Dresdner Bank and Gazprombank to launch Carbon Trading JV

The joint venture will invest in primary projects generating CO2 certificates through the mechanisms of the Kyoto protocol with a view to repackaging these credits for resale to investors on a secondary market basis.

The Carbon Trade & Finance SICAR S.A. will be a 50:50 joint venture incorporated in Luxembourg as a SICAR*. The application to the Luxembourg regulator CSSF will shortly be filed. The joint venture was already approved by the EU Commission on December 19.

Dresdner Bank’s involvement in the joint venture will be led through its investment bank, Dresdner Kleinwort, which is a leading player in the European emissions trading market. Gazprombank, one of Russia’s leading banks, is a part of Gazprom Group – one of the world’s largest energy groups. The joint venture, which will not be open to third party investment at launch, will be run as an independent investor.

"The demand for new and liquid secondary products in the European carbon trading markets is rising all the time as this market matures at an exceptional rate," said Ingo Ramming, head of Emissions Trading at Dresdner Kleinwort.

"This joint venture is a unique opportunity to bring together the market-leading carbon trading expertise of Dresdner Kleinwort, with the unmatched regional influence and knowledge of Gazprombank, to offer the market access to these products. The carbon trading market has an integral part to play in the management of global CO2 emissions and this joint venture is an important example of the role that financial markets players such as Dresdner need to play in this market."

Alexei Obozintsev, Deputy Chairman of the Management Board at Gazprombank, comments, "Russia has enormous potential to benefit from the opportunities offered by the Kyoto Protocol. Gazprombank with it wide client base in Russia and unique relationship with Gazprom Group, plans to be at the forefront of this exciting new market. We believe the complementary strengths of the bank and our partner Dresdner through the joint venture can offer our clients unrivalled expertise in benefiting from opportunities in the carbon market."

Note *: A SICAR is a venture capital investment company regulated by the Luxemburg banking supervisory authority CSSF. The SICAR has "light touch" regulation and the commercial terms of the SICAR can also be very flexible.