Topics tagged with 'Emissions trading'
Activists slam tweak to EU carbon allowance scheme
21 Dec 2021
The EU was set to revise its carbon Emissions Trading System (ETS) at Monday's (20 December) environment council meeting.
10 YEARS AGO...
17 Dec 2021
Ten years ago, a group of countries at the Durban COP committed to adopting a legally binding agreement to keep the average global temperature rise to below 2 degrees by no later than 2015.
$4.5 billion in projected ETS revenue committed to new climate emergency fund
16 Dec 2021
The government is committing the $4.5 billion it expects to earn from Emission Trading Scheme auctions over the next four years to a new Climate Emergency Response Fund (CERF).
Aussie carbon price outpacing house gains
13 Dec 2021
On Woomargama station 50 km north of Albury on the NSW-Victorian border, Clare Cannon is excited about the future.
When carbon credits drive people from their homes
13 Dec 2021
The Mayo River begins in the tropical cloud forests of Northeastern Peru. Where the Andean foothills meet the Amazonian plains, bromeliads, ferns, and mosses grow under palms, tropical hardwoods, and the liana vines that climb their trunks.
Carbon prices, long in the dumps, surge in U.S. and Europe
10 Dec 2021
Carbon bulls are on the ride.
Carbon market asymmetry: time to put power in the hands of people on the ground: opinion
10 Dec 2021
Eric Wilburn, the co-founder of the Carbon Cooperative, argues there's an asymmetry between those buying carbon credits and the often small-scale projects doing much of the heavy lifting when it comes to offsetting.
UK government set to step in as carbon price mechanism is triggered
8 Dec 2021
The UK government could intervene in the carbon market to reduce the costs big polluters have to pay for emissions permits, according to The Times.
Benchmark EU carbon price hits record high at 85 euros a tonne
8 Dec 2021
The Benchmark European carbon price hit a record high yesterday, climbing to 85 euros a tonne for the first time since the European Union's carbon market launched in 2005.
Carbon trading gets a green light from the U.N., and Brazil hopes to earn billions
7 Dec 2021
Carbon emissions trading is poised to go global, and billions of dollars — maybe even trillions — could be at stake. That's thanks to last month's U.N. climate summit in Glasgow Scotland, which approved a new international trading system where companies pay for cuts in greenhouse gas emissions somewhere else, rather than doing it themselves.
Scottish farmers cautioned over selling carbon credits
3 Dec 2021
SCOTLAND'S FARMERS have been urged to be cautious of selling off their carbon credits – because they may be needed to offset their own emissions in the future
ETS auction clears at $68
1 Dec 2021
THE final NZ ETS auction of the year cleared at a price of $68 today.
How a new global carbon market could exaggerate climate progress
25 Nov 2021
Nations are poised to begin building an international carbon market, after finally adopting the relevant rules at the UN climate conference in Glasgow earlier this month.
Government told to reform ETS to incentivise natives over pines
24 Nov 2021
A coalition of environmental groups and high-profile environmentalists is calling on the government to reform the Emissions Trading Scheme to prioritise the planting of native forests.
Polluters face price pain as global carbon trading system moves forward
22 Nov 2021
A Cop26 breakthrough means emissions trading schemes can work together worldwide with less fear of being gamed.
EU carbon prices hit record high
16 Nov 2021
EU CO2 prices hit a record Eur66/mt on Nov. 15, the first trading day after the UN Climate Change Conference and amid rising fuel prices driven by a cold weather forecast and gas supply fears resurfacing.
Half-baked carbon market rules fail to take heat off the climate: Carbon Market Watch
15 Nov 2021
After over five years of dithering and two weeks of intensive negotiations, the world’s governments settled on slimmed-down ground rules for carbon markets under the Paris Agreement’s Article 6.
London Stock Exchange aims to bring firms’ carbon claims ‘out into daylight’
10 Nov 2021
The London Stock Exchange is aiming to make funding for carbon reduction projects more transparent, introducing a new market that it says will help the industry to scale.
Cooking up carbon credits
5 Nov 2021
Climate change minister James Shaw has cited Switzerland as an example of a country that is meeting its NDC by offsetting in developing countries. So what do those schemes look like?
Current carbon market a problem: Mark Carney
4 Nov 2021
The current voluntary carbon offset market is "part of the problem", former governor of the Bank of England and UN Special Envoy on Climate Action and Finance Mark Carney said today at the UN Cop 26 climate summit.
