carbon credits available. The increased future ambition of emissions reductions will reduce supply and lower supply should lead to higher prices.

The prospect of high returns has drawn established commodities players into the carbon market. The Wall Street Journal remarks that banks like Morgan Stanley and trading houses such as Andurand Capital and Trafigura have all entered or expanded their positions in the carbon market in recent months.

Source: ICE ECX London & World Street Journal