Carbon Auction Sellout Raises Nearly $1.3 Billion

The California Air Resources Board held another successful auction in November, witnessing a sellout of all 76.4 million California Carbon Allowances (CCAs) up for sale.

Current vintage CCAs reached a settlement price of $17.00, well above the floor price of $15.62.  All 67.4 million available current vintage CCAs sold out.  A significant portion of CCAs were purchased by non-compliance entities, demonstrating continued engagement from speculators looking to capitalize on the low prices they believe underestimate the true value of the carbon market.  Future vintage CCAs for use beginning in 2022 settled at $16.80.  The sellout of all 9 million 2022 CCAs produced revenues of $151.8 million.

Cumulatively, the August auction resulted in the sale of 76.53 million CCAs, generating almost $1.3 billion.  To date, 1.7 billion CCAs have been sold at auction, resulting in over $23.9 billion in funds to create emission reduction projects and improve air quality.