Launched in July 2021 in the Shanghai Environment and Energy Exchange, China’s Carbon Emission Trading System (ETS) covers about 5.1 billion tonnes of annual carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and 2,257 companies in the coal-fired generator sector, according to the latest data from the country’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment.
After each compliance period, these firms can sell the unused certified emission allowances (CEA) or, if they exceed their limit, buy allowances to meet the benchmark.
ETS accounts for more than 40% the country’s total CO2 emissions, making China the world’s largest market in terms of the volumes of GHG emissions.
By the end of 2023, the ETS had facilitated a cumulative trade of 442 million tonnes of carbon emission allowances valued at about 24.92 billion yuan ($3.5 billion), according to official data released on July 30, 2024.
China’s carbon trading with CEA and CCER
China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment issued a plan on September 8, 2024 and invited public feedback on the inclusion of three major carbon-emitting industries – steel, cement and electrolytic aluminium – into the carbon trading system.
The inclusion of these additional industries would extend the market’s coverage to about 60% of China’s total carbon emissions, the ministry said, adding that the plan is divided into two phases: the implementation phase from 2024 to 2026, and the improvement phase from 2027 onward.
A source said the newly included markets mark a significant step in expanding the world’s largest carbon trading program and helps boost market liquidity by increasing the number of participants.
“The market liquidity [in carbon emission trading] and traded price are key factors to encourage firms to focus on low-carbon technologies and investment,” a Shanghai-based industry analyst said.
For the newly added 1,500 firms in the steel, cement and electrolytic aluminum, the ETS will set a free CEA in the implementation phase based on carbon intensity benchmarks rather than absolute emissions, allowing them to familiarize themselves with market rules while improving their emissions management practices.
Beside the trading of CEA, the Chinese government also restarted the voluntary GHG emission reduction trading market, known as China Certified Emission Reduction (CCER), in January 2024. This market had been inactive since 2017 due to low trading volumes.
CCER is a certification granted to companies with voluntary carbon emission cut projects which can be traded in the market, yet key emitters are only allowed to use CCER to offset 5% of their total emissions.
In the steel industry, China’s Shougang Group announced the conclusion of a deal of nearly 1.49 million tonnes of CCER, with an average price of 96 yuan ($13) per tonne on September 8, marking the first deal in the country’s steel industry this year.
As of September 3, 31 CCER projects were made public.
What’s next for the steel industry
As China’s second-largest carbon emitter, the steel industry contributed over 15% of the country’s total carbon dioxide emissions in 2023, second only to power generation, sources told Fastmarkets.
In the first seven months of 2024, China produced 613.72 million tonnes of crude steel, with a year-on-year drop of 2.2%, data from National Bureau of Statistics show.
Several market participants said the free CEA in the implementation phase might ease the pressure from costs for steelmakers given their low margins in recent two years.
The carbon trading market is a mechanism which offers both incentives and constraints, and closely links carbon reduction with economic benefits, which means that steel companies can benefit from carbon reduction and reduce costs, an industry analyst in Beijing said.
Meanwhile, carbon finance products will provide more financing channels for enterprises and help reduce financial costs on the pathway to low-carbon transition, the analyst added.
But in the long-term, it will further encourage steelmakers to adopt low-carbon emission steelmaking processes and to apply high technology to offset the CEA cost, this source said.
The innovation and promotion of low-carbon technologies will play a more and more important role for the steel industry’s decarbonization transition, the analyst told Fastmarkets.
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