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Australia Commission to Review Overseas Carbon Prices, Policies
2010-11-15 00:42:17.356 GMT
By Gemma Daley
Nov. 15 (Bloomberg) -- Australia will review overseas
carbon price regimes as it seeks to tax polluters and reduce
greenhouse emissions, the Minister for Climate Change and Energy
Efficiency said.
The country's Productivity Commission will look at carbon
reduction policies in key international economies, Climate
Minister Greg Combet said in a statement today. It will study
policies in countries including the U.S., U.K., Germany, China,
Japan and India, he said.
"Australia can't afford to be left behind," Combet said.
"Australia needs to get started on introducing a carbon price
to our economy."
Australia, where coal accounts for more than 80 percent of
power production, is trying to establish a price for carbon
emissions. A Multi-Party Climate Change Committee, due to meet
until the end of 2011, is looking at options including an
emissions trading scheme, a tax on pollution and setting
renewable energy targets by using more wind or solar power.
Prime Minister Julia Gillard's Labor government, which
needs the support of the Greens Party and independent lawmakers
to pass legislation, wants to reduce emissions by 5 percent from
the 2000 levels within a decade and said it would increase the
target to as much as 25 percent if a global agreement is
reached.
The Productivity Commission will estimate carbon prices
faced by global electricity producers, Combet said.
Australian measures, including a goal of sourcing 20
percent of power from renewable energy by 2020, imply a carbon
price of $1.70 a ton for electricity producers, according to a
study by London-based Vivid Economics released last month. That
compared with $29.30 in the U.K., $14.20 in China, $5.10 in the
U.S., $3.10 in Japan and $0.70 in South Korea.
For Related News and Information:
Bloomberg New Energy Finance Carbon Model: CARX <GO>
Emissions Market Monitor: EMMK <GO>
Most-read environmental news: MNI ENV <GO>
Most-read renewable-energy news: MNI ALTNRG <GO>
--Editors: Aaron Sheldrick, John Viljoen.
To contact the reporter on this story:
Gemma Daley in Canberra at +61-2-9777-8683 or
gdaley@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Bill Austin at +813-3201-8952 or billaustin@bloomberg.net
