The fledgling carbon-offset market was undermined yesterday when AgCert International, a producer and seller of certified emission reductions (CERs), said a key deal had collapsed leaving it with an overhang of uncovered liabilities.
Shares in the Dublin-based firm, which gains its credits by working with farmers to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, dived 80% before rallying to end the day down 62% at 1.58p.
Problems at AgCert emerged shortly after one of its rivals, EcoSecurities, saw its shares slump by nearly 50% when it said it was suffering delays in the offset project approval process being run by the United Nations.
AgCert denied the two companies had common problems, saying it had been left in a difficult position because negotiations with a European trading company to take on its customer delivery obligations had fallen through. The offsets generated through the firm's activities will not be enough to cover its 2008 delivery obligations of about 7.2m CERs. "The company is continuing its negotiations. The outcome of these negotiations and their effect on the financial position of the company remains uncertain," AgCert said in a stock exchange statement....MORE
