Chicago Climate Futures Exchange® (CCFE®), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Chicago Climate Exchange, Inc. (CCX®), announced today that open interest in its futures and options complex for U.S. carbon emissions, which includes Carbon Financial Instrument® (“CFI®”) futures and options and Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (‘RGGI”) futures and options contracts reached a new record level.
Open interest for the CCFE RGGI products has reached a record level of 5,860,000 million short tons CO2. CCFE has traded 12,485 RGGI futures and options contracts, representing 12,485,000 RGGI allowances with trades occurring every business day since its first launched on August 15, 2008. RGGI is a CO2 cap-and-trade emissions trading program comprised of ten New England and Mid-Atlantic States that will commence in 2009. RGGI is the first government-mandated CO2 emissions trading program in the United States.
Open interest for CFI futures and options contracts combined has risen from 1,689 open contracts at the start of 2008 to a record high of 11,584 open contracts to date. The CFI futures and options contracts are based on the Chicago Climate Exchange's voluntary, legally binding greenhouse gas reduction and trading program, which is comprised of over 400 members globally.
These contracts have seen rapid growth this year as state, regional and federal legislative activity regarding carbon cap-and-trade continues to increase.