National pushing for bilateral carbon market agreements
28 Oct 2021
The National Party is calling on the government to establish bilateral carbon market agreements regardless of the outcome of Article 6 negotiations at the upcoming COP26 Summit in Glasgow.
US carbon markets set for record year
21 Oct 2021
US carbon exchanges will easily hit record volumes this year, in part because of recent record highs but also due to new entrants into the market.
How trading CO2 could save the climate or not: BBC
20 Oct 2021
For its proponents, a global carbon market could significantly reduce the world's carbon emissions. But its critics say that giving polluters the option to pay for their emissions is not the answer to climate change.
The carbon offset market could be worth $200 billion by 2050. But what is it?
19 Oct 2021
Companies and people who want to cancel out the impact of their emissions on the climate often turn to something called carbon offsetting.
Switzerland forms two more Article 6 agreements
14 Oct 2021
Switzerland's federal government today gave the green light to two agreements on the basis of Article 6 of the Paris climate agreement with Georgia and Dominica.
Japan eyes international carbon offsets to deliver 2030 emission cuts
14 Oct 2021
The Japanese government will use international offsets as part of a plan to cut emissions 46% between 2013 and 2030, it said in a document to the UN.
Greenpeace calls for end to carbon offsets
7 Oct 2021
Carbon offsets are allowing the world's biggest polluters to forge ahead with business plans that are threatening global climate goals, the head of Greenpeace International said in an interview.
Carbon credit blockchain platform launched
5 Oct 2021
In a move that will be seen as ironic by some, a new tool allowing users to buy verified carbon credits on the blockchain has been launched in New Zealand.
One in five Australian carbon credits junk: study
22 Sep 2021
About 20% of carbon credits created under the federal Coalition’s main climate change policy do not represent real cuts in carbon dioxide and are essentially “junk”, new research suggests.
First credits sold under Queensland's carbon scheme
22 Sep 2021
A central Queensland couple has become the first to sell carbon credits under the state government's Land Restoration Fund (LRF).
NZU stockpile grows
20 Sep 2021
The NZU stockpile has grown from 134.5 million in March to 138.4 million at the end of June, according to figures just released by the Environmental Protection Authority.
NZU price crashes through CCR
1 Sep 2021
THE third NZ ETS auction cleared at $53.85 today - the first time the cost containment reserve has been breached.
Jump in number of non-obligatory players entering ETS
31 Aug 2021
Nearly two thirds of bids in the last ETS auction in June came from entities that didn’t have compliance obligations.
Price of carbon crosses 60 euro for first time
31 Aug 2021
The European benchmark price for carbon allowances on Monday morning climbed above 60 euros per tonne for the first time since the European Union’s carbon market launched in 2005.
Singapore exchange to tighten climate rules
31 Aug 2021
The Singapore Exchange will ask all companies listed on its exchange to disclose climate-related information or explain why they cannot do so.
China’s new carbon trading market isn’t working
24 Aug 2021
The price of emissions credits in China’s carbon trading market reached a record low on Aug. 20, the latest sign that the market’s structural flaws are preventing it from working as an effective weapon against climate change.
NZU price jumps on announced increase in CCR trigger price
23 Aug 2021
The price of NZUs broke through the $50 mark today for the first time on news that the government is increasing the Cost Containment Reserve trigger price to $70 next year.
Carbon making good returns on the NZX
18 Aug 2021
New Zealand’s only carbon fund has more than trebled in size since the beginning of the year and is now worth close to $35 million.
Rise of the 'carbon capitalist'
18 Aug 2021
Matthew Roling, an adjunct professor of finance at Wayne State University, argues that carbon markets will become 'the largest commodity markets in history.'
China's carbon market records its first cross-border deal
16 Aug 2021
Even as trading on China's national carbon market dwindled away in its first month to next to nothing, one sign of life emerged this week in the form of an unusual cross-border deal for a voluntary form of carbon emission credits.
Price of carbon driving forestry conversions
5 Aug 2021
Research commissioned by Beef + Lamb New Zealand has found that about 26,550 hectares of farmland has been sold to “carbon-only” entities since 2017.
10 YEARS AGO...
3 Aug 2021
Ten years ago, British electricity generators were paying 16 pounds a tonne for carbon – nearly twice the then price of carbon in New Zealand.
Analysts raise EU carbon price forecasts
28 Jul 2021
Analysts have raised their European carbon market average price forecasts after the European Commission unveiled a package of policies to implement its climate targets, including reforms to limit the number of carbon permits available.
