Wellington, New Zealand
New Zealand’s revamped carbon market starts trading
Enhanced system covers half of the country’s emissions to support its climate ambitions
New Zealand held its first auction of emissions allowances this week, heralding a major revamp of its carbon market and putting a hard cap on greenhouse gas pollution for the first time. Launched in 2008, New Zealand’s emissions trading system (ETS) did not initially have a binding cap but merely required emitters to buy any allowances they needed in excess of free allocations issued every year. The government carried out consultations over possible reforms in 2015, which led to significant changes that took effect at the start of this year. The regulator has set an overall cap on the emissions covered by its ETS of an average 40mn t/yr from 2021 to 2025 New Zealand’s upgraded marke
Also in this section
11 November 2025
Transition policies must recognise that significant industrial demand for carbon will continue even as economies hit net zero
6 November 2025
After years of pursuing ideologically driven climate leadership, Western powers are now stepping back under mounting political pressure and rising populist opposition—prompting concern essential climate action could be sidelined
17 October 2025
The business case for CCS is strengthening as costs decline, but deployment must accelerate to align with credible net-zero scenarios
17 October 2025
The black-tie gala recognised the energy industry’s leading innovations and thought leaders from across the value chain
