FFWD.L Regulatory News (FFWD)

23 Nov 2006 07:01

London Asia Chinese Private Equity23 November 2006 23 November 2006 London Asia Chinese Private Equity Fund Limited ("LACPEF" or "the Fund") Investment in Carbon Credit Specialist LACPEF, the China focused investment fund, is pleased to announce that it isinvesting £1.9 million for an 10% stake in China CDM Exchange Centre Ltd ("CCEC"or "the Company"). Founded this year, CCEC is a Jersey incorporated company providing brokerage,advisory and research services relating to the reduction of greenhouse gases ("GHGs") in Asia. It works with businesses and projects that generate carboncredits, and assists the project owner to identify buyers for and sell on thosecarbon credits. As well as providing advice to projects which generate carbon credits, CCEC alsoacts as an emissions broker and maintains its own carbon trading portfolio. Itmanages the only on-line platform for environmental commodity transactions inChina. The Company operates within the framework of the Clean Development Mechanism ("CDM") of the Kyoto Protocol, established under the auspices of the UnitedNations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The Protocol commits countriesto reducing their emissions of GHGs by pre-determined amounts or compensate formaintained or higher GHG emissions via emissions trading. The Company carries out its activities through an alliance with a leadingChinese emissions broker, Beijing Changjiang River International Holding ("CRIH"), and provides all the professional services for projects secured by CRIH.Currently, CCEC is working on 26 projects with aggregate annual CO2 emissions ofapproximately 30 million tons. CCEC's services cover strategy development, analysis, verification, legal andaccounting advice, insurance and other professional services. Owing to itsrelationships with leading energy institutions, particularly Chinese powerproducers and Asian buyers of carbon credits, CCEC focuses on identifying buyersfor larger-than-average CDM projects in China and negotiating CER purchaseagreements on behalf of its clients. As the world's second largest emitter of GHGs, China is expected to overtake theUS in GHG emissions by 2025 and become the major player in the global carbonmarket. To date China is the largest CDM seller and the target for many of thecarbon credit funds created in the last 18 months seeking to buy carbon credits. Victor Ng and Simon Littlewood, Executive Directors of the Fund, are beingappointed non-executive directors to the Company. Mr Kang Zheng, Chief Executive of CDM, said: "We plan to list our business onthe UK's PLUS Stock Market in the near future, and welcome the investment by theFund and assistance from London Asia in getting the PLUS listing, which willincrease our exposure internationally among carbon credit purchasers." Simon Littlewood, Executive Director of LACPEF, commented: "The Fund hasinvested in a number of businesses in the environmental sector that potentiallygenerate carbon credits and could benefit from the services CCEC provides,adding value to our existing investments as well as this new investment. Ourinvestee companies involved in renewables have performed well with China NewEnergy, which joined PLUS in September, reporting strong trading yesterday" For further information please visit www.londonasiafunds.com or contact:John West/Matt Ridsdale Simon Littlewood Hugh FieldTavistock Communications London Asia Capital plc Collins Stewart LimitedTel: 020 7920 3150 Tel 020 7355 7928 Tel: 020 7523 8000 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange