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By Rory Carroll
SAN FRANCISCO, May 28 (Reuters) - California carbon permitscovering emissions this year sold for$12.29 a tonne at thecap-and-trade program's May auction, up 8 cents from what theyfetched at the previous auction in February, the program'sregulators said on Thursday.
The auction, the state's third held in conjunction with itstrading partner the Canadian province of Quebec, saw thepartners sell all 77 million 2013 and 2015 permits put on theblock.
They also sold 9.8 million permits covering 2018 emissionsfor the minimum price of $12.10 a tonne, regulators said.
Over 90 percent of all the permits sold at the auction werepurchased by large-emitting companies required to participate inthe program, the regulators said.
While they do not say how many permits individual companiespurchased at the auction, the regulators released a list ofqualified bidders that included oil giants Chevron,Exxon Mobil and Shell, utility companiesPacific Gas and Electric Company and SouthernCalifornia Edison as well as banks, manufacturers andmining companies.
California and Quebec will announce how much revenue wasgenerated from the auction on June 17.
California carbon revenue from its 10 quarterly auctions hasalready reached almost $1.6 billion, the California AirResources Board said in March, money that must be spent onprograms aimed at driving down the state's emissions ofheat-trapping greenhouse gases.
This week California launched a $4.8 million pilot programfunded by the revenue designed to help low-income residentsreplace their older cars and trucks with more fuel-efficientvehicles.
The next auction will be held on August 18. (Reporting by Rory Carroll; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and AldenBentley)
