Green Markets - August 12, 2024

Aug 13, 2024

Green Markets is a daily series dedicated to highlighting events of interest that could impact investments within environmental markets.

Malaysia plans to revise its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) target by February 2025, aligning it with the Paris Agreement's temperature goals and incorporating the latest climate policies. A draft Climate Change Bill is expected by June 2025, and the upcoming Budget 2025 may include carbon tax announcements. Additionally, the Ministry of Finance is studying carbon pricing mechanisms, including taxes and emissions trading systems, with support from the World Bank’s Partnership for Market Implementation.

KazMunayGas, Kazakhstan's national oil and gas company, has signed a memorandum of cooperation with LanzaJet to explore the production of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) in Kazakhstan.
Major oil and gas companies are shifting their focus from biofuels to liquefied natural gas (LNG) after disappointing results in the biofuel sector. Shell and BP invested heavily in biofuels like renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel, but have faced setbacks, including Shell's $780 million loss from halting a major biofuel plant in the Netherlands and BP's cancellation of two planned refineries. The market has been affected by a surplus of biofuels, particularly cheap imports from China, which has squeezed profit margins.

BHP, Rio Tinto, and Qantas will invest a combined A$80 million ($52.7 million) in an Australian carbon credits fund managed by Silva Capital. The fund focuses on land reforestation projects and aims to raise A$250 million to generate Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) through reforestation and other carbon abatement activities.

Related Stock List(s): Carbon Credit Stocks

Global electric vehicle sales increased by 21% year-on-year in July, driven largely by a significant rise in China, which saw a 31% jump in sales. Despite this growth, European EV sales fell by 7.8% in July, with Germany experiencing a 12% drop for the year so far, partly due to new provisional tariffs on Chinese EV imports. In contrast, EV sales in the U.S. and Canada grew by 7.1% in July.
Vietnam plans to subsidize electricity prices for EV charging stations to boost electric vehicle adoption. The subsidy scheme will be submitted for government approval by mid-September. The country aims for carbon neutrality by 2050 and currently has over 150,000 EV charging ports, primarily operated by VinFast. Additional incentives will be introduced for EV production, imports, and user adoption, alongside efforts to standardize public charging infrastructure.

The green hydrogen sector faces challenges as many proposed projects lack secured buyers, with only 12% having firm purchase agreements. The high cost of green hydrogen compared to traditional methods and the absence of necessary infrastructure contribute to these difficulties. As a result, the sector may experience a culling of less viable projects, focusing on those with integrated production and demand.
DENSO Corporation and JERA have announced a collaboration to develop hydrogen generation technology by integrating Solid Oxide Electrolysis Cells (SOEC) with waste heat utilization. This joint initiative, part of JERA's Zero CO2 Emissions 2050 goal, aims to create a hydrogen and ammonia supply chain to achieve net-zero CO2 emissions. Starting in fiscal year 2025, they will conduct demonstration testing at a JERA thermal power station, initially focusing on a 200kW system with plans to scale it up to a multi-thousand kW level.

Related Stock List(s): Hydrogen Stocks

Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. met with Mohammed Al-Hammadi, CEO of Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (ENEC), to discuss a potential partnership for incorporating nuclear energy into the Philippines' energy mix. This collaboration is seen as a solution to the country's ongoing power challenges, including frequent outages and high electricity tariffs, with coal currently dominating its power generation. ENEC, established in 2009, is responsible for the UAE's Peaceful Nuclear Energy Program and operates the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant, the first nuclear power plant in the Arab world.

Microsoft has partnered with Pivot Energy in a 5-year agreement to develop 500 MW of community-scale solar projects across the United States. Microsoft will purchase Renewable Energy Credits (RECs) from these projects to support its goal of reducing Scope 3 emissions by more than half by 2030.
NextEnergy Capital has acquired a 248 MW solar portfolio in Spain, consisting of 12 solar projects in the country’s northeast. The purchase was made through the NextPower V ESG fund, though the financial details were not disclosed. The firm plans to further invest in Iberia, with additional projects currently under negotiation.
Italy has enacted new legislation to streamline the approval process for renewable energy projects. The new rules reduce the approval procedures from five to three, with small solar projects under 10 MW exempt from permits. Projects in protected areas will still require approval. This move comes as part of a broader commitment to increase solar capacity by 50 GW by 2030.

Green Investing