A division of the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) listed Co2 Group, Co2 Australia, today announced it has reached agreement with the Queensland state government to acquire its 100 per cent share of independently operated Ecofund Queensland Pty Ltd.
Co2 Group CEO, Andrew Grant, said the acquisition of Ecofund underscores its commitment to delivering a full range of environmental services and solutions to companies and organisations both in Australia and overseas.
Grant said Ecofund is one of Australia's largest traders of voluntary carbon offsets.
He said Ecofund is also highly regarded in advisory services across renewable energy, environmental and biodiversity offsets and will complement the company's well established offerings in project management, environmental trading and carbon advisory services.
"Our strategy for the company over the past two years has been to focus on expanding our business activities in emerging carbon markets, commercialising our intellectual property, and diversifying into advisory services and environmental markets trading," Grant said.
"This announcement continues CO2 Group's growth strategy across environmental markets in Australia, New Zealand and Asia and follows the successful Carbon Farming Initiative (CFI) Methodology Determination in relation to Reforestation and Afforestation announced last month."
Environment and Heritage Protection Minister Andrew Powell said Ecofund is a well established company providing specific carbon trading services.
"These are services best provided by the private sector," Powell said.
"Ownership by the state and the policy constraints are limiting opportunities for the company's future growth and therefore it is timely for the government to divest its shares and allow the company and its purchaser to reach their full potential."
Co2 Australia is the country's largest developer of reforestation-based carbon projects, having developed more than 26,400 hectares (or 39 million trees) of dedicated carbon plantings in Australia that are now in the process of being registered in the CFI to enable the creation of Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) under the Australian Carbon Pricing Mechanism.
In 2004, Co2 became the first reforestation company to be accredited under the NSW Greenhouse Gas Abatement Scheme (GGAS).
For the next 12 months Co2 Australia became a supplier of carbon credits for Origin Energy and Country Energy, and established forest carbon sinks for Eraring Energy in Australia.
Co2 Australia entered a joint venture with Macquarie Bank Limited to establish and manage a forest carbon sink in 2006.
In 2007, Co2 Australia became the first reforestation company to become an accredited abatement provider under the Australian Government' Greenhouse Friendly program.
