Australia and EU to link carbon schemes

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Australian Climate Change Minister Greg Combet announced this week that in 2015, when his country will launch a fully-fledged ETS, market participants will be allowed to achieve up to half of their targets by surrendering EU allowances. Such a decision will limit the possibility for Australian emitters to use U.N.-backed offsets only to 12.5 percent of their emissions target. Australia will renounce also to the minimum price floor, previously set at A$15 from mid-2015, in order to comply with recently-emerged concerns over the higher carbon prices Australian companies will have to face compared to their EU competitors. A direct link with the EU cap-and-trade scheme will be then established by 2018, when also European emitters will be enabled to use Australian permits. Finally, the Minister confirmed that his country will continue negotiations on linking its scheme also with New Zealand’s ETS.

Full news reported in the weekly column Climate Policy News.

In the latest issue (August 27 – September 2, 2012):

  • Australia and EU to link carbon schemes
  • U.S. finalizes new fuel efficiency standard
  • California ETS ventures forward with hesitant steps
  • Japan unveils no nukes energy plan
  • The Carbon Market this week

Climate Policy News is edited by Marinella Davide and Valeria Barbi

Picture Credits: CC by rogweb at Flickr.com

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