Carbon Pulse

California issued more than 2.2 million compliance offsets this week, with forestry projects located outside the Golden State bringing home the vast majority, according to data published by state regulator ARB on Wednesday.

The Q1 California-Quebec current vintage auction cleared to enable unsold carbon permits to return next quarter, while the advance auction went fully subscribed for the first time since the WCI programme expanded to include the transportation fuel sector, according to results released Wednesday.

California Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) credit values ticked up this week as Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) held a credit solicitation, with market participants saying the movement bucked the usual price trend going into the utility’s auctions.

Nova Scotia is aiming to double its renewable energy target by the end of the decade, new Premier Iain Rankin announced Wednesday, in a move that could factor into the future trajectory of the Canadian province’s annual carbon market caps.

EUAs edged down below €38.50 early on Wednesday, with observers eyeing an afternoon recovery for the third straight day and a potential return to record levels above €40, as data showed speculative funds reduced their long positions last week.

Iberdrola and Endesa saw drastic drops in output from EU carbon market-covered facilities last year, the two companies said in annual earnings released Wednesday, while Poland's Tauron announced plans to write down coal assets.

S&P Global Platts and Australia-headquartered Viridios Capital have signed an MoU to develop indices for voluntary carbon credits driven by artificial intelligence software.

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California risks missing its 2030 climate goal unless it can drive faster emissions reductions from the transportation sector, while regulator ARB may be overstating carbon abatement resulting from incentive-based programmes and its economy-wide cap-and-trade scheme, a government audit found.

EU carbon prices are set to climb to new record heights in Q2 as European lawmakers unveil a suite of bullish market reforms, but softening fundamentals could see a speculator-fuelled pullback before that, two teams of analysts warn.

The Colombian government next month will introduce legislation to impose a CO2 tax on coal-fired power, expanding the reach of the country’s existing $5/tonne carbon fee, a media outlet reported Tuesday.

The premium for California Carbon Offsets financially backed against invalidation is rising amid increasing supply and lower demand during the COVID-19 pandemic, while participants continue to question whether an influx of buying will occur this year.

Ecosystem restoration organisation Viridis Terra International launched a sustainable impact investment fund on Tuesday, targeting a 7% average annualised return on its initial batch of Peruvian forestry projects that will generate carbon credits and sustainable commodities.

EUAs rose late for the second straight session on Tuesday, supported by a resurgent energy complex as prices get nearer to their record levels reached earlier this month.

Environmental commodities trading firm STX Group has reached an agreement to buy a majority stake in Budapest-based rival carbon brokers Vertis, the companies announced late Tuesday.

Australia’s Clean Energy Regulator has issued over 180,000 carbon credits in its latest round, as secondary market offset prices remain stable after earlier this month hitting their highest since the dismantling of the carbon pricing mechanism.

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Verra is seeking two Registry Administrators to handle all day-to-day registry functions of the newly in-housed Verra Registry.

California diesel consumption eclipsed 2019 levels in November amid heavy port activity in the Golden State, while gasoline sales continued to languish during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to state data published Monday.

The free allocation of the first carbon allowances under the UK's new emissions trading scheme is being held up because the handouts depend on EU calculations, even though the systems are separate.