The Asia Natural Gas and Energy Association (ANGEA) has announced the start of a major multi-year program to build understanding and consensus in the Asia Pacific region for a cross border carbon reduction accreditation system.

 

The program will be led by ANGEA with support from its members, and founded on a study conducted by global consulting firm Boston Consulting Group.

 

It will convene key stakeholders in government, industry and NGOs across Asia Pacific to understand possible methodologies and engage on key issues such as which bodies are responsible for accreditation, what standards and accreditation will be used, how government will ratify carbon credits, how double-counting can be avoided, how certificates might be applied in different jurisdictions and, crucially for cross-border projects, which country would take credit under its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC).

 

The work will build understanding and consensus around an accreditation system(s) that will provide assurances and clarity around the certification of CO2 reductions and improve the ability to exchange, trade and cash-in around the region, as well as address questions around the recognition of domestic certification programs/swaps and third party auditing.

 

The Asia Pacific Cross Border Carbon Accreditation Study was launched on the sidelines of the APEC CEO Summit in San Francisco.

 

In the Asia Pacific region, the location of suitable geologic formations for permanent storage will require cross-border trade of CO2.

 

Regional harmonisation of standards and policies covering the accreditation or certification of CO2 emission reductions is crucial to unlocking the potential for carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) in the region.

 

According to the International Energy Agency (IEA) and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), practical pathways to global net zero involve scaled-up deployment of carbon capture and storage.

 

ANGEA CEO Paul Everingham said, “CCUS will be essential to the world’s pathway to net zero and especially important in Asia, where energy demand is expected to double by 2050. Providing assurance and enabling mechanisms for financing of CCUS projects will significantly benefit the implementation of the technology and development of value chains in Asia Pacific.

 

“ANGEA is committed to working with governments, industry and stakeholders to deliver practical, workable solutions to support energy security and the decarbonisation goals of the Paris Agreement. CCUS is an essential component of Asia Pacific’s ability to achieve its emission reduction and net zero ambitions. The harmonisation of emission reduction verification mechanisms in the region will unlock existing and future incentives essential to accelerating the deployment of CCUS.”

 

Everingham added, “From a technical perspective, CCUS has been used globally by the oil and gas industry for decades and it’s a well understood and proven technology.

 

“But the strong feedback from stakeholders in Asia Pacific is that inconsistencies in the way different countries accredit and price CO2 will likely slow down implementation.

 

“ANGEA aims to solve this by working with national governments in the region to create a common framework.”--OGN/TradeArabia News Service