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Corporate Social Responsibility
News
6.11.2008 - 06:09pm ET
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Governor Kaine Recognizes Efforts of CNX Gas to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Virginia
CNX Gas Registers 8.4 Million Metric Tons of Emission Offsets for Trading on the Chicago Climate Exchange(R)
(CSRwire) RICHMOND, VA - June 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- CNX Gas Corporation (NYSE:
CXG) today announced the company's registration of greenhouse gas emission
offsets with the Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX(R)). Governor Timothy M.
Kaine joined the company and recognized CNX Gas Corporation for the
significant impact its coalbed methane capture project in southwest
Virginia is having on the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in
Virginia.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20051213/CNXLOGO )
CNX Gas announced today it has registered 8.4 million metric tons of
emission offsets for trading on the CCX, a legally binding greenhouse gas
reduction and trading exchange for emission sources and offset projects.
CNX Gas' offsets arose out of CNX Gas' coalbed methane capture project in
Buchanan County, Virginia, for the years 2003 through September 2007.
Additional offsets are expected to be generated in the future.
"This is a win-win-win situation for all parties involved here today,"
CNX Gas President and CEO Nicholas J. DeIuliis said about the significance
of the relationship between CNX Gas, the Chicago Climate Exchange and the
Commonwealth of Virginia. "Not only are we creating value for our
shareholders through the registration of emission offsets on the Chicago
Climate Exchange, we are furthering the goals of Governor Kaine's 2007
Virginia Energy Plan, making Virginia a leader in addressing one of the
most important issues in the country today."
Dr. Richard Sandor, Chairman and CEO of Chicago Climate Exchange,
echoed Mr. DeIuliis' thoughts: "The Chicago Climate Exchange facilitates
private sector approaches to addressing the climate change issue and we
are very pleased to partner with CNX Gas and to see the positive impact
that our partnership is having on Virginia and the country."
"CNX Gas' methane capture project in Buchanan County is exactly the
type of private sector initiative that will enable Virginia to achieve our
goal of reducing the Commonwealth's total greenhouse gas emissions by 30%
by 2025," remarked Governor Kaine. "Just to put it in perspective, the
8.4 million metric tons of CO2 equivalents being registered by CNX Gas
today, is equivalent to the annual carbon emissions of 1.6 million
automobiles. Moreover, because CNX Gas sells the methane it captures, we
are simultaneously increasing the Commonwealth's indigenous energy
production, which was one of the goals I laid out in my 2007 Virginia
Energy Plan."
CNX Gas has a unique position in the natural gas industry relative to
its peers by the nature of its primary asset, coalbed methane or "CBM."
CBM is gas found naturally in coal seams and must be removed from the coal
seam prior to mining coal. Historically, CBM was vented into the
atmosphere. Today, CNX Gas captures the CBM in advance of mining, which
improves the safety of coal mining and reduces the carbon footprint of
coal. Methane is a greenhouse gas with a Global Warming Potential (GWP)
more than 20 times that of carbon dioxide. The capture of methane not
only realizes an energy source from what was once a waste product, but it
also increases energy efficiency by creating two products (coal and gas)
from one given resource, coal.
CNX Gas became a registered offset provider on the Chicago Climate
Exchange in 2007. CCX is a rules-based, greenhouse gas emission reduction
and trading system. CCX emitting members make a voluntary but legally
binding commitment to meet annual greenhouse gas emission reduction
targets. Those emitting members who reduce their emissions below their
targets have surplus allowances to sell or bank; those who fall short of
their targets comply by purchasing allowances or offsets, which are traded
on the CCX as Carbon Financial Instruments (CFI) contracts. CFIs represent
100 metric tons of emission reductions or offsets. As a CCX offset
provider, CNX Gas is not bound to any emission reduction targets. An
offset provider is an owner of an offset project, such as CNX Gas's
methane capture project in Buchanan County, Virginia, that registers and
sells offsets on its own behalf. In order to register and trade CFI's,
the CCX Committee on Offsets must approve the project and the project must
then be validated by an independent CCX verifier. Once verified, CCX then
qualifies emission reduction offsets for each specific project. Methane
offsets are granted on the basis of avoiding methane emissions by
diverting gas into gas pipelines for commercial sale. After an emission
reduction project is qualified, offsets generated by the project can be
registered and sold through CCX to emitting members that require offsets
to meet their emission reduction targets. CNX Gas has registered 8.4
million metric tons of offsets on CCX, but it has not determined whether
or when it will sell its registered emission offsets. The decision to
sell qualified offsets on CCX will depend on a number of factors including
the market trading price for the offsets, CNX Gas' cash needs and the
likelihood of legislation relating to greenhouse gas emissions. As of
June 9th, 2008, the closing price for 2003 vintage CFI's was $5.50 per
metric ton.
CNX Gas' ongoing methane capture activities in Virginia and elsewhere
will result in further methane emissions capture that could result in
offsets that qualify for registration on the CCX or other markets. CNX
Gas and CONSOL Energy Inc. have agreed generally to split 50-50 all
emission offsets generated by either of them or their respective
subsidiaries.
About CNX Gas Corporation:
CNX GAS CORPORATION is an independent natural gas exploration,
development, production and gathering company operating in the Appalachian
and Illinois basins of the United States.
CAUTIONARY STATEMENT CONCERNING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
Various statements in this release, including those that express a
belief, expectation, or intention, as well as those that are not
statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements (as defined
in Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934). These statements
involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ
materially from projected results. Accordingly, investors should not place
undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual
results. We have based these forward-looking statements on our current
expectations and assumptions about future events. While our management
considers these expectations and assumptions to be reasonable, they are
inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive,
regulatory and other risks, contingencies and uncertainties, most of which
are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond our control. These
risks, contingencies and uncertainties relate to, among other matters, the
following: we have not made any decision to sell or trade any emission
offsets we own and the value of such offsets in the future is uncertain;
the market for emission offsets is not mature and there can be no
assurance that we will receive any value for any emission offsets we sell
in the future; the trading market for emission offsets may be illiquid and
we may not be able to sell any or all of the emission offsets we determine
to sell: the market for emission offsets will be impacted by legislative
and regulatory developments regarding carbon emissions beyond our control
and the outcome of which is uncertain; coal bed methane we capture in the
future may not qualify as emission offsets eligible for trading under a
voluntary or involuntary trading program; we have agreed generally to
split emission offsets with CONSOL Energy, which will impact the value we
derive for emission reduction credits from our methane capture activities;
and other factors discussed under "Risk Factors" in the 10-K for the year
ended December 31, 2007. We are including this cautionary statement in
this release to make applicable and take advantage of the safe harbor
provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 for any
forward-looking statements made by, or on behalf, of us.
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