The expansion of the national carbon emission trading market's coverage is a key measure to accelerate the establishment of a more effective, vibrant, and internationally influential carbon market. On the 26th, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment released the &#34;Work Plan for the Coverage of the National Carbon Emission Trading Market in the Steel, Cement, and Aluminum Smelting Industries,&#34; marking the official implementation phase of the first expansion of industry coverage in the national carbon emission trading market.
Pei Xiaofei, spokesperson for the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, introduced at a press conference that the carbon market is a significant institutional arrangement to actively respond to climate change and promote the green and low-carbon transformation of the economy and society using market mechanisms. It is an internationally accepted climate governance policy tool. Currently, China has established a national carbon emission trading market for key emission units to fulfill mandatory emission reduction responsibilities and a national voluntary greenhouse gas emission reduction trading market to incentivize social voluntary emission reductions.
He stated that in July 2021, the national carbon emission trading market was launched with the power generation industry as a breakthrough point. After nearly four years of development, the market has operated smoothly overall, and the green and low-carbon transformation effects in the power generation industry have gradually emerged, with the cumulative reduction in carbon emission intensity for the entire power sector decreasing by 8.78%, and the reduction cost lowered by approximately 35 billion yuan.
Pei Xiaofei pointed out that the steel, cement, and aluminum smelting industries are major carbon emitters, with annual emissions of about 3 billion tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, accounting for over 20% of the country's total carbon dioxide emissions. After this expansion, the national carbon emission trading market is expected to add 1,500 key emission units, with the coverage of the total carbon dioxide emissions in the country reaching over 60%, and the types of greenhouse gases covered expanding to three categories: carbon dioxide, tetrafluoromethane, and hexafluoroethane.
He indicated that the inclusion of these three industries in carbon market management will not only help achieve carbon neutrality goals but also facilitate the elimination of outdated production capacity and the application of low-carbon technology innovation through market mechanisms, promoting high-quality development in these three industries.
It is reported that in recent years, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment has done a lot of preparatory work for the expansion of the carbon market, laying a solid foundation for the smooth advancement of the expansion work. Currently, all preparatory work for the expansion is ready.
According to the plan's deployment arrangements, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment will advance related work in a prudent and orderly manner in two phases, with the period from 2024 to 2026 being the implementation phase and the period after 2027 being the deepening and improvement phase. The Ministry will soon issue a notice regarding the management of the carbon emission trading market for the three industries, clarifying tasks and completion deadlines for the formulation of key emission unit directories, monthly verification of key parameters, carbon emission report verification, quota allocation, and quota settlement.
Regarding the quota allocation issue that the three industries are particularly concerned about, Pei Xiaofei stated that the allocation will continue to be based on the idea of controlling carbon emission intensity. Specifically, the quota amount for steel, cement, and aluminum smelting enterprises in 2024 will equal the verified actual emissions, and in 2025 and 2026, the overall quota balance for each industry will be maintained, controlling the quota surplus and deficit rate of all enterprises within a small range. After 2027, research will be conducted to establish a clearly defined, open, and transparent total quota for the industry, which will be gradually tightened to promote a continuous decrease in carbon emission intensity in the three industries.
The voluntary carbon market is an important policy tool for China to control and reduce greenhouse gas emissions using market mechanisms. Eligible greenhouse gas voluntary emission reduction projects, after being verified and validated by third-party organizations and reviewed by registration agencies, can register their emission reductions as Certified Voluntary Emission Reductions (CCER) and trade them through the nationally unified greenhouse gas voluntary emission reduction trading platform to obtain emission reduction benefits.
Pei Xiaofei introduced that significant substantive progress has been made recently in the construction of China's voluntary carbon market. The first batch of Certified Voluntary Emission Reductions in the national greenhouse gas voluntary emission reduction trading market totaled 9.48 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent registered. According to the latest statistical data, as of March 25, the cumulative transaction volume of CCER reached 1.33 million tons, with a transaction value of 105 million yuan.
Author of this article: Gao Jing, Source: Xinhua News Agency, Original title: &#34;First Expansion! New Additions of Steel, Cement, and Aluminum Smelting Industries to the National Carbon Emission Trading Market&#34;
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The national carbon emissions trading market has expanded its coverage for the first time, adding the steel, cement, and aluminum smelting industries. The Ministry of Ecology and Environment released the relevant work plan on the 26th, marking the official start of the implementation phase of this market. This initiative aims to accelerate the construction of a more effective, dynamic, and internationally influential carbon market

- The expansion of China's national carbon emissions trading market to include the steel, cement, and aluminum industries marks a significant step towards a more effective and internationally influential carbon market.  
- This initiative is expected to add 1,500 key emission units, increasing the market's coverage to over 60% of national carbon emissions, while also promoting low-carbon technology and high-quality development in these sectors.  
- The Ministry of Ecology and Environment plans to implement this expansion in two phases, with a focus on gradual improvement and transparency in quota allocation for the newly included industries.

First expansion! The national carbon emission trading market adds the steel, cement, and aluminum smelting industries