FinSoul: Algerian energy minister says OPEC is wary of carbon tax.

Dec. 16, 2009 - PRLog -- FinSoul has learned that as the Copenhagen climate conference grinds on, the Algerian energy minister, who is also a former president of the Organization of the Petroleum Producing Countries (OPEC) has raised concerns over a carbon tax that some developed nations have imposed and that others are intending to impose on carbon emissions as part of the drive to slow global warming.

Algeria, which rates as the world’s eighth largest oil exporter and forth largest gas exporter, in a recent state radio interview, heard the minister say that such a tax would cut into energy producing nation’s revenues as well as make energy imports costlier for developing nations.

FinSoul believes he was quoted as saying that "There is a consensus that is very clear. The countries of OPEC have been working for a very long time on this issue, the producers will be penalized."

"This tax is discriminatory with regard to gas and oil and is not in the interests of producing countries and is also not in the interest of developing countries," the minister continued.

Another issue raised by the minister was the proposed North African solar project Desertec, a €400 billion ($581.4 billion) plan by an international consortium including E.ON, Siemens and RWE which aims to generate solar power for export to Europe.

The minister said that the project was forcing Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria and Egypt to build a solar power infrastructure for Europe, and that as energy producing states they already had a source of energy in gas which would be cheaper than solar power.

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FinSoul structures and guides greenhouse gas emission reduction projects from beginning to end, working with both project developers and buyers of emission reduction credits.