Climate ambition is going in the right direction, says Confederation of Finnish Industries’ Director General Jyri Häkämies.
On Friday, Hakamies told this site, “Last year was a turning point: for the first time, all the major economic powers; the EU, the US and China committed to the goals of carbon neutrality by the middle of the century. In this new situation we need carbon pricing to ensure robust and market-based implementation.”
“Finnish businesses want to take the lead in solving the climate challenge. Building a carbon-neutral economy is first and foremost a massive investment challenge”, Häkämies stresses.
“Private sector investments require predictability and a clear transition signal. The best way to do this is to get a market-based price tag for carbon emissions. It is also important to make carbon pricing as comprehensive as possible internationally. From an industry perspective, 2050 is just one or two investment cycles away. Therefore, carbon pricing should be swiftly put in place.”
The signatories call on governments to:
- Back their net zero targets with effective, robust, reliable and fit-for-purpose carbon pricing instruments, consistent with the Paris Agreement, to facilitate a cost-efficient investment path to reach net zero emissions;
- Align their carbon pricing instruments where appropriate to create a stable and predictable investment environment; and
- Finalise the rules for the international market mechanisms under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement to support cost-effective mitigation efforts, create a level playing field and minimise carbon leakage while enabling greater ambition.
The Call on Carbon the initiative of the Finnish-based Climate Leadership Coalition business network, as well as the Swedish Haga Initiative and the Norwegian Skift. CLC (Climate Leadership Coalition) and its Nordic partners are also calling organizations and partners from Europe, China and the USA to join the initiative.
