Topics tagged with 'Emissions trading'
Concerns ETS changes could rapidly accelerate carbon price and risk ‘carbon leakage’
10 Oct 2022
The BusinessNZ Energy Council (BEC) says the Emissions Reduction Scheme should be left to do its job.
NZUs down more than 10% on last month’s record high
4 Oct 2022
The price of NZUs on the secondary market have fallen more than 10% since hitting a high of $87.30 on the CommTrade platform in the lead up to last month’s ETS auction.
Countries try to dodge EU's carbon market fundraising plan
27 Sep 2022
European Union countries are hunting for alternatives to an EU plan to use a carbon market reserve to help finance their exit from Russian gas, as some fear the proposal would undermine the bloc’s main climate change policy.
Christchurch City Council registers for ETS credits
22 Sep 2022
Christchurch City Council has made its first application for carbon credits under the Emissions Trading Scheme, voting last week to register about 300 hectares of regenerating native forest in Te Oka Reserve on Banks Peninsula.
Salesforce will launch carbon credit marketplace
22 Sep 2022
Business software provider Salesforce is bringing a new platform to the carbon market, where businesses will be able to buy carbon credits from a trusted partner with a third-party verification.
EU governments carving out €20 bn in carbon market exemptions for shipping
22 Sep 2022
Government ministers are in the process of carving out €20 billion worth of exemptions for the shipping industry in the new maritime carbon market (ETS), according to a new analysis.
Price of NZUs at bottom end of what’s required to keep global warming below 2 degrees: World Bank
21 Sep 2022
NZUs are trading at the bottom end of what’s required by 2030 if the world is to keep global warming below 2 degrees, according to the World Bank’s State and Trends of Carbon Pricing 2022 report.
Forestry could crash the ETS
20 Sep 2022
Climate Change Commission chair Rod Carr says, if left alone, the planting of pine trees purely for carbon credits will prevent the ETS from playing the part it should in reducing carbon emissions.
Norway buys carbon credits from Indonesia’s rainforest
14 Sep 2022
Indonesia and Norway have agreed to start a new partnership to reduce carbon emissions from deforestation in the Southeast Asian country.
Consultation on proposals to update ETS unit settings
13 Sep 2022
The government is consulting on proposals to update the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) unit settings for the period 2023 to 2027.
New UN global carbon market must involve civil society to serve the climate and local communities
12 Sep 2022
The new body tasked with designing and supervising the global carbon market under the Paris Agreement must put in place environmental safeguards and protect the interests of local and indigenous communities.
Forests make a comeback as African governments look to grow their carbon market
12 Sep 2022
In villages dotted across the African continent, locals living in once-heavily forested regions are starting to find their land in high demand.
Consultations open on ETS forestry cost recovery settings
9 Sep 2022
The Ministry for Primary Industries has opened consultations on proposed changes to the cost recovery settings for forestry in the emission trading scheme.
Netherlands warns against EU carbon market fundraising plan
8 Sep 2022
The Netherlands has warned other European Union countries that an EU plan to use a carbon market reserve to finance their exit from Russian gas would undermine the bloc's climate change policy, and put forward alternative plans.
ETS auction clears at $85.40
7 Sep 2022
Today's ETS auction cleared at $85.40 - a couple of dollars below the spot price being achieved at the close of trade yesterday.
Price of carbon hits record high on eve of 3rd ETS auction of the year
6 Sep 2022
The price of has carbon continued its steady rise, hitting an all-time high of more than $87 at the close of trade yesterday.
Price of carbon nears record high
23 Aug 2022
The price of NZUs on the secondary market is just 25 cents shy of the record high of $86.25 achieved in February.
The big firms snapping up Scottish carbon credits
23 Aug 2022
Weapons manufacturers, the oil giant Shell, and financial institutions which poured billions of pounds into fossil fuels are among firms buying Scottish carbon credits, prompting critics to claim the country is experiencing an era of “rampant carbon capitalism”.
