Australian carbon trading firm COzero is dusting off its plans to float, but intends to do so on the Hong Kong market to take advantage of the anticipated growth in carbon and environmental markets in east Asia. The company has been one of the fastest growing in the Australian economy in the last two years, twice winning the BRW Fast 100 award, as it tapped into trading of renewable energy certificates caused by the rush to install small-scale solar in the past two years.

CEO Nick Armstrong said those sort of growth levels would be unlikely to continue, even with the passage of the carbon pricing legislation, and the company sees greater opportunities in the China market and other north Asian countries. “It will be very hard to replicate that rate of growth in Australia,” he told Climate Spectator on the sidelines of Carbon Expo in Melbourne.“China will continue to be a producer of carbon credits and will have an ETS.”

Armstrong – along with a dozen or so other Australian project developers – recently visited the Singapore Carbon Expo, which in recent years has been bigger and more dynamic than Australia’s. This year, however, he said the mood was subdued by the collapse in the price of international carbon credits, and the lack of interest among some of the major European players. That, he said, should create opportunities for smaller companies like his. The company has retained broking firm SBI E2-Capital to manage the float. COzero had revenue of $164 million last financial year, which reflects the value of its trades, but has not disclosed its earnings.

RAMPing up

Just a day after the passage into law of Australia’s carbon pricing regime, Australian project developer RAMP Carbon has unveiled a deal with the energy trading arm of Dutch utility Eneco Holding to market credits generated under the Clean Development Mechanism to large Australian emitters. The two companies said the agreement covered an initial offering of fifteen projects from across Asia and Latin America that will deliver more than 1.6 million UN endorsed carbon credits, known as certified emission reductions, or CERS.

Ramp Carbon director Phil Cohn said the CDM offered access to low cost, high quality abatement from clean tech projects in developing countries. The emitters will be able to source up to 50 per cent of their compliance obligations can be sourced through CERs once the flexible price period starts in mid- 2015. Cohn said by offering the portfolio now, still three years ahead of the flexible trading period, Australian companies would be able to plan their trading and compliance strategies, and begin to hedge their exposure to the carbon price. The credits can also be used for the voluntary market.

The projects involve energy efficiency improvements in industrial facilities and households, renewable energy generation and waste management. An initial tranche of voluntary credits generated by one of the world’s first REDD (forest) projects will also be on offer. Ramp said it is currently working on projects in Africa, Asia and Latin America for some of Europe’s largest banking, energy, utility, and industrial companies.

Clean Develeopment deal

Africa-based Standard Bank Group and London-based CarbonSoft have unveiled a scheme to encourage investment in carbon abatement projects in Indonesia, PNG, and small island nations under the Clean Development Mechanism. The two companies said the scheme will be the first of its type in Asia. The so-called “program of activities” allows small initiatives, such as the distribution of LED and solar lighting in this case, to be undertaken on a broader scale and encourage sufficient investment to make them work. Australian company Cool nrg and Bank of America Merrill Lynch unveiled a similar POA for energy efficient lighting in Mexico earlier this week.

CarbonSoft aims to have registered PoAs covering Southern Africa, West Africa, India, Bangladesh and Nepal by the end of 2012, and says this will provide a “direct, low-cost route to the Australian and European carbon markets. Standard Bank’s head of carbon trading Geoff Sinclair said it was the bank’s second investment in CarbonSoft’s activities. He said the program had enormous sustainable development benefits, including reduced fuel bills for families; improved respiratory health; and reduced incidence of household fires, and opened an opportunity for people without access to electricity to have clean available light. “It also makes great business sense,” he said.

Low-carbon lowdown

Leading global emissions trading organisation, the International Emissions Trading
Association (IETA), and Australia’s peak body for carbon market professionals, the Carbon
Market Institute (CMI), have announced an agreement to join forces in assisting Australian businesses in negotiating a low-carbon economy. The deal was sealed on Tuesday, at the same time as the government's Clean Energy bill was being passed by the Senate, with Carbon Market Institute executive director Mike Tournier describing it as an important step toward creating international links for organisations and service providers in the carbon market.

“With the legislation that underpins the domestic compliance market in Australia passing
through the Parliament, the importance of sharing experience and accessing expertise built
up overseas will be more important than ever,” said Henry Derwent,  president and CEO of the International Emissions Trading Association. “We look forward to working with the CMI and Australian industry to help develop a robust carbon market here in Australia.”