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TOP STORY

FEATURE: Voluntary carbon company’s slowdown reflects wider transparency, funding issues

A startup carbon project and data tech developer is back making a profit after scaling back activity and furloughing or laying off large swathes of staff, Carbon Pulse has learned, however the process reflects issues about how companies in the voluntary carbon market are funded and promote themselves to the broader community.

VOLUNTARY

Saudi firm to auction 2 mln voluntary carbon credits, as others favour similar approach

The Saudi-based company established to drive growth in voluntary carbon credits in the MENA region will auction 2 million units mainly derived from African projects in a sale to be held in Nairobi next month, as other African sellers are seen turning to auctions to help boost transparency.

Aviation giant buys 62k ocean removals from startup in forward-purchase agreement

A large aircraft manufacturer has entered into an agreement with a US startup to purchase 62,000 tonnes of ocean-based carbon removals as well as also source from the firm 2,100 tonnes of “carbon negative” hydrogen, the companies announced Wednesday.

Platform launched to help verify Scope 3 emissions impacts

A platform was launched on Wednesday to help verify and track Scope 3 GHG reductions, aiming to make it easier for companies to make claims related to their projects or other interventions that help clean up their value chain emissions.

Record number of financials call on large corporate emitters to disclose climate impact

A climate disclosure non-profit has added several large financial institutions to its campaign to request over 1,600 high-impact corporates to begin disclosing their emissions output and footprint on the environment.

Startup focused on European carbon offset generation raises €1.5 mln

A Paris-headquartered startup specialising in issuing and selling carbon credits from European projects has raised €1.5 million in a new funding round.

Broker and carbon credit marketplace announce blockchain partnership

A commodities broker and digital marketplace have announced a new collaboration on carbon credits that will see the use of the emerging ‘two-way bridge’ form of transacting units between parties via the blockchain.

New registry teams up with rating agency to help projects achieve good grades

A carbon credit rating agency is taking a more active role in the design of projects to help the activities achieve a good ratings grade in a pilot scheme with a new registry.

CEO replaced amid leadership reshuffle at Canada-based voluntary carbon firm

A Canadian-based voluntary carbon credit aggregator has replaced its CEO amid a leadership reshuffle, while parting ways with a handful of senior staff to cut costs.

Sustainable investing startup shuts down after failing to secure more funding

A London-based fintech startup focused on sustainable investing has shut down after failing to secure further funding.

EMEA

Euro Markets: EUAs drop 7.2% in May as funds post record net short position, while UKAs rally after neutral auction

EUA prices posted a 7.2% monthly loss in May, but ended the month with a modest recovery after an early drop to a new four-month low was reversed when data showed investment funds had built their largest-ever net short position, while UKAs rallied after what sources called a “neutral” auction result.

Paris-based VC firm wins race to acquire TotalEnergies’ cleantech portfolio

A Paris-based venture capital firm has been selected to acquire French oil and gas major TotalEnergies’ entire cleantech portfolio.

Oman, 44.01 partner to build world’s first commercial-scale CO2 mineralisation plant

Oman’s Ministry of Energy and Minerals has signed a concession agreement with carbon capture firm 44.01 to build what it said will be the world’s first commercial-scale CO2 mineralisation project.

INTERNATIONAL

EU and US vow to strengthen ties on sustainable trade within a year

The EU and the US advanced their sustainable trade cooperation on Wednesday, launching a work programme and agreeing to find ways to avoid a costly clean tech subsidy race before the 27-nation bloc’s mid-2024 elections.

Japanese shipping firm to invest in climate tech through new US subsidiary

A Japanese shipping giant has announced the establishment of a new subsidiary in the US to expand its investment in venture capital funds and startups developing decarbonising technologies in the energy sector.

New ‘whale tail’ technology for ships sharply cuts CO2 emissions, claims engineering firm

One of the world’s biggest engineering companies has developed a new propulsion system that mimics the movements of a whale tail, which it says reduces the energy consumption of some vessels by more than a fifth, cutting carbon emissions.

ASIA PACIFIC

Hong Kong may see demand from CCER relaunch despite challenges ahead -experts

Hong Kong could see emerging opportunities from the expected relaunch of China’s national voluntary carbon programme, though regulatory ambiguity and lack of demand remain challenges for the city’s fledgling emissions market, experts have said.

Cancelling nine planned Indonesia coal power plants could avoid nearly 300 MtCO2e, new analysis finds

Analysis from an Indonesian think-tank has found that nine of the country’s proposed coal-fired power stations could be cancelled with minimal repercussions for supply or grid stability and affordability, while avoiding nearly 300 MtCO2e of greenhouse gas emissions.

