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Climate change opens up new energy markets to Gulf investors, says Beckstrom

  • United Arab Emirates: Sunday, August 26 - 2007 at 17:38
  • PRESS RELEASE

Companies across the GCC region can tap into the global carbon market - which was worth an estimated USD30.7 billion last year - according to Rod Beckstrom, co-founder of and a speaker at DIFCweek in November.

By placing a cost on carbon emissions and a value on emission reductions, the carbon market is created through the trade of the resulting allowances or credits. In 2006, the market saw transactions for 1.6million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions, with experts predicting a 50 per cent rise for 2007.

Beckstrom said: "Global warming is clearly one of the greatest political and scientific challenges that we face, threatening life on many levels. However, a solution could be at hand through global business, if countries can create binding markets that reduce greenhouse gas levels in the atmosphere."

These binding markets and the technologies they employ create phenomenal business opportunities - which are the subject of a DIFC Boutique Event on Monday November 19, 2007.

Beckstrom is chairman and CEO of TWIKI.NET, and serves on the board of Environmental Defense (ED), the leading environmental group that co-authored the Kyoto Protocol, part of the UN's international treaty on climate change.

He said: "This multi-billion dollar market opportunity has emerged because pollution reduction credits are so valuable that there are entire new businesses, and networks of businesses, created purely to create these reductions.

"We are seeing phenomenal innovations at every level of industry, with opportunities at each level of the investment cycle," he continued.

"Venture capital investment opportunities abound in clean technology, and many funds are emerging to back new clean and green technologies that clean up the environment.

"There are private equity opportunities in leading companies and consulting groups that are addressing these market sectors. Meanwhile, new types of merchant banks are sourcing, creating and trading carbon credits."

The DIFC Boutique Event on Carbon Trading is one of a number of headline conferences and lectures during DIFCweek, to be held at Dubai International Financial Centre, November 17 - 23.

DIFCweek, the first event of its kind in the Middle East, will focus on Financial Opportunities for the Third Millennium. The week of conferences will address every principal topic in the international financial arena.
Rod Beckstrom. 
Rod Beckstrom.
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About DIFCweek
DIFCweek, the first event of its kind in the Middle East, will focus on Financial Opportunities for the Third Millennium. The week of conferences will address every principal topic in the international financial arena, all viewed from a fresh perspective.

DIFCweek will present some of the world's most thought-provoking speakers, covering the challenges and opportunities in the world's current and emerging financial markets. Sharing in the debate will be hundreds of senior industry practitioners, corporate decision-makers and regulatory and government officials.
The week will turn the financial agenda on its head: it is not about what the industry is talking about today, but what it will be discussing tomorrow.

About the DIFC:
The Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) is an onshore hub for global finance. It bridges the time gap between the financial centers of Hong Kong and London and services a region with the largest untapped emerging market for financial services.

In just under two years, over 400 firms have registered at the DIFC. They operate in an open environment complemented with world-class regulations and standards. The DIFC offers its member institutions incentives such as 100 per cent foreign ownership, zero tax on income and profits and no restrictions on foreign exchange. In addition their business benefits from modern infrastructure, operational support and business continuity facilities of uncompromisingly high standards.

The DIFC is made up of the following core bodies:

1. The DIFC Authority (DIFCA) - Responsible for the Companies and Security Registries and attracting financial as well as non-financial institutions to set up in the DIFC. The DIFC Authority is also responsible for developing the financial services industry. (www.difc.ae)

2. The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) - An independent, unitary regulatory authority, responsible for the regulation of all DIFC operations. Its principle-based primary legislation is modeled on that used in London and New York and its regulatory regime operates to standards that meet or exceed those in major financial centers. (www.dfsa.ae)

3. The DIFC Courts - An independent court system set up to uphold the provisions of DIFC laws and regulations, the courts provide comprehensive legal redress in civil and commercial matters within the DIFC. The DIFC Courts system is especially designed to deal with all of sophisticated transactions that will be conducted within DIFC. The DIFC Court laws, based on the common law, not only sets out the jurisdiction of the court but also provides for a dispute resolution services, including arbitration and mediation, thus allowing for the independent administration of justice in the DIFC. (www.difccourts.ae)

DIFC Investments- The creation of DIFC Investments will result in the allocation to it of all non public administration activities previously carried out by DIFC Authority. This will include amongst other things all commercial and other activities such as the operation and management of any current and future subsidiaries, the development of the centre's investment strategy and relevant policies and any other strategic investments or alliances which will further the goals and objectives of the Dubai International Financial Centre and contribute to the fulfillment of the Centre's vision. Some of the companies and organizations that DIFC Investments owns include:

4. The Dubai International Financial Exchange (DIFX) The DIFX is the region's first international financial exchange for equities, bonds, Islamic products, funds, index products and (subject to regulatory approval) derivatives. The target areas of the DIFX for seeking issuers include the Middle East and North Africa, as well as South Africa, Turkey and the Indian sub-continent. The regulator of the DIFX is the Dubai Financial Services Authority. The DIFX is located in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and its owner is the DIFC Authority. (www.difx.ae)

5. Hawkamah- the first Institute for Corporate Governance in the region, has been established in partnership with a group of international institutions, including the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), UAE Ministry of Finance and Industry, Centre for International Private Enterprise (CIPE), International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Union of Arab Banks (UAB), Dubai School of Government (DSG), Young Arab Leaders (YAL), and the Institute of Management Development (IMD). (www.hawkamah.org).

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