China's carbon market tops 210 million yuan in first-day trading
19 Jul 2021
China's national carbon market, the largest emissions trading system in the world, made its debut on Friday with a turnover of 210 million yuan for carbon dioxide emissions on the first day
Number of NZUs surrendered drops
15 Jul 2021
The net number of NZUs surrendered in the year ending June dropped from $40.24 million last year to $38.87 million.
NZUs continue to climb
8 Jul 2021
The price of NZUs have increased by more than 24% since the beginning of last month – hitting $46 on both the Commtrade and Carbon Match platforms yesterday.
10 YEARS AGO...
6 Jul 2021
Ten years ago, NZ Carbon Farming was claiming it had made the biggest carbon deal in New Zealand history - but it wouldn't say how big.
Feebate could see ETS cap reduce: Shaw
1 Jul 2021
Minister for Climate Change James Shaw says policies like the feebate scheme will allow the government to reduce the ETS cap quicker than would otherwise be the case.
10 YEARS AGO...
29 Jun 2021
Ten years ago, the then Labour leader of the opposition, Phil Goff, told Federated Farmers that under a Labour government agricultural emission would be included in the ETS.
NZU price keeps climbing
25 Jun 2021
NZUs are trading at all-time highs of more than $43 on both CommTrade and Carbon Match today
NZ urged to grab a slice of burgeoning $35 billion market for nature credits
Fri 13 Mar 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand could unlock strong domestic and international demand for high-integrity nature-based credits, if government, investors and restoration groups work together to scale supply, a new report says.
Rod Carr is ‘over’ climate change defeatism
Fri 13 Mar 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | If there’s one thing former Climate Change Commission chair Rod Carr is “over”, it’s people saying there’s nothing they can personally do to address climate change.
Auckland Airport switches on giant heat pump system to cut gas use
6 Mar 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | While Auckland Airport’s switch from gas to heat pumps is welcome, the emissions savings are dwarfed by ongoing aircraft emissions, which are set to rise, according to a sustainable transport expert.
Air NZ joins Marsden Point SAF project
3 Mar 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | Air New Zealand has quietly added its name to a consortium exploring the viability of green hydrogen production for sustainable aviation fuel at Channel Infrastructure’s Marsden Point energy hub.
Carbon markets risk penalising Indigenous stewardship, researchers warn
5 Mar 2026
Carbon markets designed to reward environmental restoration may be unintentionally disadvantaging Indigenous communities who have long protected intact ecosystems, according to new research.
Govt’s own modelling shows LNG leads to higher electricity prices than other solutions
19 Feb 2026
By Christina Hood | COMMENT: According to modelling conducted by Concept Consulting for MBIE, either developing the Tariki gas storage facility or managing electricity demand would deliver lower wholesale electricity prices than the Government’s preferred solution of an LNG import terminal.
Kenya’s latest carbon credit crackdown reveals questionable practices
Wed 11 Mar 2026
Some players use sophisticated tactics to inflate the value of credits that may not represent genuine, permanent emissions reductions.
Countries agree to record release of emergency oil reserves as prices surge
Fri 13 Mar 2026
Dozens of countries have agreed to release a record amount of oil from their emergency reserves to try to tackle supply shortages and soaring prices.
Bidders no-show at carbon auction – again
3 Mar 2026
By Liz Kivi | As predicted, today’s carbon auction yet again failed to attract any bidders, with NZUs currently trading hands on the secondary market at a 35% discount on this year’s auction floor price.
3,600 times faster: China is shaking up the steel industry
25 Feb 2026
For over a century, making steel meant coal, heat, and hours of waiting. A Chinese research team now reports collapsing that process into just three to six seconds; no coal, near zero emissions, and a vortex lance already moving toward commercial production. The technology is called flash ironmaking, and in February 2026, its implications are still unfolding.
Hormuz crisis critical to New Zealand
Tue 10 Mar 2026
By Nathan Surendran | COMMENT: Why the Hormuz crisis is a symptom, not the disease – and what it means for New Zealand.
Sustainable retail-office project breaks ground under new Green Star framework
19 Feb 2026
Construction is set to begin on a new retail-office development in central Auckland, which is targeting a 40% reduction in embodied carbon and 25% lower energy.
