Australia wants APEC to launch emissions trading scheme

Mumbai: Australia will ask members of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum to formulate an emissions trading scheme when APEC energy ministers meet this week in Melbourne.

The meeting, however, will not discuss a formal emission trading scheme. The deliberations would rather allow for wide divergence of views among the 21 APEC member countries, the Australian reported.

The " talks on energy sustainability and the environment", would be an important recognition that APEC cannot stand aside from the growing world concern over climate change.

Australia''s federal resources minister Ian Macfarlane has made it clear that a formal emissions trading scheme is not being discussed or even proposed but that the APEC ministers will be taking the first steps towards a unified view of how climate change might be handled.

Ahead of the formal meeting, a business forum is meeting in Darwin, Australia, to discuss the question of high energy prices and climate change.

Executives such as Russell Caplan from Shell, Charlie Lenegan from Rio Tinto, Rod Eddington representing JP Morgan, Gerry Hueston from BP and Denny Mooney from GM-H will lead sessions in the forum.

APEC economies will have to invest an estimated $6 trillion in the energy sector between now and 2030 to meet rapid growth in demand.

According to the APEC secretariat, coal will continue to be the major energy resource contributing to electricity generation, with its share increasing from 44 per cent in 2002 to 53 per cent in 2030.

US, Australia and Canada are the main proponents of technology solutions to climate change problems.

The business foum is expected to encourage APEC energy ministers adopt a technology solution rather than opt for cutbacks in consumption as the underlying platform for an APEC-wide move on emissions abatement.

The meeting is would discuss energy security issues, particularly those relating to rapidly increasing demand for primary energy from countries such as China, India and South Korea, Macfarlane said last week.

Australia, a major supplier of liquefied natural gas to Asian countries, aims to become the world`s second largest energy supplier by the end of the next decade.