Australian research firm RepuTex Energy says traded volumes in the Australian carbon offset market surged to a record high in January, with 500,000 units traded in OTC spot and forward markets – a 56% increase on the previous high recorded in July 2021.

But despite the uptick in traded volumes, prices for Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) softened over the past fortnight, on much larger parcel sizes (20-50,000) – suggesting that sellers have reached a “happy level” of price support to service higher volumes.

The surge in traded volumes has been driven by new entrants seeking to capitalise on bullish momentum attributed to Australia’s net-zero target and rising prices for low-carbon assets, the research firm said.

Prices in the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) – the first large greenhouse gas emission trading scheme in the world – have flirted with the €100 ($160) barrier over recent days.

A record intraday high of €98.49/t was reached on Tuesday ($157), leading many local investors to view the Australian market as undervalued.

 

To ASX news

Kalamazoo Resources (ASX:KZR) has become the first gold-lithium company operating in Australia to be certified ‘carbon-neutral’ under the Federal Government’s Climate Active Program.

This process, it says, has included the company establishing its carbon footprint and outlining its plans to measure and reduce its greenhouse gas emissions where feasible, as well as offsetting its remaining carbon-generating activity.

Climate Active – the certification KZR has received – is the “most rigorous and credible” carbon natural certification within Australia.

“This means that our carbon neutral status is based on best practice, international standards, and genuine emissions reductions,” the company said.

“The rationale for this commitment is that we are focused on minimising the impact of our exploration activities in Victoria and Western Australia.

“The continual reduction and offsetting of our emissions is a natural extension to building a sustainable business that incorporates leading ESG principles.”

Electric vehicles and lithium demand

As the world moves towards emission reductions, KZR said it is seeing a “very strong” demand for lithium.

“Having recently identified significant lithium potential in our Pilbara project areas, we are now undertaking an active search for the discovery and subsequent development of long-life, large scale lithium deposits.

“As these exploration programs progress, we are convinced that minimising the impact of all of our exploration activities across our entire portfolio will ensure long term value for our shareholders.”

Kalamazoo says it also offsetting the balance of its audited carbon-generating activity – emissions generated by exploration activities such as diesel used by drilling rigs or power generation – by participating in the Western Farm Trees Reforestation Program.

The program is focused on environmental plantings in the Western Australian wheat belt.

Kalamazoo joins more than 350 Australian companies that are working under Climate Active including Australia Post, ANZ, Boral, CBA, Cooper Energy, Energy Australia, Lendlease, KPMG, NAB, Qantas, Red Rock Drilling, Telstra, and Westpac.

 

Product purchase orders from Tritium

Rectifier Technologies (ASX:RFT) has received product purchase orders from Brisbane-based Nasdaq-listed Tritium totalling around US$20 million for the supply of 35kW high-voltage and high-efficiency modular power supply units.

These units, which will be used for high-powered direct-current (DC) electric vehicle charging are expected to be delivered before the end of 2022.

Yesterday, Tritium announced it would be opening a new manufacturing facility in Lebanon, Tennessee where it plans to manufacture DC fast-charging equipment for refueling electric vehicles.

This news sent Tritium’s share price soaring 37% after it revealed six separate production lines would be set up at the new facility, which is targeting the production of anywhere from 10,000 to 30,000 fast-charger units annually.

The company made reference to President Biden’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which included $7.5 billion in funding for the creation of a network of 500,000 chargers across the United States, as incentivising it to make the investment in local manufacturing of car chargers.