News

• Flexibility on pollution controls could save utilities $100bn – EPRI

  06 June 2012

  The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) could save the electric utility industry about $100 billion by giving utilities flexibility in installing new pollution control technologies to comply with its current and pending regulations, according to the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI).

• US wind sector confident on tax credit extension

  06 June 2012

  The extension of the production tax credit (PTC) for US wind energy generation is likely, industry experts said, partly because it does not rely on federal appropriation. However, the timing of the extension remains highly uncertain.

• Companies failing to manage, disclose physical climate risks – investors, NGOs

  01 June 2012

  Companies must improve their analysis and management of the physical risks that climate change poses to their operations and supply chains – and a new tool created by advocates of enhanced disclosure aims to help them do just that.

• US slaps tariffs on China wind towers

  31 May 2012

  The US Commerce Department has once again imposed anti-subsidy penalties on Chinese renewable energy imports, this time of utility-scale wind towers.

• EC unsure over post-2020 renewables policy

  31 May 2012

  The European Commission is undecided over whether a new renewables target or a stronger EU Emission Trading System (ETS) should be the primary driver of renewables in the EU after 2020, according to a draft policy paper due to be unveiled in Brussels next Wednesday.

• Nominations open for 2012 Environmental Finance awards

  31 May 2012

  Environmental Finance and Carbon Finance are seeking nominations for this year's awards, including new categories for M&A deal of the year, and wind, solar and biomass financings.

• China solar tariffs could get tougher – SolarWorld

  31 May 2012

  The US Commerce Department could impose additional penalties on Chinese solar imports as it continues its investigation into unfair subsidies and the dumping practices of Chinese manufacturers, according to the president of SolarWorld Industries America.

• Trade war, not market boost, seen from US solar tariffs

  31 May 2012

  The decision by US federal regulators to place hefty penalties on imports of Chinese solar products could spark a vicious trade war and slightly raise solar prices in the US, but is unlikely to give US solar manufacturers the boost they were looking for.

• FTSE creates ESG service unit

  31 May 2012

  Index provider FTSE has hired two former HSBC bankers to set up a unit to meet growing demand for environmental, social and governance (ESG) products and analytical tools from asset managers and pension funds.

• Capital markets needed for energy efficiency retrofits

  30 May 2012

  The energy efficiency sector will have to rely on the bond markets rather than banks to provide the substantial funds needed to finance retrofit projects – and two innovative models are slowly starting to gain traction.