Topics tagged with 'NZ ETS'
Reserve Bank calls for Govt lead on green bonds
30 Mar 2021
Government intervention is likely to be needed to encourage greater investment in green bonds, the Reserve Bank says.
How voluntary offsets can help us meet our Paris promise
30 Mar 2021
New Zealand should have a two-pronged voluntary carbon-offsetting framework to boost climate change, a new report says.
Tyre burner cements in emissions cuts
30 Mar 2021
Greenhouse gas emissions at New Zealand’s only cement-manufacturing plant will be cut by 13,000 tonnes a year – and it’s all down to tyres.
Big methane cut and free public transport needed, expert tells ClimCom
29 Mar 2021
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change author Bronwyn Hayward has told the Climate Change Commission its draft recommendations are not ambitious enough and larger cuts need to be made in biogenic methane emissions.
Don't miss getting your emissions return in
29 Mar 2021
Anyone who miss this week’s deadline for Emissions Trading Scheme returns is risking stiff new penalties.
Contact Energy: Hands-off our Ohaaki
26 Mar 2021
Contact Energy wants all revenues from the Emissions Trading Scheme to be ring-fenced for decarbonisation projects.
MERIDIAN: EVs and low-carbon boilers are key
26 Mar 2021
Meridian Energy has come out in favour of a feebate scheme for electric vehicles and government intervention to speed up the conversion of fossil-fuel boilers to electricity.
Carbon markets prove resilient to the coronavirus pandemic
25 Mar 2021
After the 2008 global financial crisis, the price of pollution permits on the European Union emissions trading system plummeted, hitting confidence in carbon markets as a lever for climate action.
Why we need a carbon club
25 Mar 2021
If the three biggest economies - China, the United States and the European Union - agree a carbon tax on imports, it will catalyse climate action globally, a new paper says.
SHAW: No point ignoring ClimCom's views on prices
22 Mar 2021
Climate Minister James Shaw appears likely to back any recommendation from the Climate Change Commission to increase price controls in Government auctions of carbon credits.
First carbon auction clears at $36
17 Mar 2021
The first Government auction of carbon credits today saw all 4.75 million NZUs sell at $36.
TRANSPORT 1: High carbon prices and behaviour change
16 Mar 2021
New Zealand is failing to get transport emissions under control, as latest data shows. Energy expert and IPCC lead author Emeritus Professor Ralph Sims says there is lots we can do, including pushing carbon prices higher.
Parliament passes reserve price provision
10 Mar 2021
The first Government auction of carbon credits will go ahead next week with a confidential reserve price in place.
GENESIS: Reserve price will distort the market
9 Mar 2021
Including a confidential reserve price in next week’s Government auction of carbon credits could distort the carbon market, says one of the country’s largest emitters.
NZUs should be more than $100, MPs told
8 Mar 2021
An umbrella group representing more than 50 environmental organisations says NZUs would trading at more than $100 if the Government set more environmentally realistic limits on the number of units available.
Economists, minister debate climate report
5 Mar 2021
Finance Minister Grant Robertson says the ClimCom draft advice on climate change is the most significant report in his lifetime.
Beef & Lamb: Bring on the carbon credits
2 Mar 2021
The sheep-and-beef industry says a Government report recognising carbon storage on farms is significant – especially if it opens the door to collecting carbon credits from mature native forests.
FRIDAY POLITICS: Collins embraces the ETS
26 Feb 2021
National Party leader Judith Collins seems to have abandoned her dismissal of the need for urgent action on climate change – and found a love for the Emissions Trading Scheme.
ClimCom extends submission deadline
24 Feb 2021
The deadline for submissions on the Climate Change Commission’s draft recommendations is being extended.
Russian region launches carbon trading plan
22 Feb 2021
In Russia's remote far east, authorities have launched an unexpected experiment: an effort to try out carbon trading and reach net-zero planet-heating emissions by 2025.
Sign up for first carbon auction now
18 Feb 2021
The Government’s new carbon-auctioning website is live.
Put a big fat price on carbon, says OECD chief
18 Feb 2021
OECD Secretary General Ángel Gurría is bowing out with a climate-rallying cry, saying action on environmental crises must be the defining focus of wealthy countries after covid.
Action on auction bill
11 Feb 2021
Carbon market participants have 10 days to have a say on plans to include a confidential price reserve in the country’s new auctioning regime.
Nats to Shaw: Why the late change, Minister?
10 Feb 2021
The National Party says it will support sending a law to stop gaming of the carbon markets to a select committee, but wants to know how the Government got itself in such a pickle.
MARKET LATESTl NZUs $39.10
10 Feb 2021
Spot NZUs opened at $38.60 bid and $39.60 offered on CommTrade this morning, after last fixing at $39.10.
Technical reserve law before Parliament
5 Feb 2021
A law change to stop carbon credits being sold in Government auctions at well below secondary-market prices has made it into Parliament.
Australian carbon offset prices jump on surging corporate demand
5 Feb 2021
Prices for Australian carbon offset permits have pushed above $17, a new 12-month high, boosted by demand from corporate emitters looking to take advantage of lower prices as the push for stricter long-term emissions targets gains momentum.
Let's think about what's possible
4 Feb 2021
We need more than electric cars to save us - it's time to think about a whole new transport system, says applied mathematician Professor Robert McLachlan.
Confusion over ETS rules is holding us back, says farmer
3 Feb 2021
Wairarapa farmer Mike Ashby feels the Government’s 2025 deadline for bringing agriculture into the Emissions Trading Scheme hanging over his head like a Sword of Damocles.
UPDATE: Climate commission's proposals for the ETS
31 Jan 2021
Price controls in New Zealand’s new carbon-auctioning regime could rise sharply next year if the Government acts on draft recommendations from the Climate Change Commission.
$50 is not a price cap, says NZX
29 Jan 2021
Domestic carbon prices could go above $50 a tonne even if the new cost-containment reserve is triggered.
Auction platform passes first test
28 Jan 2021
New Zealand’s new carbon-auctioning seems to be working smoothly.
WORTH NOTING ...
27 Jan 2021
The country’s new carbon-auctioning regime is being put through its paces today and tomorrow with a simulated auction. The first real auction will be on March 17.
TEN YEARS AGO ...
27 Jan 2021
Ten years ago, Federated Farmers was asking Climate Minister Nick Smith to put his promise to keep agricultural out of the Emissions Trading Scheme in writing.
EDITORIAL: It's about to get real
26 Jan 2021
Welcome to 2021 – the year in which we will get our first hard look at the size of the job in front of us.
WORTH NOTING ...
26 Jan 2021
Simulated auctions of NZUs to test the new regime will be held tomorrow and on Thursday.
Auctioning system to be tested
13 Jan 2021
Simulated auctions of NZUs will be held on January 27 and 28 to test whether the country is ready for the new auctioning regime.
MARKEST LATEST: NZUs $37.62
23 Dec 2020
Spot NZUs opened at $37.50 bid and $37.75 offered on CommTrade this morning, after last fixing at $37.62.
Govt reverses decision on technical reserve
21 Dec 2020
The first Government auction of carbon credits, scheduled for March 17, will take place with a technical reserve price in place after all.
EDITORIAL: 202O - the year we got serious?
14 Dec 2020
Believe it or not, a 54 per cent rise in the price of NZUs this year does not make 2020 the year of the biggest gains.
WELLINGTON: Give us carbon credits for our wetlands
10 Dec 2020
A second regional authority is calling for non-forestry carbon sequestration like wetland restoration to earn carbon credits.
Carbon continues its bull run
10 Dec 2020
Spot NZUs have hit $38 just two days after reaching $37, tempting sellers back into the market.
WELLINGTON: Should we hold 'em?
8 Dec 2020
Greater Wellington Regional Council will debate today whether it should sell millions of dollars worth of carbon credits or hold them and wait for prices to go higher.
Carbon on a barn-storming run
7 Dec 2020
Carbon prices are continuing their climb, recording gains of almost 50 per cent for the year.
Surging prices see carbon up 47% in a year
4 Dec 2020
Carbon prices continued their upward charge yesterday, gaining 25 cents to contribute to a phenomenal 47 per cent rise over a year.
OPINION: Time to 'fess-up on our climate record
2 Dec 2020
Following today's planned climate emergency declaration, New Zealand will have to face up to the fact it has one of the worst climate records of industrialised nations.
Dairy company says it's well on the way to measuring farm emissions
25 Nov 2020
Fonterra is optimistic it will find a way to accurately measure the amount of greenhouse gas emissions being produced by each dairy farm in time to meet a Government deadline of 2022.
Carbon-pricing rises as world's weapon of choice in climate fight
25 Nov 2020
Can you put a price on pollution? Some of the world's biggest economies are doing just that as they wrestle with how to make good on grand pledges to tame planet-warming emissions.
