Carbon Pulse

China is willing to contribute more on climate change and is studying carbon neutrality as part of a long-term strategy, according to a comment by a foreign ministry spokesman that was enthusiastically welcomed internationally but met with scepticism by domestic observers.

The Transportation and Climate Initiative (TCI) is looking at adopting the same reserve sizes for two cost containment mechanisms under the RGGI ETS for its proposed fuel sector cap-and-invest programme in the US Northeast and Mid-Atlantic region, a state official said Wednesday.

Polish utility PGE, owner of the EU ETS’ most polluting installation, aims to have a fully green energy portfolio by 2050, its CEO announced Wednesday in a move outpacing government climate efforts.

The European Parliament adopted an amendment on Wednesday that could make gas infrastructure investments eligible under the bloc’s Just Transition Fund (JTF), taking a laxer line than member states despite deep cross-party divisions.

Yoshihide Suga was sworn in as Japan’s new prime minister on Wednesday, but is expected to follow in predecessor Shinzo Abe’s footsteps on energy and climate issues after confirming the ministers for those portfolios will remain in their roles.

The European Commission is set to propose an upgraded 2030 target of at least 55% below 1990 levels, the EU executive's President told EU lawmakers on Wednesday.

A daily summary of our news plus bite-sized updates from around the world.

The Netherlands will apply from next year a carbon tax on EU ETS-covered heavy industries, the government announced Tuesday, though high EUA prices and wide initial exemptions mean the levy may have little impact at first.

The Pennsylvania Environmental Quality Board (EQB) on Tuesday moved the state’s draft RGGI-aligned cap-and-trade rulemaking ahead to a public comment period, though resistance from the legislature may stand in the way of the state linking with the Northeast US power sector ETS.

Dominion Energy’s Virginia subsidiary is seeking to increase utility rates next year to account for RGGI compliance obligations, while the company is already procuring allowances for future carbon exposure, according to documents filed this week.

The European Parliament should put in place measures to cut emissions from MEP travel and energy use as part of an institution-wide 2030 carbon footprint reduction target, according to a study published by the assembly's secretariat on Tuesday. 

European carbon prices consolidated near €30 on Tuesday, holding on to most of Monday’s stellar gains and coming within a hair of their 14-year high as buying continued ahead of this week’s release of the EU’s new climate strategy.

Five California Carbon Offset (CCO) projects based in Wisconsin have applied to move into the state’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS), marking the seventh out-of-state dairy digesters to do so this month.

The European Parliament adopted on Tuesday an amendment that could fast-track the inclusion of emissions from ships using EU ports to the bloc's ETS as of Jan. 2022.

The current system of free allocation of EU ETS allowances should be “better targeted” in light of the EU’s net zero 2050 emissions goal and the enhanced ambition for 2030, the bloc’s auditors body said.

With so many issues being brought to the table and put on the menu for possible EU ETS reforms and to embody the European Green Deal, there is a real risk of not being able to see the forest for the trees, argues Andrei Marcu. Any revision of the EU ETS needs to be put in the context of the role of the market in the 2030 timeframe and beyond, and the objectives of the review. If not, we may get wrong not only the review of the EU ETS but also, due to a lack of debate, its role going forward.

New Zealand carbon allowances on Tuesday traded above the NZ$35 fixed price option (FPO) for the first time, as a mix of patchy supply and policy uncertainty continued to fuel bullish sentiment.

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) filed an appeal Monday evening on the California-Quebec ETS linkage case after a lower federal court ruled earlier this year that the cross-border agreement did not violate the Constitution.

A daily summary of our news plus bite-sized updates from around the world.

California will look into moving forward its GHG reduction and clean energy targets after the state registered its largest wildfire season in history this year, Governor Gavin Newsom (D) said Friday.