RGGI announces successful CO2 allowance auction

The Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), a greenhouse gas (GHG) regulatory program undertaken by nine states in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, recently announced that December’s carbon dioxide (CO2) allowance auctions garnered $115 million for reinvestment.

“With world leaders now convening in Paris, the attention toward reducing harmful carbon pollution is greater than ever,” New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services Commissioner Tom Burack, who is also the secretary of the RGGI board of directors, said. “RGGI’s successful approach is reflected in the EPA Clean Power Plan, and serves as a positive example to the nation and the world.”

RGGI sold 15,374,274 CO2 allowances at the Dec. 2 auction, which marked the 30th annual auction. Allowance bids ranged from $2.05 to $10.01 and they were sold at a clearing price of $7.50.

More than $2.3 billion has been raised from all RGGI CO2 allowance auctions.

“RGGI’s market-based program provides a clear market signal to reduce pollution, while states invest the proceeds in strategic consumer and energy programs,” Deputy Commissioner for Energy of the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Katie Dykes, who chairs the RGGI board of directors, said. “The RGGI states are on pace to cut our 2005 power-sector carbon emissions in half by 2020, while generating customer energy savings and strengthening the economy.”