Earth Equity News

E.U.'s Free Emission Permits Set to Expire in 2013, Early Auctions to Hedge Price Volatility in Question. By Nina Chestney, Reuters, February 13, 2010. "The early auctioning of 2013 carbon permits in the European Union's emissions market is unlikely before 2012 as squabbles in the 27-nation bloc over the auctioning mechanism threaten to hinder plans. European Union officials are fine-tuning the rules for auctioning permits to emit carbon dioxide during the third phase (2013-2020) of the EU's Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS). From 2013, utilities will pay for permits for each tonne of carbon dioxide they emit instead of receiving them for free. They are keen to get access to carbon permits called EU Allowances (EUAs) as early as 2011, so they can hedge forward power sales in advance... Several nations are divided over whether permits should be auctioned over an EU-wide platform or national systems. The EU Commission, supported by France and Italy, favors a centralized platform as the most cost-efficient and transparent method... 'The best way to ensure one single, predictable price is to have a centralized system. We cannot accept a situation where you have a centralized platform with countries such as Britain opting out,' said an Italian government official... Britain and Germany, which already run their own regular auctions, favor national systems and have lobbied support from Poland and Spain. Nations are allowed to keep the proceeds from auctions but some are reluctant to hand over control to a central body."