Taiwan carbon exchange opens in Kaohsiung

At first, the exchange would focus on providing consultation services, and education and training for businesses, while the EPA mulls trading rules

• By Chen Cheng-hui / Staff reporter

Taiwan’s carbon exchange is to open today in Kaohsiung, as the nation aims to achieve net zero emissions by 2050, while addressing local firms’ need for carbon credit trading.

The Taiwan Stock Exchange and the National Development Fund jointly invested in the Taiwan Carbon Solution Exchange with NT$1.5 billion (US$47.33 million) of capital. It established its headquarters at the Kaohsiung Software Park (高雄軟體園區) and its information center in Taipei, after completing its company registration last month.

The Taiwan Stock Exchange has planned for the carbon exchange to include a carbon consultancy, and education and training, as well as to offer carbon credit trading.

To alleviate concerns among businesses, the exchange would initially focus mainly on consultation services for issues such as domestic carbon fees and levies, international carbon border taxes and supply chain carbon neutrality. It would also provide education and training services for businesses during this stage.

Carbon credit trading would come later, as such trading must meet regulations and policies stipulated by the Climate Change Response Act (氣候變遷因應法), and the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) is still working out carbon pricing and trading rules.

Cross-border carbon trading would require further negotiations and collaboration with international accreditation institutions based on the needs of local businesses, the Taiwan Stock Exchange said.

Due to the net zero emission trend, companies seeking to secure orders are soon bound to include carbon emissions in their contract terms, as firms wanting to obtain orders from major global brands would have to comply with emission regulations.

The carbon exchange aims to help local businesses through carbon credit trading, the Taiwan Stock Exchange said.

For instance, if a company can reduce its carbon emissions, it would have excess carbon credits that can be sold to other companies with higher carbon emissions, while industries or companies with high carbon emissions can purchase carbon credits to offset their carbon footprints and achieve their carbon reduction goals, it said.

The Taipei-based Chinese National Association of Industry and Commerce yesterday welcomed the launch of the carbon exchange, saying in a statement that it is an important milestone along the nation’s road to achieving net zero emissions by 2050.

The association urged the government to establish the legal system for carbon credit trading as soon as possible, while implementing the trading mechanism in stages.

It said it also expects Taiwan’s carbon exchange to learn from its international peers to develop carbon pricing and trading systems that are sound and in line with international standards, so that domestic firms can plan carbon reduction paths in a timely manner and Taiwan’s industries can maintain their key position in the global supply chain.

From:  Taipei Times Mon, Aug 07, 2023 page1