Germany’s First Climate began marketing its International Carbon Compliance Initiative in January, primarily to European utilities.

“Despite the uncertainty, we found there is lots of interest,” Martin Schulte, First Climate’s director of carbon investment management, told Carbon Finance. “I’m a little surprised by the response.”

The pool will buy certified emissions reductions (CERs), primarily for delivery post-2012, but it will also buy some pre-2013 credits. It will look to buy CERs from projects expected to be eligible in the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) after 2012. It expects to pay €6-9 per CER.

Schulte said the company is signing letters of intent with participants, without providing further details, and is hoping for a first close at the end of June and a final close at the end of the year.

He added that the company has been targeting larger utilities, hoping to gain some traction before turning to small and medium-size companies, who are more natural participants for such a pool, given their difficulty in accessing the primary project market.

First Climate is also in discussions with Japanese emitters, but Schulte notes there is less clarity on Japan’s position post-2012.

The pool follows the €125 million Post 2012 Carbon Credit Fund, which First Climate advises on behalf of the European Investment Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. The company said in January it expects that fund to be fully invested in the first half of this year.


Source: www.carbon-financeonline.com