Ardern talks climate with Biden and farmers
24 Nov 2020
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says the Government is pressing ahead at home and abroad with action on climate change.
Climate remains top priority for Pacific leaders
Today 12:00pm
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Major regional events in Vanuatu and Fiji this month have underscored the Pacific's continued focus on climate action, with locally led innovation and sustainable farming highlighted as critical tools for tackling the region's environmental challenges.
Hurunui to notify climate solution plan change
Thu 9 Jul 2026
By David Hill, Local Democracy Reporter | A North Canterbury council is looking to progress "a uniquely Hurunui solution’’ to sea level rise.
$30m airline fund risks ‘burning public money’ without lasting benefit – expert
20 Mar 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | A $30 million government package to support regional air routes risks delivering poor value for money while increasing emissions, according to transport strategist Tim Adriaansen.
Media round-up
Thu 9 Jul 2026
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: The Government re-wrote fast-track law after mining companies pushed for change; costs from inland flooding are expected to rise by up to 53% by 2075; and is there such a thing as a sustainable tourist?
Biodiversity credit markets need stronger safeguards – report
Wed 8 Jul 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Emerging biodiversity credit markets need stronger government safeguards and public investment if they are to deliver lasting conservation benefits, according to a new report.
Inaction on shipping decarbonisation could cost NZ up to $94b by 2050, report says
30 Jun 2026
By Oli Lewis | Failing to support and enable the decarbonisation of the shipping industry could result in losses of $17.5 billion to $94.4b to the New Zealand economy by 2050, according to a report from the Aotearoa Circle.
Emissions Trading Scheme ‘stockpile’ shrinking
Thu 9 Jul 2026
By Liz Kivi | The “stockpile” of NZUs in private accounts continues to shrink, with the latest Environmental Protection Authority figures showing the number has dropped by 9.5 million since this time last year.
Under Lula, Amazon deforestation falls to lowest level in a decade
Today 12:00pm
Deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest has fallen to its lowest level in a decade during the first half of 2026, according to official government figures.
Carbon markets and biochar: a golden opportunity for NZ?
1 Jul 2026
By John O’Brien | COMMENT: New Zealand’s abundant and increasing forestry waste could become a multi-billion dollar opportunity for biochar carbon sequestration – as long as the right policies, programmes, and incentives are in place.
Coal is back in Australian Super’s portfolio. What happened to that net zero pledge?
Mon 13 Jul 2026
In 2020 Australia’s biggest super fund dumped its Whitehaven shares. Fast forward to 2026 and it is now the coalminer’s single biggest investor.
Politicians need to lead on climate: Carr
30 Jun 2026
As the election campaign heats up, former Climate Change Commission chair Rod Carr has a list of actions he's hoping to see from our aspiring leaders, which includes confronting climate denial as well as refusing funds or policy advice from vested interests.
EMA pushes for steady hand on energy and regulation
Mon 13 Jul 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Employers and Manufacturers Association wants the next government to commit to a long-term energy plan and allow faster investment in renewable generation, at the same time as slowing the pace of policy change and providing businesses with greater certainty.
What Magyar’s defeat of Orbán in Hungary means for climate and energy
21 Apr 2026
Hungary has played a disproportionate role in EU climate and energy policy in recent years, by repeatedly vetoing climate action and by delaying the phaseout of Russian fossil-fuel imports.
Experts call on Govt to withdraw ‘repugnant’ legislation to block climate lawsuits
Mon 13 Jul 2026
By Liz Kivi | Lawyers and climate policy experts are calling on the Government to withdraw legislation intended to block climate lawsuits, with an adaptation expert arguing that the legislation could worsen the insurance protection gap.
$3m Govt boost for Tauranga geothermal energy
Today 12:00pm
By Liz Kivi | Resources Minister Shane Jones has announced a $3 million grant for the Gas to Geoheat Tauranga Geothermal System Project as part of the Government's plan to double geothermal energy by 2040.
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.
Mana whenua voices to inform flood resilience in South Wairarapa
Today 12:00pm
By Emily Ireland, Local Democracy Reporter | As South Wairarapa reels from a string of devastating floods, mana whenua representatives are coming together to discuss their role in how the region rebuilds.
Tarakihi on verge of extinction: Stock collapse exposes major fisheries management failings
3 Jul 2026
Media release: Environmental Defence Society | Fisheries NZ is consulting on new sustainability measures for the country’s two tarakihi stocks.
