State and Trends of the Carbon Market 2012

Abstract

The total value of the carbon market grew by 11 percent in 2011, to $176 billion, and transaction volumes reached a new high of 10.3 billion tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e). This growth took place in the face of economic turbulence, growing long-term oversupply in the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) and plummeting carbon prices. By far, the largest segment of the carbon market was that of EU Allowances (EUAs), valued at $148 billion. With the end of the first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol in 2012, the value of the pre-2013 primary certified emission reduction (CER), emission reduction unit (ERU) and assigned amount unit (AAU) markets declined in 2011. At the same time, the post-2012 primary Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) market increased by a robust 63 percent, to US$2 billion, despite depressed prices and limited long-term-visibility. Against this backdrop, several new domestic and regional carbon market initiatives gained traction in both developed and developing economies in 2011. Five new jurisdictions (i.e., Australia, California, Québec, Republic of Korea, and Mexico) passed legislations laying the foundation for cap-and-trade schemes. Together, these initiatives will drive substantial resources towards low-carbon investments and they have the potential to unleash a truly transformational carbon market, in support of a global solution to the climate challenge.