EU carbon price hits record
22 Aug 2022
The price of carbon in the EU’s emissions trading system hit a new all-time high on Friday, August 19, as traders warned coal was becoming “re-embedded” in Europe’s electricity generation because of tight supplies of gas.
Best by the rest...
19 Aug 2022
In our weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in the local media: Olivia Wannan’s coverage of the “Polluting 7” hearing; massive insurance cost rises predicted in line with climate risks; and Greater Wellington commits to a stringent climate target.
Australia may be heading for emissions trading between big polluters
19 Aug 2022
Could Australia soon have a form of emissions trading? Yes, if Labor's much-anticipated paper on fixing Australia's mediocre emissions-reduction framework, released yesterday, is any guide.
Bill to come on free allocation of NZUs
15 Aug 2022
By Ian Llewellyn - Energy & Environment | The government intends to introduce a bill by the end of the year to reset the industrial allocation under the Emissions Trading Scheme and reduce what it assesses as a $60 million over allocation.
Forestry policy juggling competing priorities
8 Aug 2022
By Ian Llewellyn - Energy & Environment | The finance and expenditure committee has reported back the Overseas Investment (Forestry) Amendment Bill, highlighting the Government’s attempt to grapple with competing priorities in the sector.
Best by the rest...
5 Aug 2022
In our weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in the local media: Former Green Party leader Russel Norman on greenwashing and He Waka Eke Noa; political journalist Branko Marcetic on why the pundits are getting the Green Party leadership stoush all wrong; and land use expert Keith Woodford underlines the significance of recent government announcements for forestry rules and carbon pricing.
India developing a carbon market
5 Aug 2022
India is developing its carbon market by undergoing several climate action plans in just a matter of days. The world’s 3rd-biggest emitter planned to set up a carbon credit market for the hard-to-abate sectors. These would initially include energy, steel, and cement industries.
Future governments could sell offshore carbon credits into ETS
4 Aug 2022
The government could purchase carbon credits from another government and then sell them through the ETS, Climate Change Commission commissioner Catherine Leining told an open Zoom session on Tuesday.
Consultation open on penalties for small foresters in ETS
4 Aug 2022
The Ministry for Primary Industries and the Ministry of the Environment are consulting on two options to change the penalty for small foresters in the New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) who fail to surrender or repay units by the due date.
Government’s decision to delay permanent forestry decision slammed
2 Aug 2022
Beef + Lamb NZ and farming protest group 50 Shades of Green have slammed the government’s move to put off a decision on removing exotics from the permanent forest category of the Emissions Trading Scheme.
Carbon market wakes from its slumber following Climate Change Commission advice
28 Jul 2022
The price of NZUs on the secondary market reached $82.50 – a jump of close to 13% on its opening price – following yesterday’s release of the Climate Change Commission’s advice to government on the NZ ETS settings.
Climate Change Commission recommends reducing number of NZUs on offer
27 Jul 2022
The Climate Change Commission has recommended the government reduces the number of NZUs on offer at auction and an increase in the trigger price of the cost containment reserve, in advice to the climate change minister released this morning.
Best by the rest...
22 Jul 2022
In our weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in the local media: How not to solve the climate crisis; Are carbon markets hurting farming communities? Plus the government’s $9.8 million climate-wrecking stimulus.
MPI calls for submissions on changes to ETS forestry regulations
20 Jul 2022
The Ministry for Primary Industries is calling for submissions on draft changes to forestry regulations in the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS).
Five buyers gobbled up 95% of NZUs at June’s ETS auction
18 Jul 2022
The top five participants in June’s ETS auction bought more than 96% of the 6,125,000 NZUs up for grabs, the interim NZETS auction monitoring report reveals.
Kenyan bourse brings carbon exchange to East Africa
14 Jul 2022
Climate change mitigation efforts in Kenya have received new impetus after the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE), inked a deal with the AirCarbon Exchange (ACX) and the Nairobi International Finance Centre (NIFC) to set up Kenya’s first carbon offset exchange.