Seymour ‘imploring’ council to go easy on foresters is abuse of authority: EDS
7 Jul 2026
By Liz Kivi | The Environmental Defence Society says that Regulation Minister David Seymour’s attempt to influence Gisborne District Council to ‘go easy’ on forestry companies in enforcing environmental laws is a clear abuse of ministerial authority.
New entrant seeks to expand exploration portfolio
Today 12:00pm
Media release | Resources Minister Shane Jones has welcomed further investment interest in New Zealand's petroleum sector, with a recent new entrant seeking to expand its exploration interests in the offshore northern Taranaki Basin.
'Electric election': Labour promises $160m SolarSaver scheme funded by gas investment cuts
Wed 8 Jul 2026
By Oli Lewis | Labour is promising to reprioritise $160 million from the Gas Security Fund to pay for its new SolarSaver policy, designed to accelerate the roll-out of household solar.
Contact: Protected geothermal fields must be opened to meet 2040 goal
6 Jul 2026
By Oli Lewis | A goal to double geothermal energy generation by 2040 using existing technologies is unachievable unless some protected fields are reclassified for development, Contact Energy says.
How will the World Bank’s abandoned finance goal affect climate action?
7 Jul 2026
The World Bank has abandoned a target for 45% of the funding it gives developing countries to be “climate finance”, following months of pressure from the Trump administration in the US.
Conservation bill risks climate goals, lawyers say
1 Jul 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Lawyers for Climate Action NZ says the Government's plan to change the law to encourage economic development on conservation land could undermine New Zealand's climate goals by weakening the land's ability to store carbon, as well as allowing new sources of emissions such as mining.
Govt climate claims don't match reality, lawyers say
17 Jun 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Lawyers for Climate Action has accused the Government of presenting an overly positive picture of New Zealand's climate progress at the United Nations climate summit in Bonn, arguing key claims on emissions reductions and support for the Paris Agreement's 1.5°C goal are not reflected in domestic policy.
Lake Onslow pumped hydro consortium secures funding for consent push
26 Jun 2026
By Oli Lewis | The consortium behind Lake Onslow pumped hydro has secured funding to finalise its resource consent application, aiming to lodge it under the fast-track process before 2027.
Ballance secures gas for 2026 as it progresses energy transition plan
16 Jun 2026
By Oli Lewis | One of the largest industrial gas users in New Zealand is working on an energy transition plan to futureproof domestic fertiliser manufacturing, while continuing to secure ongoing gas supply contracts.
Former West Coast Regional Council chair slams new flood report
Mon 13 Jul 2026
By Vihan Dalal, Local Democracy Reporter | A West Coast regional councillor has criticised a new report by Earth Sciences New Zealand as "a fraud" after it suggested the West Coast faces up to $24 million worth of flood damages to infrastructure by 2075.
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.
Ugandan farmers launch UK court case against East African oil pipeline
Thu 9 Jul 2026
Four Ugandan farmers filed a case with London’s High Court aiming to stop the East African Crude Oil Pipeline from starting to operate by asking the court to apply Uganda’s laws against the project’s UK-registered company.
Commissioner ‘unconvinced’ LNG is the best dry-year solution
26 Jun 2026
By Liz Kivi | The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment has told the Energy Minister he is “unconvinced” the government’s proposed LNG import terminal is the best ‘dry year’ solution for the country, and criticised the Government’s “extremely limited” options analysis.
Govt backs hydrogen with national industry summit
Thu 9 Jul 2026
By Oli Lewis | The Government is convening a major hydrogen conference to promote awareness and uptake of the alternative fuel.
Climate risks could reshape business finances, new guidance warns
15 Apr 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New guidance warns climate change is set to fundamentally reshape financial outcomes for businesses, including difficult-to-model climate “tipping points” – irreversible changes such as ice sheet collapse or ocean circulation shifts – which threaten severe and sudden financial impacts.
UN chief says fossil fuel industry must cut methane for warming “relief”
25 Jun 2026
UN chief António Guterres called for stronger action to cut emissions of planet-heating methane, taking aim at the fossil fuel industry’s practices and profits, and pointing to coal, oil and gas as the root of today’s climate and energy crises.
Fifth new petroleum application targets Taranaki
Wed 8 Jul 2026
Media release: New Zealand Government | An application targeting frontier deepwater in the Taranaki Basin marks the fifth permit application to prospect or explore for petroleum since the removal of the exploration ban, Resources Minister Shane Jones says.
