Carbon Pulse

Private equity investor Bridgepoint has bought a minority stake in Amsterdam-based environmental and energy commodities trading company ACT, which said the move will help expansion plans including more than doubling its headcount within five years.

EUAs fell back amid a widespread sell-off in energy markets on Friday morning, after Thursday's sharp rally led by natural gas gave way to profit-taking as the month drew to a close.

Two of Europe’s major airlines are relying on the easing of restrictions across the continent to rebound from the COVID-19 crisis, but their long-term recovery outlook remains uncertain.

The Clean Energy Regulator has issued more than 430,000 new carbon credits this week, while the government on Friday said it has introduced regulations that ensure it can use the renewable energy agency ARENA to fund new technologies, including offset-eligible CCS and soil carbon.

The Chinese Carbon Emissions Allowance (CEA) price edged down this week as liquidity thinned further, a trend market participants said may continue until more companies are given market access.

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

*PREMIUM LISTING – This full-time position will be responsible for working on regular standard updates to align with Gold Standard's strategy and new market developments. The role also includes the review of new carbon accounting methodologies and managing the auditor approval process for renewable energy, community-based energy efficiency and waste management projects. 

*PREMIUM LISTING – This full-time position will be responsible for working on regular standard updates to align with Gold Standard's strategy and new market developments. The role also includes the review of new carbon accounting methodologies and managing the auditor approval process for Afforestation/Reforestation (A/R) and Agriculture (AGR) projects.  

The Originator will work within the Environmental Products Trading team. This role is expected to identify, develop and deliver deals that enrich the funnel of opportunities in Environmental markets and generate material and sustainable contributions to the global trade book.

California Carbon Allowance (CCA) prices dropped further this week as traders began to turn their attention to next month’s quarterly WCI sale, while RGGI Allowance (RGA) values climbed closer to the $9 level on heightened speculative interest.

Two privately-owned Bulgarian coal-fired plants may have saved around €30 mln in EU ETS obligations by under-declaring verified emissions covered by the EU ETS, according to a media investigation.

Melbourne-based Renewable Energy Hub is launching a new OTC-based trading platform for carbon and clean energy products, it announced Friday, offering a range of compliance and voluntary instruments primarily targeting the Asia-Pacific region.

UK utility Drax notched a 56% year-on-year cut in its ETS-covered generation for H1, after the company had largely drawn down its coal stockpiles.

Italian utility Enel followed other major European generators in posting an uptick in EU ETS-covered thermal generation for H1 on Thursday, in line with an EU-wide rebound following last year's pandemic restrictions.

The US Senate voted to begin debate Tuesday night on a bipartisan infrastructure deal featuring provisions on clean energy, CCS, and hydrogen, but some Democrats called for legislators to go much further than these carbon reduction strategies.

Steelmaker ArcelorMittal has set itself a 2030 greenhouse gas reduction objective across its global operations and raised its European climate target, it said in quarterly results on Thursday.

EUAs reversed initial gains after tracking rising natural gas and power prices in early Thursday trade, amid a generally firmer energy complex heading into the peak holiday season.

China’s new pilot scheme to add carbon to environmental impact assessments will complement the national ETS, with the steel industry set to be the most affected, analysts said Thursday.

A new global cross-stakeholder initiative aims to agree on how companies should use carbon credits and ensure the voluntary carbon market contributes to Paris Agreement goals.

Japan’s Mitsubishi Corp. has taken a 40% stake in an Australian developer of nature-based carbon credits, it announced Thursday, further extending its growing involvement in voluntary emissions markets.