Australia’s emissions refuse to budge, despite major land sector data recalculation, quarterly data shows

Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions continue to remain largely flat, despite a major recalibration in land sector emissions reporting, showing the country’s net sink is larger than previously estimated, according to the Clean Energy Regulator’s latest quarterly data.

Malaysian oil company signs deal to develop nature-based carbon projects

Malaysia’s national oil company Petronas on Wednesday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a government-owned forest fund to develop nature-based projects in order to help meet its target of reaching net zero emissions by mid-century.

AMERICAS

LCFS Market: California prices inch down before PG&E sale, as financials halt net length build

California Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) prices dipped slightly this week after utility Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) announced its largest credit auction yet, while federal data showed financial players made a rare cut in their futures market net length.

Seasoned environmental commodities trader leaves US investment bank for Canadian energy marketer

A veteran North American power and environmental commodities trader will lead trading at a Calgary-based electricity and environment marketer, moving from one of the largest US investment banks.

BIODIVERSITY (FREE TO READ)

Swedish bank buys first European biodiversity credits

A Swedish bank has acquired a batch of biodiversity credits generated through a domestic forestry project, the first time such units have been created and transacted in Europe.

Plenty of fish: Marine protection doesn’t hold back fishing industry, study finds

The global fishing industry has been fighting against the implementation of marine protected areas (MPAs), but a study of the largest MPA in North America has found that even full protection of the area’s biodiversity did not negatively impact catches.

Australian research group to test the waters on commercial-scale kelp industry

An Australian blue economy industry-academia partnership has been permitted to deploy marine infrastructure to further research into growing commercial-scale offshore kelp to achieve positive environmental outcomes.

Carbon project developer says offsets should not initially be allowed in Australia’s nature repair market

One of Australia’s largest carbon project developers says nature repair certificates should initially be barred from being used as offsets, as part of a wide-ranging list of recommendations and concerns it raised on the government’s nature repair market bill.

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Carbon Pulse is hiring!

• Head of EMEA, Carbon Pulse – London/Europe
• Asia-Pacific Environmental Markets Correspondent, Carbon Pulse – Asia-Pacific
• North American Environmental Markets Correspondent, Carbon Pulse – Eastern Time Zone
• North American Environmental Markets Correspondent, Carbon Pulse – Pacific Time Zone

Premium job listings

• Vice President, Business Development (APAC), Everland – Singapore
• Land Use Methodology Development Manager, GreenCollar – Australia/US
• Forest Carbon Technical Advisor, WCS – Phnom Penh/TBD
• Associate Director, Sustainable Commodities Production, WCS – Remote (NYC preferred)
• Portfolio Manager/Senior Carbon Trader, Carbon Cap – London
• Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Carbon Credits, CL-Invest – Oslo

Or click here to see all listings

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CONFERENCES

Sylvera’s Carbon Markets Summit – June 8, Online: Sylvera’s second annual Carbon Markets Summit is a week away. Join us on Thursday, June 8th for a dynamic virtual event that brings together corporate sustainability, policy and financial market leaders from Pachama, Bain & Co., Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan Chase, VCMI, SBTi, Aon, and more, to discuss the state of the Voluntary Carbon Markets. We’ll explore a range of relevant topics including the market’s changing landscape, best practices for risk management, the latest in policy and growing regulatory interest, and much more. Register here

Carbon Fast Forward Mediterranean 2023 – June 22, Athens: Following the pandemic and the energy crisis in Europe, the environmental markets in the Mediterranean have gained momentum as a central tool for companies in the region to achieve their emissions reductions targets, through transparent carbon pricing and a robust cap-and-trade mechanism. The increased ambition that the European Commission has announced as part of its Fit for 55 package will bring the shipping sector into the EU ETS market and increase compliance costs for industrial installations and airlines operating in the region. Join us for this one-day, regionally-focussed event geared towards Mediterranean installation operators and shipowners. Register now, since spaces are very limited.