'Extreme' marine heatwave expected for parts of UK
Thu 9 Jul 2026
A marine heatwave could reach "extreme" levels around parts of the UK later this week, according to the Met Office, raising concerns for marine life.
Carbon capture and the need for ‘net zero oil’
16 Jun 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | The answer to making carbon capture and storage work is to make fossil fuel producers responsible for making it happen rather than consumers, says Oxford University climate change policy expert, Professor Myles Allen.
A real ‘intergenerational equity’ budget would address Australia’s unceasing environmental decline
15 May 2026
Labor has unveiled a budget designed to tackle intergenerational equity in Australia through bold tax reform.
UN plastics pact talks restart amid fears production curbs will be left out
2 Jul 2026
Diplomats reconvene a year after negotiations collapsed, but campaigners fear the agenda risks burying tricky discussions on key elements.
Shining a light on Trans-Tasman solar reforms
Today 12:00pm
OPINION: The real test of solar reforms is how fast retailers can turn new rules into working tariffs, writes Mark Humphreys.
Northern Thai residents march for action on polluted rivers. ‘This is an emergency’
9 Jun 2026
More than 600 residents of Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai provinces embarked May 31 on a roughly 68-kilometer, six-day ‘peace walk’ to demand the Thai government take action on the river pollution crisis that has seen Thai rivers polluted with heavy metals.
Swarbrick slams $50m critical minerals funding as 'Trump's war machine' subsidy
7 Jul 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Green Party has criticised the Government's investment into two West Coast critical minerals projects, claiming the funding could ultimately support the United States defence industry rather than New Zealand's clean energy transition, while Shane Jones dismissed opponents as "flat earth idiots".
NZ lagging in energy storage investment – report
Today 12:00pm
Investment in energy storage is maturing globally, with the need for resilient and flexible power driving demand for storage, but New Zealand has some catching up to do, according to a new report.
Fast-track panel backs proposed Haldon Solar Farm
6 Jul 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The proposed Haldon Solar Farm in the Mackenzie Basin has moved to the final stages of the Fast-track Approvals Act process after the Fast-track Panel proposed granting approval for the project.
Experts sound alarm over escalating climate impacts
Wed 8 Jul 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Scientists are warning climate impacts are accelerating across our region after a World Meteorological Organization report found last year was the South-West Pacific's second-warmest on record, with impacts including rising seas, marine heatwaves and extreme weather.
Low-cost loans for solar panels could save households hundreds on bills – thinktanks
Thu 9 Jul 2026
Millions of UK households could save hundreds of pounds a year on their energy bills if the government were to approve low-cost loans for solar panel installation, research has found.
Carbon trading schemes cut more emissions than carbon taxes, according to global study
20 Mar 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Carbon trading schemes are more effective than carbon taxes at reducing emissions, cutting fossil fuel use, and accelerating the shift to renewable energy, a global study has found.
Microsoft emissions surge 27% as AI buildout crimps climate goals
Mon 13 Jul 2026
Microsoft's greenhouse gas emissions jumped 27 percent in its latest fiscal year, the tech giant disclosed Thursday, adding to a wave of worsening environmental reports from an industry racing to build AI infrastructure.
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.
‘Those blocking climate science are not our friends': Pacific leaders warn at Bonn talks
23 Jun 2026
Pacific nations and civil society groups have united at UN climate talks, pushing back against efforts to weaken agreed language on global temperature limits as negotiations continue behind closed doors.
Next Govt must restart action on plastic pollution
1 Jul 2026
Media release - Zero Waste Aotearoa | Plastic Free July begins with an urgent call to put plastic pollution back on the political agenda. Plastic Free July is a worldwide campaign to reduce plastic waste and eliminate single use plastics.
Greens announce water policy, including nitrogen fertiliser phase-out
7 Jul 2026
By Liz Kivi | The Green Party announced its water policy yesterday, promising to phase out synthetic nitrogen fertiliser, as well as destructive fishing methods, if the party is elected in November.
Tourist spots across Europe hit by wildfires as Greece warns of toxic smoke
Wed 8 Jul 2026
Wildfires are raging across holiday spots across Europe, with hundreds of firefighters battling blazes in Portugal, Greece, and Spain. International reinforcements have been sent to Portugal, where a massive fire has been burning for over three days.
Faster consenting, harder trade-offs
7 Jul 2026
Faster consenting is starting to produce results, but this week's decisions show speed has not removed the harder trade-offs around electricity security, conservation, ecology and climate liability.
