Carbon Pulse

Carbon allowances in the new UK ETS are expected to trade in line or at a slight discount to their EU counterparts from the launch of trade on Wednesday, though concerns over liquidity and market design is leading some experts to believe UKA prices could surpass those on the continent in the coming months. 

Traders anticipate a steep discount to occur at the May 19 quarterly WCI auction, as California Carbon Allowance (CCA) prices have surged to near all-time highs on the secondary market this spring amid a wave of speculative interest.

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EUAs plunged 7% on Tuesday as a pause in carbon's record-breaking run and the onset of the first supply under the new UK ETS helped trigger widespread selling, dragging down much of the European energy complex.

US biofuel credits (RINs) for biodiesel hit the $2 mark on Tuesday as climbing soybean oil values continued to lead prices under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) to new records.

Belarus is drafting a plan to shield itself from the effects of the EU’s planned carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM), a government official said Tuesday, according to national media reports.

Engie’s former head of carbon and power trading in China has left to take over as head of environmental product trading in Asia for a US-headquartered commodities merchant, in the latest sign that the CO2 trading job market in the Asia-Pacific region is heating up.

Heralded as the ‘world’s biggest carbon market” for almost a decade, China’s national emissions trading scheme will likely be more modest than most of its peers when trading begins around a month from now, but stakeholders thought the market might still hold a few surprises.

Carbon pricing and specifically emissions trading systems can play an important role in incentivising removals necessary for achieving Paris Agreement emissions targets, according to the ICAP Secretariat.

There must be no more investment in new fossil fuel supply projects and no further sign-offs on unabated coal projects, the IEA said in a landmark report on how to achieve global net zero CO2 emissions in energy and industry without nature-based removals.

The UK is aiming to allocate the first free carbon allowances to emitters under its new ETS before the end of May, the government announced Tuesday, meaning trading in the market will very likely begin this week amid virtually no physical supply being available.

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

Washington Governor Jay Inslee (D) on Monday vetoed provisions in carbon market and low-carbon fuel standard (LCFS) bills that tied the implementation of the programmes to passage of a higher gasoline tax, overruling a key compromise negotiated among legislators and drawing major pushback from members of both parties.

Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) added quarterly emissions caps to its proposed RGGI regulation as the agency may not be able to promulgate the rule before 2022, the agency said Monday, while an advisory committee narrowly backed the final draft of the power sector cap-and-trade programme. 

Voluntary emissions reduction (VER) prices bucked their recent downward trend this week as voluntary carbon market (VCM) participants continued to point to a lack of low-cost credits to satisfy demand.

EU carbon prices failed to extend their record-breaking run on Monday, but observers largely maintained their bullish stance despite this week's jump in allowance auction volumes.

California Carbon Allowance (CCA) prices surged past $20 on the benchmark contract over Monday morning, as traders said speculative demand fuelled significant day-on-day rises for the second consecutive session.