National carbon market to be expanded, strengthened

China's top environmental apparatus has vowed to accelerate the development of building a national carbon market as it forges ahead with achievements in a pilot program, according to an environmental official.

By the end of August, about 400 million metric tons of carbon emission quota had been traded for over 9 billion yuan ($1.3 billion) in the seven regions and cities where the market has been piloted since 2011, including Hubei province, Beijing and Shenzhen, said Li Gao, head of climate change, Ministry of Ecology and Environment, in a news conference on Wednesday.

The pilot program has covered almost 3,000 enterprises in over 20 industries, including steel, power generation and cement, he added.

While drafting a series of guidelines on carbon trading management, including one on quota registration, the ministry, together with the government of Shanghai and Hubei, has hammered out a construction plan for quota registration and transaction settlement, he said, adding that many of the draft documents will be unveiled to solicit public opinions soon.

He said the ministry has rolled out examination on carbon emission data submitted by enterprises from eight industries, including steel, chemical and papermaking, since 2013.

"The 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-25) should be a span of time with milestone significance for the development of the country's carbon market. The country will finish the transition from pilot program to the establishment of a united national carbon market," he said.

He said the ministry will endeavor to lay a good foundation for prompt operation of the national market by quickening up the progresses of relevant work, including the introduction of relevant institutional documents, infrastructure construction of and data examination.