Carbon Pricing

Throughout your carbon management journey, you will face some trade-offs in resource allocation. Whether voluntarily or to comply with regulations, putting a price on carbon emissions can help inform financial decisions.

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Understand carbon tax & Emissions Trading Systems (ETS)
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Companies should be aware that carbon pricing initiatives are a highly effective strategy for governments to close the gap between climate targets and implementation. Carbon pricing reduces both the carbon intensity of energy supply and overall energy demand through a clear price signal.

There were 64 carbon pricing initiatives in place in 2021, half of which are carbon taxes and half of which are emissions trading schemes.

  • A carbon tax puts a price on the emission of one tCO2e. The report of the High-Level Commission on Carbon Pricing identified a range of 50-100 USD/tCO2e (or "carbon price corridor") as the price needed by 2030 to keep global warming below 2°C as part of a comprehensive climate policy package.  In 2021, a survey of 30 climate economists (Reuters) estimated that the carbon price should be at least 100 USD/tCO2e or higher and needed immediately to incentivise net-zero emissions by 2050.
  • Emissions trading systems (ETSs) allocate allowances to covered sectors on an annual basis through a 'cap and trade' system, which diminish over time. They therefore represent a right to emit. Some of these rights can be traded between parties through carbon markets. In Europe, recent EU ETS price increases have coincided with several significant policy changes and proposals, rising from €4/tCO2e in 2015 to €96/tCO2e in 2021.

Carbon border adjustment mechanisms are also emerging to ensure competitiveness in countries with high carbon taxes and to avoid the risk of emissions being shifted from one location to another (known as carbon leakage).

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Consider an internal carbon pricing
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As part of their net zero strategy, companies can use internal carbon pricing to assign a monetary value to carbon emissions. CDP's 2021 Global Carbon Price Report highlights that to implement an effective internal carbon price, four dimensions should be considered:

  • price level (height)
  • GHG emissions coverage (breadth)
  • influence (depth)
  • time.

The internal carbon price is one tool that can provide insight into the resource allocations and trade-offs the company will face in implementing its net zero strategy. As with any tool, the effectiveness of the internal carbon price will need to be evaluated over time.

For finance department, it is a good decision-making tool to understand the potential impacts of external carbon pricing schemes and regulations. ICP varies by region and sector. As a quick-win, post the calculations of footprint, you can assign USD 100 as a representative initial cost for every tonne of CO2e emitted (this is the carbon price level needed to incentivise net zero emissions by 2050 - Reuters). This would help you understand the potential exposure and impact on profit and loss statements.

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Buddies - Experience sharing

The « sustainability journey » may feel overwhelming sometimes, but you are not alone.

Our Buddies have tried, succeeded, failed to implement change in their companies. They share their experience so you can learn, take shortcuts, get inspired and ask questions.

Everybody can become a Buddy and give back to the community; if you are keen, get in touch with us.

Ivona Balint-Kowalczyk
Sustainability consultant, Founder - Sustainao

I am the founder of Sustainao, a sustainability consulting firm based in Singapore. With 10 years of experience in the field, I help businesses develop impactful sustainability and decarbonisation strategies, embed sustainable practices into operations, and report their performance to stakeholders in a meaningful way.

Previously, I worked as a sustainability auditor at KPMG France, where I conducted audits across 15 countries within Europe, Africa, and Asia.

I hold an MBA in Corporate Sustainability, a Master’s in Environmental Management, and a Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry and Biology.

Radhika Chavan
Co-Founder - Tulya

Radhika is the Co-founder of Tulyā, A Sustainability Management Accounting (SMA) Services company. Her work includes measurement and understanding of the impact environmental and social factors will have on the value creation for SMEs. She develops tailored tools and practices that integrate material topics (ESG & Business) with accounting statements line items to demonstrate financial impact of action vs inaction.

She has worked with Lehman Brothers, Barclays and IT services companies before starting her entrepreneurial journey in sustainability.

