News

• US passes energy bill

  01 February 2008

  A US energy bill signed into law in December will raise vehicle fuel economy standards, and promises a big boost for biofuels, but was stripped of some key renewable energy provisions.

• People moves this month

  01 February 2008

  US investment bank JPMorgan has bolstered its environmental markets team with a series of hires in recent weeks. BEN FELDMAN joins as an executive director and environmental markets strategist in New York, from carbon asset manager Natsource where he was managing director, advisory and research services.

• BNP Paribas takes 30% stake in Impax

  01 February 2008

  BNP Paribas Investment Partners has invested approximately £11 million ($22 million) in Impax Group, a London-listed environmental investment manager, raising its holding to 29.4%.

• Banks making slow progress on climate issues

  01 February 2008

  The banking sector has "a long way to go" in confronting the challenges posed by climate change, according to a report from Ceres, a US-based coalition of investors and environmentalists.

• IETA names new president

  01 February 2008

  The International Emissions Trading Association (IETA) has appointed senior UK civil servant Henry Derwent as its new president and CEO, replacing Andrei Marcu.

• SAM pushes into alternatives

  01 February 2008

  Sustainable Asset Management (SAM) has established an alternative investments unit, to be headed by Reto Kuhn, former general manager of Swissair's pension fund and CEO of Pension Fund Services, an occupational benefits and human resources service provider.

• EU faces tough deadline on climate package

  01 February 2008

  Industry and environmental groups have warned that the European Commission faces an uphill battle to reach agreement on its comprehensive energy and climate proposals – and failure to do so before the European Parliament is dissolved ahead of elections in June 2009 could see the whole deal unravel.

• Commission sets out vision for EU ETS

  01 February 2008

  The European Commission has set out its vision for the evolution of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) beyond 2012, including significant reforms to harmonise its operation across Europe.

• Biofuels must cut GHGs – Commission

  01 February 2008

  Biofuels in the EU will have to provide a minimum 35% greenhouse gas saving over fossil fuels for them to count towards a new target for biofuels use, the European Commission has announced.

• VeraSun buys US BioEnergy as biofuels shake-out advances

  01 December 2007

  In the latest takeover move in the US bioenergy sector, VeraSun Energy is to buy rival ethanol producer US BioEnergy, to form what could be the largest ethanol producer in the US by the end of 2008.