Grow to Zero! – June 26-27, London: Insightful discussions on carbon market evolution? Thought leadership on blended finance for impact? Networking with impact investors and sustainability professionals? Find it all at Gold Standard’s Conference, Grow to Zero! 26-27 June 2023 at Kings Place, London. Tickets and agenda details available here: www.growtozero.co.uk

Argus Carbon Markets & Regulation Conference – July 5-7, Lisbon: In the wake of new legislative reforms to the EU ETS being confirmed, and as voluntary carbon markets continue to shift and evolve, the Argus Carbon Markets & Regulation Conference returns to Portugal to provide necessary insights for your company to remain competitive and aware of the upcoming opportunities within Europe and globally. This is your opportunity to stay up to date on the latest market dynamics through panel discussions, fire side chats, and presentations with industry peers and policy makers in-person. Join market-makers in defining both the compliance and voluntary carbon market by booking your place today. Carbon Pulse readers can enjoy a 10% discount with the code PULSE10. To find out more and to book your place, click here

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BITE-SIZED UPDATES FROM AROUND THE WORLD

Carbon Pulse has teamed up with CME Group to provide its clients with regular updates on the global carbon markets. Check out these briefs for the latest insights on pressing trends and events impacting markets, published every other week. Registration required

INTERNATIONAL

Big fat problem – The fat of dead pigs, cattle, and chickens is being used to make greener jet fuel, but a new study warns it will end up being worse for the planet, the BBC reports. Animal fats are considered waste, so aviation fuel made from the material has a much lower carbon footprint. Demand for fuel made from animal by-products is expected to triple by 2030, with airlines leading the charge. But experts fear scarcity will force other industries to use more palm oil – a huge generator of carbon emissions. The study by green group Transport & Environment points out there are simply not enough animals slaughtered each year to meet airlines’ growing demand for animal fats.

EMEA

A nature walk – The EU’s flagship Nature Restoration Law has suffered another blow as the largest group in the European Parliament, the centre-right EPP, walked out of negotiations on Wednesday ahead of an interim vote in the environment committee on June 15. The bill was already been rejected in more minor opinions by the agriculture and fisheries committees, EurActiv reports. By themselves, the EPP are not large enough to overthrow the law and the lead lawmakers in the committee’s other main groups, including centrist Renew Europe, all indicated to that they support it. However, read Carbon Pulse’s reporting suggesting that Renew members in the wider parliament are split as EU lawmakers cite ‘regulatory fatigue’ about passing further environmental legislation this year.

Pledge propping – German utility RWE, historically the biggest emitter in the EU ETS, has submitted a more ambitious climate pledge for validation to the SBTi corporate template-setting body. The company says the goal is aligned with a 1.5C warming pathway, up from the previous 2C alignment, BusinessGreen reports. RWE said the plan had been made possible through the deal it struck in the autumn with the regional government of North Rhine-Westphalia to phase out its lignite coal-fired power plants in the western German state by 2030.

Bioenergy bidding – Germany has seen its first oversubscribed auction for bioenergy plants, in which bids for a capacity of 532 MW significantly exceeded the auctioned volume of 300 MW, the country’s Federal Network Agency (BNetzA) said. The oversubscribed tender is a sign of the technology’s importance in the country’s energy transition and should motivate lawmakers to ensure improved support conditions in the Renewable Energy Act (EEG), bioenergy lobby group HBB Bioenergie said, adding that interest in the auction had spiked after BNetzA increased the maximum support level by 10%. However, HBB said an increase of 20% would be necessary to cover energy production costs for biomass installations, meaning a sustained interest in auctions at current support levels is unlikely. (Clean Energy Wire)

Time’s running out – About 4 mln fossil-fuelled heating systems in Germany will reach their legal runtime limit of 30 years in 2024, Augsburger Allgemeine Zeitung reported based on a parliamentary inquiry by the conservative opposition party CDU. But many of the roughly 1.9 mln oil heating systems and 2.1 mln gas heating systems that will become too old next year are likely to be exempt from an immediate replacement due to exemptions in the country’s existing building energy law, the government said in its answer to the inquiry. (Clean Energy Wire)

Drax probe – The UK’s energy regulator has launched a formal investigation into power company Drax over whether the wood pellets burnt to generate electricity in its plant breached sustainability rules, the FT reports. Ofgem last year began examining whether Drax had complied with the UK’s biomass sustainability rules, and escalated the probe into an investigation announced on Wednesday. Shares in Drax fell about 5% by midday. The probe began after a BBC documentary raised questions about whether the wood that Drax had procured from Canada was sustainably sourced and therefore capable of upholding the zero-rating the firm’s emissions are given under the UK ETS.

