The second auction of carbon credits in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative generated $106.5 million for investment in energy efficiency, clean and renewable energy technologies. New York’s share of the 10-state auction proceeds will be approximately $42 million.

Ten states are participating in the Regional Greehouse Gas Initiative.The Governor's Office reported that all of the 31,505,898 allowances offered at the December 17th RGGI auction – the second of its kind – were sold at a clearing price of $3.38 per allowance. There were 69 entities from the energy, financial and environmental sectors bidding in the auction, demonstrating a robust interest in the carbon dioxide allowance auction. Those entities sought 110.2 million allowances, or 3.5 times the available supply for this auction.

The New York Energy Research and Development Authority will decide how to spend the state's auction proceeds, which could total more than $217 million for 2009 based on this week's auction price. The state has vowed to use the money for energy efficiency, alternative energy and carbon mitigation programs.