Marubeni to Earn CO2 Credits From Ukraine Project
Date: 03-Sep-08
Country: JAPAN
The United Nations on Aug. 25 registered the project as a joint implementation (JI) programme to cut greenhouse gas emissions, Marubeni said in a statement, making it the fifth such project worldwide.
Under the UN-run Kyoto Protocol on global warming, the JI programme allows rich countries to meet emissions caps by investing in emissions-cutting projects in other developed nations.
Japan's fifth-biggest trading firm, Marubeni is one of the most active traders in procuring UN-approved emissions credits for Japanese customers including the Japanese government.
Japan is exceeding its national greenhouse gas emissions caps under Kyoto and as a result has been an active buyer of carbon offsets.
Marubeni has been working with Donetsk-based coal mining firm Zasyadko since 2004 to capture methane, the combustible gas with about 20 times the global warming potential of carbon dioxide (CO2), and use it for power generation.
Marubeni said emission reductions from the project before the start of the 2008-2012 Kyoto commitment period would total about 1.5 million tonnes in CO2 equivalent, and some 2 million tonnes annually thereafter through 2012.
The offsets will be transferred to the Japanese company once Ukraine's emissions registry is linked to a UN-backed trading system. Japan is among few countries already connected to the UN system, called the International Transaction Log.
(Reporting by Risa Maeda; editing by Gerard Wynn, James Jukwey)