Opposition attacks Govt over fossil fuel phaseout backdown
2 Feb 2026
By Liz Kivi | Revelations that Resources Minister Shane Jones ruled out New Zealand signing up to a 'road map' away from fossil fuels at last year’s global climate summit show the National Party’s minor coalition partners’ undue influence over the Government, according to Labour leader Chris Hipkins.
Renewables surge cuts power emissions, but oil dominates fossil fuel use
Fri 13 Mar 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand’s fossil fuel emissions fell in 2025 as strong renewable electricity generation reduced the need for gas-fired power, but oil consumption is rising and now accounts for a record share of fossil emissions.
Environmental groups call for ETS reform
20 Feb 2026
Several environmental organisations are calling on political parties to make climate and biodiversity central to the 2026 election campaign, with reforming the Emissions Trading Scheme seen as a key priority.
Climate Commission called to Waitangi inquiry over alleged breaches
Tue 10 Mar 2026
By Liz Kivi | The Climate Change Commission is being called to front up to the Waitangi Tribunal and give evidence over alleged legal breaches of its obligations to Māori.
Transport dominates NZ’s rising consumer emissions
10 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Transport pollution was the biggest contributor to an increase in New Zealand’s consumption-based emissions in 2023, with emissions from household travel up 12%, and consumption-based emissions totalling 58.3 million tonnes – up 1.6% from the previous year.
From forest to flatpack, IKEA faces timber traceability test
Wed 11 Mar 2026
As the EU’s Deforestation Regulation nears implementation this year, furniture giant IKEA may need stronger traceability systems to prove its timber isn’t linked to post-2020 deforestation.
Greenpeace slams Govt climate policies amid rising petrol prices
Thu 12 Mar 2026
As petrol prices climb to $3 a litre, Greenpeace is blaming Government decisions for leaving Kiwis harder hit by the oil price spike.
RMA to speed up fossil fuel consents
18 Aug 2025
By Liz Kivi | An energy lobby group has welcomed a last-minute amendment to the RMA that puts fossil fuels on the same footing as renewables, however a sustainable energy expert says the move “beggars belief.”
Gaps in adaptation taxonomies hinder climate finance in Asia: report
5 Mar 2026
Without clearer criteria and metrics in adaptation taxonomies, Asia risks widening its climate financing gap, warns a new report by the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA).
Russia gets export boost from Iran war as price of oil to India surges
Tue 10 Mar 2026
The war in Iran has fuelled a significant bump in demand for Russian oil and gas, the Kremlin said on Friday, boosting exports which have been battered by sanctions linked to Russia's war in Ukraine.
Five trees can’t offset a car: Lawyers accuse Mazda of greenwashing
Mon 9 Mar 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Lawyers for Climate Action NZ is taking Mazda to the Advertising Standards Authority over its claims that a tree-planting programme will offset vehicle emissions.
Govt missing opportunity to slash electricity prices, says expert
11 Feb 2026
By Liz Kivi | The Government’s fixation on eliminating the "dry-year risk margin" as a lever to reduce costs misses a much bigger opportunity to lower electricity prices, according to Christina Hood, head of Compass Climate.
Japan eyes New Zealand as green hydrogen export hub
Thu 12 Mar 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | A new partnership between major Japanese companies aims to explore exporting green hydrogen from New Zealand – but the economics of producing the energy-hungry fuel remain the biggest hurdle.
Wales council to buy and demolish homes prone to flooding
4 Feb 2026
A row of homes in a village in south Wales is to be bought by a local authority and demolished as they can no longer be protected from flooding caused by the climate crisis.
Climate law change spanner in the works for Waitangi Tribunal Inquiry
19 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government’s controversial changes to New Zealand’s legal framework for climate policy have thrown a spanner in the works for a long-running Waitangi Tribunal Inquiry into climate change.
EDS puts environmental lawmaking under the spotlight
26 Feb 2026
Media Release |The Environmental Defence Society has launched the first in a series of investigative pieces into how environmental laws are being made in Aotearoa New Zealand.
Climate 'dream team' launches foundation targeting 100 million tonnes in emissions cuts
25 Feb 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The New Zealand Climate Foundation, which has the ambitious aim of cutting 100 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions by 2035, had its official launch on Monday.
Expert Panel invites EDS to comment on Bendigo goldmine
Fri 13 Mar 2026
Media release | The Environmental Defence Society has been invited to provide comment on the Bendigo-Ophir gold mine by the expert Panel tasked with deciding the fast-track project.
