Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE: ICE), a leading operator of global exchanges and clearing houses and provider of data and listings services, today announced the launch of a new index designed to track and benchmark the global price of carbon. This is an important part of efforts to measure and reduce the emission of carbon dioxide CO2 and other pollutants in economies around the world.
The new ICE Global Carbon Futures Index is made up of pricing from the three most actively traded carbon markets in the world: the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS), which started in 2005, the California Cap and Trade Program, which started in 2013 and the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), which was established in 2009. Together these markets represent some of the largest regional economies in the world, and the secondary futures market for those programs, which trade on ICE’s futures markets, make up the majority of volume in all carbon-based futures contracts.
“While the world is focused on quantifying the impact of COVID-19, this Earth Day, we’re also reminded of the importance that metrics and benchmarks will play in reducing carbon emissions and mitigating against global warming,” said Lynn Martin, President of ICE Data Services. “This is a first step in producing an accurate, transparent global price for carbon, and one that utilizes a market-based mechanism for the evaluation of that price, as we move toward the longer-term shift to a net-zero carbon economy.”
The ICE Global Carbon Futures Index provides a volume weighted average price and measures the performance of a long-only basket of ICE EUA Futures Contracts, ICE California Carbon Allowance Futures Contracts and ICE Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative Futures Contracts. It is calculated in U.S. Dollars and calculated throughout the day. ICE has also launched carbon price indices for each of the constituent markets: the ICE EUA Carbon Futures Index, ICE CCA Carbon Futures Index and ICE RGGI Carbon Futures Index. The ICE EUA Carbon Futures Index will be calculated and published in Euros and the other indices will be calculated and published in U.S. Dollars.
For more information about the ICE Carbon Futures Index Family, please visit: www.theice.com/carbonindex.