Hong Kong launches international carbon council, to support cross-border trading
7 Jul 2022
Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited, or HKEX, has launched the Hong Kong International Carbon Market Council, the exchange said in a statement late July 5, with developing an international carbon market as its principal focus.
Review of Australia’s carbon credit units announced
5 Jul 2022
The Australian government has announced the appointment of an independent panel (Panel) to review the integrity of Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs).
New voluntary carbon unit will incentivise landowners to preserve regenerating native bush
28 Jun 2022
A new voluntary carbon unit, launched today, will incentivise landowners to protect areas of regenerating native bush currently ineligible for NZUs under the ETS.
Best by the rest...
23 Jun 2022
In our weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in the local media: New Zealand’s offshore energy revolution; climate policy’s winners and losers; and how climate change is putting marae at risk.
Transport-related GHG emissions cost society $1.68 billion a year
22 Jun 2022
By Liz Kivi | Transport-related greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) are costing society $1.68 billion a year, according to a recent report commissioned by the Ministry of Health.
Carbon Markets set to continue growth as countries double down on climate ambition: IETA Survey
22 Jun 2022
Carbon markets around the world are set to continue growing rapidly as countries double down on climate ambition, and as corporates continue to pursue net-zero goals, finds IETA’s latest annual Market Sentiment Survey
CCR trigger price likely to get a boost next year
20 Jun 2022
With the Cost Containment Reserve fully depleted at last week’s second ETS auction of the year market commentators are picking the Climate Change Commission will advise the government to up the trigger price.
Tomorrow’s carbon auction expected to empty the Cost Containment Reserve
14 Jun 2022
With the spot price of carbon trading more than $6 above the Cost Containment Reserve’s $70 trigger price the remaining 1.306 million NZUs in the CCR are expected to be snapped up at tomorrow’s ETS auction.
Rebooting China’s carbon credits: What will 2022 bring?
10 Jun 2022
Carbon market players are watching closely to see how China’s version of carbon credits, the China Certified Emission Reductions (CCER) scheme, will be rebooted.
HWEN: Experts and lobby groups react
9 Jun 2022
A climate change expert says He Waka Eke Noa’s recommendations for pricing agricultural emissions, released yesterday, are surprisingly unambitious, and there appears to be “a significant gap” in the reductions needed to meet government targets.
Canada unveils carbon emissions offset market
9 Jun 2022
Canada unveiled Wednesday a national carbon emissions market to help it meet its climate goals by allowing cities, farmers and others to sell credits for CO2 reductions to heavier polluters.
HWEN proposes burp levy with proceeds recycled to agricultural research
8 Jun 2022
He Waka Eke Noa, the Primary Sector Climate Action Partnership, is proposing a farm-level split gas levy as its preferred alternative to pricing agriculture emissions through the Emissions Trading Scheme.
Best by the rest...
3 Jun 2022
In our weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in the local media: The farming lobby split over climate policy; the Reserve Bank takes on fuel prices; and Australia pledges climate action in the Pacific.
China's Carbon Emission Allowance price at $8.76/mtCO2e
31 May 2022
The daily weighted average price of a Carbon Emission Allowance, or CEA, under China's national carbon market was at Yuan 59/mtCO2e (US$8.76/mtCO2e) on May 27, and weekly trade volume totaled 551,351 mtCO2e, according to data from Shanghai Environment and Energy Exchange, or SEEE.
Australia’s first carbon credit ETF excludes NZUs from mix
26 May 2022
Australia’s first carbon credit ETF, announced this week, won't be including NZUs in the mix as its limiting itself to the four most actively traded and largest carbon markets.
No done deal on EU carbon market reform
26 May 2022
Lawmakers in the European Parliament’s environment committee voted on a major overhaul of the EU’s carbon market last week, but it’s a long and possibly bumpy road to EU legislators shaking hands on the final deal.
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.
