Austrade media release
1 March 2010
The first Austrade-organised mission of carbon project experts will visit Malaysia and India to explore commercial opportunities in low emissions this week (1-5 March).
Seventeen Australian firms involved in supply chain of carbon projects will participate in the week-long mission.
Austrade’s Regional Director for ASEAN, South Asia and the Pacific, David Twine, said the Carbon Mission was a first step towards helping Australian firms tap into low emissions opportunities in ASEAN and India.
“International carbon projects offer a growth channel in areas of traditional strength for Australian businesses like engineering and design, financial services, energy efficiency and technology, and professional services such as legal and environmental services.
“ASEAN and India are increasingly important to Australian clean energy businesses and to industries looking to offset carbon emissions. Both markets are growing quickly, have large energy needs and their government programs support cleaner energy production.
“The mission will showcase Australia’s carbon project capabilities directly to industry leaders and government representatives in the region,” Mr Twine said.
The Carbon Mission is focussed on low carbon emission projects partially funded by carbon rights including the UN-backed clean development mechanism (CDM).
Austrade’s Kuala Lumpur-based Trade Commissioner for Clean Energy, Garth Taylor said, “The ASEAN region is expected to become the world’s fifth largest CDM market behind China, India, Brazil and the Republic of Korea, and nine out of ten of ASEAN economies are signatories to the Kyoto Protocol, which makes them eligible for carbon credit projects under the Clean Development Mechanism.
“The ASEAN economies also have a growing number of legislated and voluntary policy measures for low-emissions production, and countries like Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore have announced strong climate change policies.
“The ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (AANZFTA) is also expected to enhance market access for Australian clean energy businesses,” Mr Taylor said.
Austrade’s New Delhi-based Trade Commissioner, Rebecca Ball said Australian businesses should also consider the opportunities in India’s growing clean energy market.
“India’s energy sector offers significant investment potential, with over US$200 billion required in new investment in energy projects over the next 10 years.
“India has plans to source 20 per cent of its installed electricity capacity from renewable energy by 2020. The country also has methane capture-and-use projects in agriculture, coal mines, landfills, and the oil and gas sector,” Ms Ball said.
The Carbon Mission will meet industry, regulatory and policy specialists from Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. They will also participate in a clean energy roundtable with Malaysian industry leaders and government officials.
In India, the group will attend the Methane to Markets industry conference and expo–an international forum to promote methane recovery and showcase methane mitigation projects and technologies.
The mission is part of Austrade’s Carbon Cluster program, which is a value chain of project-ready Australian companies that can combine, initiate, develop and complete CDM and other low emission projects offshore.
Australian companies currently on the Carbon Cluster include: Green Alliance, which is designing a CDM Program-of-Activities in Indonesia; Lotic, which has contributed its CARMHA technology to ASEAN methane harvesting projects; Clayton Utz, a specialist environment law practice; and COZero, a project originator of low-cost carbon emissions projects.
For further information or to participate in the Carbon Mission or the Carbon Cluster program, contact Austrade on 13 28 78.
Available for interviews:
Garth Taylor, Trade Commissioner ASEAN Clean Energy & Environment (Austrade Kuala Lumpur) and Rebecca Ball, Trade Commissioner (Austrade New Delhi)
ENDS
Media contact
Purnima Ganapathy, Austrade M: 0419 127 577; Ph: (02) 9390 2319
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