Taiwan’s carbon exchange is to open today in Kaohsiung, as the nation aims to achieve net zero emissions by 2050, while addressing local firms’ need for carbon credit trading.
The Taiwan Stock Exchange and the National Development Fund jointly invested in the Taiwan Carbon Solution Exchange with NT$1.5 billion (US$47.33 million) of capital. It established its headquarters at the Kaohsiung Software Park (高雄軟體園區) and its information center in Taipei, after completing its company registration last month.
The Taiwan Stock Exchange has planned for the carbon exchange to include a carbon consultancy, and education and training, as well as to offer carbon credit trading.
Photo courtesy of the Taiwan Stock Exchange
To alleviate concerns among businesses, the exchange would initially focus mainly on consultation services for issues such as domestic carbon fees and levies, international carbon border taxes and supply chain carbon neutrality. It would also provide education and training services for businesses during this stage.
Carbon credit trading would come later, as such trading must meet regulations and policies stipulated by the Climate Change Response Act (氣候變遷因應法), and the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) is still working out carbon pricing and trading rules.
Cross-border carbon trading would require further negotiations and collaboration with international accreditation institutions based on the needs of local businesses, the Taiwan Stock Exchange said.
Due to the net zero emission trend, companies seeking to secure orders are soon bound to include carbon emissions in their contract terms, as firms wanting to obtain orders from major global brands would have to comply with emission regulations.
The carbon exchange aims to help local businesses through carbon credit trading, the Taiwan Stock Exchange said.
For instance, if a company can reduce its carbon emissions, it would have excess carbon credits that can be sold to other companies with higher carbon emissions, while industries or companies with high carbon emissions can purchase carbon credits to offset their carbon footprints and achieve their carbon reduction goals, it said.
The Taipei-based Chinese National Association of Industry and Commerce yesterday welcomed the launch of the carbon exchange, saying in a statement that it is an important milestone along the nation’s road to achieving net zero emissions by 2050.
The association urged the government to establish the legal system for carbon credit trading as soon as possible, while implementing the trading mechanism in stages.
It said it also expects Taiwan’s carbon exchange to learn from its international peers to develop carbon pricing and trading systems that are sound and in line with international standards, so that domestic firms can plan carbon reduction paths in a timely manner and Taiwan’s industries can maintain their key position in the global supply chain.
A Ministry of Foreign Affairs official yesterday said that a delegation that visited China for an APEC meeting did not receive any kind of treatment that downgraded Taiwan’s sovereignty. Department of International Organizations Director-General Jonathan Sun (孫儉元) said that he and a group of ministry officials visited Shenzhen, China, to attend the APEC Informal Senior Officials’ Meeting last month. The trip went “smoothly and safely” for all Taiwanese delegates, as the Chinese side arranged the trip in accordance with long-standing practices, Sun said at the ministry’s weekly briefing. The Taiwanese group did not encounter any political suppression, he said. Sun made the remarks when
The Taiwanese passport ranked 33rd in a global listing of passports by convenience this month, rising three places from last month’s ranking, but matching its position in January last year. The Henley Passport Index, an international ranking of passports by the number of designations its holder can travel to without a visa, showed that the Taiwan passport enables holders to travel to 139 countries and territories without a visa. Singapore’s passport was ranked the most powerful with visa-free access to 192 destinations out of 227, according to the index published on Tuesday by UK-based migration investment consultancy firm Henley and Partners. Japan’s and
BROAD AGREEMENT: The two are nearing a trade deal to reduce Taiwan’s tariff to 15% and a commitment for TSMC to build five more fabs, a ‘New York Times’ report said Taiwan and the US have reached a broad consensus on a trade deal, the Executive Yuan’s Office of Trade Negotiations said yesterday, after a report said that Washington is set to reduce Taiwan’s tariff rate to 15 percent. The New York Times on Monday reported that the two nations are nearing a trade deal to reduce Taiwan’s tariff rate to 15 percent and commit Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) to building at least five more facilities in the US. “The agreement, which has been under negotiation for months, is being legally scrubbed and could be announced this month,” the paper said,
Japan and the Philippines yesterday signed a defense pact that would allow the tax-free provision of ammunition, fuel, food and other necessities when their forces stage joint training to boost deterrence against China’s growing aggression in the region and to bolster their preparation for natural disasters. Japan has faced increasing political, trade and security tensions with China, which was angered by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s remark that a Chinese attack on Taiwan would be a survival-threatening situation for Japan, triggering a military response. Japan and the Philippines have also had separate territorial conflicts with Beijing in the East and South China
RSS