If the government is set on an LNG terminal, gas users, not electricity users, should pay
Wed 11 Mar 2026
By Christina Hood | COMMENT: It's increasingly clear that the government's narrative of LNG as ‘dry year electricity insurance’ really doesn't stack up.
NZ's latest climate target 'weak' – Climate Action Tracker
24 Jun 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand's new international climate target to 2035 is weak, and could even allow for higher emissions than the 2030 target, according to a global scientific project that tracks government climate action.
Tiny, lost and constipated: what a baby turtle told Australian scientists about warming seas
6 Mar 2026
The arrival of loggerheads in New South Wales shows these ‘sentinels of climate change’ are being forced into unknown territory.
The world’s largest climate finance deal was built to flounder: why funding fails to reach the front‑line
6 Mar 2026
Adopted in December 2015, the Paris Agreement commits countries to keeping global temperature rise below 2°C above pre-industrial levels.
Kiwis overly optimistic about state of environment
27 Feb 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New research suggests many New Zealanders believe the environment is in better shape than it really is, with public perceptions often out of step with scientific evidence.
‘They pushed so many lies about recycling’: the fight to stop big oil pumping billions more into plastics
24 Feb 2026
Plastic production has doubled over the last 20 years – and will likely double again. For author Beth Gardiner, metal water bottles and canvas tote bags are not the solution. So what is?
Todd gets nod to drill first super-critical geothermal well
Thu 12 Mar 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | Todd Energy is to make its sole oil drilling rig available to drill the first exploration well under the government’s $60 million super-critical geothermal resource exploration programme under a ‘preferred supplier’ agreement announced yesterday.
Media round-up
20 Feb 2026
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: 'Every tonne matters': The climate scientist who wants to give you hope; Minister says managed retreat is an option; and climate change is here – is New Zealand ready?
China has a new competitor? Kazakhstan reveals huge rare Earth deposit that could power the next tech boom
25 Feb 2026
China’s grip on rare earths might finally see some competition, and the world is already taking notice.
How falling battery costs are igniting race for round-the-clock solar power
Fri 13 Mar 2026
By combining the solar array with a massive amount of battery capacity, the aim is to store enough power generated during daylight hours so that a minimum of 1 GW of electricity – enough to power between 500,000 and one million homes – is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Native plant shows promise for tackling `forever chemicals’
Wed 11 Mar 2026
Media release: University of Auckland | One of Aotearoa New Zealand’s taonga plants, harakeke, shows promise as a treatment for removing “forever chemicals” from drinking water.
DOC trims costs and winds down jobs for nature
10 Nov 2025
The Department of Conservation (DOC) is entering a new phase of tighter budgets and structural change as it winds down the pandemic-era Jobs for Nature programme and reshapes its operations to absorb long-term cost pressures.
Claims that AI can help fix climate dismissed as greenwashing
18 Feb 2026
Tech companies are conflating traditional artificial intelligence with generative AI when claiming the energy-hungry technology could help avert climate breakdown, according to a report.
Pacific climate response in question as NZ finance remains unclear
19 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | With New Zealand's $1.3 billion international climate finance commitment set to end with no clarity on what follows, the Auditor-General says oversight of that funding remains patchy and long-term outcomes are unclear.
NZ EV owners sticking with electric – survey
Wed 11 Mar 2026
Nearly all New Zealand EV owners say they would buy another electric vehicle, according to new research from Consumer NZ.
Summit aims to revive stalled UN talks on phasing out fossil fuels
Wed 11 Mar 2026
Colombia and the Netherlands have set out three priorities for a conference on phasing out fossil fuels they will co-host in Colombia in April.
Infrastructure plan calls for ‘predictable approach’ to electrifying economy
18 Feb 2026
Aotearoa’s first National Infrastructure Plan, introduced to Parliament yesterday, calls for "a predictable approach to electrifying the economy" as one of ten priorities for the next decade.
Global coastal sea-level risks may be underestimated, say scientists
5 Mar 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Coastal communities across the Pacific and Southeast Asia could be facing greater sea-level rise risks than previously estimated, researchers say.
Study finds warming world increases days when weather is prone to fires around the globe
20 Feb 2026
The number of days when the weather gets hot, dry and windy — ideal to spark extreme wildfires — has nearly tripled in the past 45 years across the globe, with the trend increasing even higher in the Americas, a new study shows.
Western Australian communities want mandatory payments from new renewable developments
6 Mar 2026
The West Australian government wants to make new wind and solar farms pay into community funds, but host towns say more work needs to be done to make sure the payments actually happen.