She is a graduate in Chemical Engineering and has been certified in SASB , PMP, CSM &  Design Thinking-MIT.

Anna Håkansson
Co-founder - Tulya

I enjoy improving processes and creating data-driven insights. My background is in process development and operations as Quality Manager and COO. A few years back, I decided to re-purpose my career and have since then studied different aspects of Sustainable Business Development at the University in Sweden as well as the Sustainability Reporting Standards (GRI, SASB, TCFD and ISSB work in progress).

Now, I am here to help SMEs integrate sustainability into their business strategy and operations, focusing on the impact that environmental and social aspects will have on the organisation's ability to create value. By reducing the scope to the most relevant materiality topics, even SMEs with limited resources have a chance to start their transition to more sustainable practices.

Ching Hu
Head, Net Zero Transition – Singapore Business Federation (SBF)

Ching Hu is currently head of the Net Zero Transition Department at Singapore Business Federation, which objective is to drive initiatives to decarbonise Singapore and enterprises, including publishing the Singapore Emission Factors Registry and sector-specific decarbonisation programme for SMEs.

Previously, he worked at Terrascope, which offers an end-to-end decarbonisation SaaS platform enabling enterprises to measure and manage their emissions across operations, supply chains, and portfolios. Prior to Terrascope, he launched the Singapore office of EcoVadis - a global ESG ratings company - which served more than 800 companies within its first year of operations. The ratings include environmental, social, ethics and sustainable procurement metrics.

He started his career with the Singapore Government, spanning portfolios including manpower, education, transport and decarbonisation. Ching Hu graduated from the London School of Economics, SciencesPo Paris, and Oxford University. As an undergraduate at Oxford, he helped launch the inaugural Oxford Climate Forum - the UK's largest student-run climate change event.

Mimi Nguyen
General Manager - Handprint -- Founding Member - The Matcha Initiative

I was born in Vietnam and grew up in France in Paris’ low income suburbs. My parents used to bring us to the park to have some outdoor activities and that’s where my father taught my siblings and I to observe, love and respect nature. He gave us perspective on our place in a much bigger ecosystem. 

At that time, we didn’t describe our family as “sustainable”. It was very pragmatic, we didn’t waste anything, we mended everything, saved and reused, because we just couldn’t afford not to :)

In 2018 in Singapore, after what felt like a long, unfulfilling professional tunnel on autopilot, I was forced to make a pause and took the opportunity to consider what I really wanted to do with my life (I know this resonates with many!)

Then I really realised how passionate I was about sustainability and for the first time, I considered making it my job. Nothing is easy when you don’t hold the right degrees or the right amount of money, so I co-created The Matcha Initiative to jump into action instead of procrastinating. That’s how you start an amazing experience with amazing people :)

Cherry on the cake: TMI helped me land my current job at Handprint, where we help businesses embrace the next step - Regeneration.

Mei Yee Chan
Senior Programme Manager - TÜV SÜD

As the Senior Programme Manager for Sustainability Validation and Verification at TÜV SÜD, Mei Yee helps organisations add credibility and assurance to their greenhouse gases (GHG) emission assertations and GRI reports by providing third-party verification reports to support organizational claims.

She has six years of experience in the standards development of ISO 30500 and ISO 31800, testing, and certification for non-sewered sanitation systems. Prior to that, Mei Yee spearheaded  World Toilet Organization's Rainbow School Toilet projects in China and Sanishop in Cambodia. She is passionate about driving corporate social responsibility and sustainability and has spent more than 18 years in various fields working internationally across teams and cultural boundaries before turning her focus on Singapore to helping companies with their carbon reduction journey. She holds a Masters in Community Water and Sanitation and a Science Degree in Earth Science, majoring in geology and physical geography.

