The New York Mercantile Exchange, Inc. announced that it will introduce a U.S. Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative carbon allowance futures contract, in the third quarter.

The contract will be available via the CME Globex electronic trading platform. When launched, pending regulatory review, this is expected to be the first exchange-traded contract for compliance with a government cap-and-trade program in the U.S.

The Green Exchange venture will offer environmental futures, options and swap contracts for markets focused on solutions to climate change, renewable energy and other environmental challenges. The first slate of environmental contracts were introduced on the Nymex in March.

Additional information the contracts and fees can be found at http://www.greenfutures.com/.