KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Carbon Exchange (BCX), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Bursa Malaysia Bhd commenced continuous trading of renewable energy certificates (RECs) on Sept 9.

This extends its previous RECs auction capability and includes the facilitation of off-market transactions on its platform.

According to Bursa Malaysia, this development marks a significant milestone as BCX expands its trading offering from voluntary carbon credits to now include voluntary unbundled RECs.

It reinforces BCX as a one-stop, Shariah-compliant, multi-environmental product exchange, democratising access and creating new opportunities for the market through additional asset classes, investment, and trading choices.

Additionally, BCX's offering of Malaysian RECs has grown from only hydropower REC previously, to include RECs generated from solar photovoltaic, bioenergy andsmall-hydropower sources. This diversification in the RECs-product range is expected to allow local corporates to select RECs based on their specific preferences based on their Scope 2 emissions reduction needs.

All RECs are issued under the I-REC Standard, a globally recognised standard body, and adhere to the International Attribute Tracking Standard, managed by the I-TRACK Foundation (formerly known as the I-REC Standard).

The BCX trading platform is accredited by the I-TRACK Foundation, with BCX being the firstMalaysian trading platform operator, and one of only eight globally, to receive this accreditation.

The platform is expected to enable participants to conveniently trade both carbon credits and RECs.

Bursa Malaysia chief executive officer Datuk Muhamad Umar Swift said the BCX platform provides a seamless and efficient way for businesses to procure environmental assets such as RECs and carbon credits, supporting their commitment to reducing carbon footprints and promoting renewable energy and decarbonisation projects.

"The availability of RECs continuous trading facilitates the increased adoption of renewable energy in Malaysia, contributing towards objectives in Malaysia's National Energy Transition Roadmap (NETR).

"Enabling the trading of RECs encourages more renewable energy projects by making them more financially viable and attractive to investors, which supports accelerating the nation's transition towards a low-carbon economy," he said in a statement.

Bursa Malaysia said the healthy interest and price signals shown by the domestic corporate sector, demonstrated local market demand for a transparent pricing mechanism and enhanced accessibility to unbundled RECs.

https://www.nst.com.my/business/corporate/2024/09/1106752/bursa-carbon-exchange-began-continuous-trading-renewable-energy