She is a certified WSQ Advanced Certificate in Learning and Performance (ACLP) Train-The-Trainer (TTT). Since then, she has facilitated many companies in the training for Green Compass – An environmental assessment framework targeted at SME/ manufacturing industries.

Quentin Fouesnant
Founder – Qanopy Consulting

Passionate about sustainability and technology, I have spent the last 12 years in Asia-Pacific working on Energy and Sustainability. I am passionate about both of those areas and dedicate some of my time to conducting trainings.

After working for several MNCs and startups, I have founded Qanopy Consulting, a Singapore-based company providing a suite of sustainability services. We use a tailored approach to assist companies at various stages of their sustainability journey.

Nicolas Sautter
CEO & Founder - Beez-fm

Graduated in IT and marketing, Nicolas started his career at SAUTER, a Swiss BMS Supplier, in the HQ in 2008 and has been a product manager for several years. After the successful launch of the first BMS Cloud in Europe, he became business developer in the APAC region in 2015. He relocated to Shanghai for 20 months to be closer to the markets, before moving to Singapore in 2018 where he created and directed the SAUTER APAC Competence Centre until June 2022. Since then, he has taken on the role of CEO at beez-fm, a green tech startup he founded in December 2019.

Adrien de Buttet
Sustainable Supply Chain Transformation - Greenfinity

In 2023, I co-founded Greenfinity, a Singapore-based supply chain sustainability venture focusing on sustainable and low-carbon transformation for supply chains. The objective is to help people and companies strategize their sustainability action plans to make a difference for the planet, the people, and the business.

I have a background in industrial engineering and supply chain management and 20 years of multi-national company experience in Europe and Asia, driving best-in-class logistics, manufacturing, customer services, and planning processes (S&OP/IBP).  With climate change becoming an additional consideration to supply chain management over the past decade, I decided to help supply chain professionals juggle between achieving the best service, optimal cost, cash efficiency, and now decarbonization.

Derek Lee
Senior Business Development Manager for Sustainability Solutions - BSI Group

With more than 7 years of experience in the Testing, Inspection and Certification (TIC) Industry, I'm passionate about enabling organizations to drive improvement that produces exceptional business outcomes using international standards. I have worked with hundreds of organizations to embed international standards, drive excellence, and achieve certifications for their businesses.

Irwin Raj
Head of Sustainability & Social Impact - Dentsu APAC

I am a sustainability advisor and purpose-driven leader with over a decade of experience supporting organisations through sustainability transformation. My work spans sustainability strategy and reporting, stakeholder engagement, impact investing, and climate action — all grounded in a deep commitment to driving meaningful change.

My career journey cuts across consulting, the built environment, and now the media and marketing sector at Dentsu.

I lead Dentsu Good, Dentsu’s global sustainability accelerator in the Asia Pacific. I am focused on helping brands embed sustainability into their strategies and communications, transforming them into a powerful engine for innovation and impact.

Nick Stantzos
Regional Commercial Director - PUR Nature Based Solutions

I am a sustainability professional with a focus on carbon markets since 2004. I was fortunate to work in various roles in this field, giving me multiple perspectives: project development (Ecosecurities, Malaysia), origination (Perenia Carbon, Indonesia), investment structuring (Mitsui, Japan), validation and verification (TUV Rheinland, China & Singapore), and recently Nature-based Solutions (PUR, Singapore).

I am currently the Regional Commercial Director for Asia for PUR, an impact company that develops projects within our clients’ value chains to regenerate landscapes and protect vital ecosystems. By implementing nature-based solutions, we help companies to reduce their environmental footprint while increasing the resilience of their supply chain to climate change.

Andras Komlosi
Founder and Director - SPECC.earth

As a sustainability professional, my core motivation is to maximise impact. As an educator, my focus is on meaningful engagement. Therefore, I design and deliver collaborative, science-based learning experiences that support organisations on their journey towards sustainability and making a positive impact. My approach is grounded by 15 years in learner-centred education and formal sustainability training at UCLA.