UPDATE 1-China accumulated CO2 trade hits $864 mln by end-Oct - ministry

The platforms compelled local firms in industries such as electric power, steel and cement to buy carbon permits on the exchanges in order to cover their annual allocations.

China's accumulated trade volume from its seven pilot regional carbon trading schemes reached 6 billion yuan ($863.9 million) by the end of October, up from 4.7 billion yuan at the end of last year, the environment ministry said on Monday.

As part of its efforts to curb its surging greenhouse gas emissions, China began launching pilot regional trading platforms from 2013. The schemes eventually covered Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Chongqing and Shenzhen, as well as Guangdong and Hubei provinces.

The platforms compelled local firms in industries such as electric power, steel and cement to buy carbon permits on the exchanges in order to cover their annual allocations.

A total of 250 million tonnes of carbon dioxide changed hands on the exchanges by the end of October this year, up from 200 million at the end of last year, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment said in a report published ahead of a press briefing.

In 2015, Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged to replace the regional schemes with a nationwide trading exchange, but despite a soft launch late last year, the national platform has yet to get off the ground amid concerns about data accuracy in some industrial sectors.

China is the world's biggest source of climate-warming greenhouse gases, and it has pledged to bring emissions to a peak by "around 2030" as part of its commitments to the 2015 Paris accord. ($1 = 6.9450 yuan) 

(With inputs from agencies.)