First test to link EU and UN transaction logs successful
The first out of three tests run before the EU and UN can link their emissions transaction logs was successful, according to the German emissions trading agency, DEHst.
The remaining two tests are now scheduled to run from July to the beginning of August, according to project developers First Climate, although this was not confirmed by the European Commission (EC) by the time of going to press. During these tests, the EU will simulate temporarily removing the allowances that have already been issued by member states.
The lack of a link-up between the EU transaction log, the CITL and the UN log, the ITL, means that the European Union Allowances (EUAs) issued by Finland, Austria, the Czech Republic and Spain have not yet been registered as Assigned Amount Units (AAUs). This conversion would allow countries to sell any AAU surplus to meet their own Kyoto targets.
DEHst now says it expects the EC to announce a date for the connection after the 4th August, when the tests should be complete. The EC still maintains there is no firm deadline for the link-up before April 2009, but says the link will probably go live at the end of this year.
Overall, signs are increasing that the link between the ITL and the European registries would be up and running sooner rather than later, First Climate said. “The fear that the link will first be available in mid-2009 appears [unfounded]. However, the numerous past delays still provide grounds for harbouring certain traces of scepticism,” the group said.
Traders say that confidence the link would be up and running before that date is growing the market, but the spread between EUAs and Certified Emission Reductions remains around EUR 7.00/tCO2e.
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