Cyril’s seers – South Africa’s Presidential Climate Commission has advised the country, which relies on coal for most of its electricity, to forsake using the fossil fuel for future power generation and to only use a minimal amount of gas, Bloomberg reports. The commission, in a set of recommendations on how South Africa should structure its electricity system, said a review of the country’s Integrated Resource Plan, or IRP, a blueprint for its energy industry, should include 50-60 GW of renewable energy by 2030. Only 3-5 GW of gas-fired plants should be built and they should only be used at times of peak demand, it said.

AMERICAS

Major rejections – Shareholders of US oil majors Exxon and Chevron voted against emissions reductions proposals, Bloomberg reported Wednesday. Investors rejected 12 Exxon proposals and 8 Chevron proposals at the companies’ annual meetings, with none of the proposals securing more than about 36% of investor votes, according to preliminary results. Activists’ resolutions were looking to pressure both companies to lower Scope 3 emissions or prevent the firms from leveraging divested assets favourable to their GHG reduction calculations, the report said.

Gas leak – American officials are negotiating a deal to help Turkmenistan curb its vast methane emissions, potentially sealing a major breakthrough in the global fight against climate change and notching a diplomatic win for the US government, Bloomberg reports. Officials from the two countries are in serious talks over a possible agreement that could see the US providing financial support and expertise to assist the central Asian state in plugging leaks that allow the gas to escape from its ageing fossil fuel infrastructure, unnamed officials have said. An agreement will be reached within months, with an announcement targeted before COP28.

Oh camelina – Biofuels producer Global Clean Energy Holdings has signed a $30 mln contract in partnership with the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) to begin work on a large-scale pilot project to measure and validate the advantages of growing camelina as a renewable fuel feedstock, the company announced in a press release on Wednesday. The Climate-Smart Camelina Project will implement, measure, and validate the impact of camelina as a rotational and winter crop, looking to accelerate farmers’ adoption of camelina as a feedstock for biofuels and chemicals without causing land-use change, while increasing soil carbon capture. Global Clean Energy Holdings owns the world’s largest camelina patent and intellectual property portfolio. The firm’s subsidiary, Sustainable Oils, contracts directly with farmers to grow camelina in Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, and Washington, and owns the Bakersfield Renewable Fuels refinery in California.

Revamped refinery – A shuttered oil refinery in the Canadian Atlantic province of Newfoundland and Labrador is getting new life as a biofuel production facility thanks to C$86 mln from the federal government and an undisclosed investment from its owner, Braya Renewable Fuels, according to a joint announcement Wednesday. Come By Chance refinery, named for the town where it operates out of 150 kilometres west of St. John’s, hopes to produce 18,000 barrels of renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel. Initially, the fuel will be exported to California which has its own LCFS programme. The biofuel will be made of soybean grown in North and South America, and the plant will be powered by green hydrogen beginning in 2027, thanks to a partnership with German firm ABO Wind. (CBC News)

DAC hire – US direct air capture (DAC) firm CarbonCapture announced the appointment of automotive industry veteran David Apps to the newly created role of vice president, manufacturing, in a press release Wednesday. Apps will be responsible for establishing the first high-volume manufacturing facility for CarbonCapture’s modular DAC systems. Prior to joining CarbonCapture, Apps led a team of manufacturing and facilities engineers, as well as supply chain, validation, and quality personnel establish an initial production facility in his role as vice president of operations at EV tech company Atlis Motor Vehicles. Apps has also held leadership positions at several automotive firms such as Nikola Motors, Byton, Tesla, Toyota, and DaimlerChrysler.

Fund times – Former Brazilian Economy Minister Paulo Guedes is preparing to launch a “green” investment fund along with prominent bankers and other members of former President Jair Bolsonaro’s government, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters. The fund is expected to launch in July, the sources said, aiming to attract domestic and international investments in Brazil’s energy transition, natural resource preservation and industries tied to renewable energy sources. Before Guedes ran the Economy Ministry under Bolsonaro, his first public-sector job, he co-founded an investment bank that later grew into Banco BTG Pactual SA and designed private equity funds focused on the education and health sectors. Former Environment Minister Joaquim Leite, Gustavo Montezano, former head of state development bank BNDES, and ex-BNDES director Fabio Abrahao – all of whom served with Guedes under Bolsonaro – are also expected to work on the fund. Roberto Azevedo, the former director-general of the WTO who retires in June as Chief Corporate Affairs Officer at PepsiCo, is also joining the team, along with Rodrigo Xavier, who ran Bank of America and UBS in Brazil.

ASIA PACIFIC

More research work – The first ‘dual-carbon’ research centre for China’s natural gas industry was established in Shenzhen last week, supported by Shanghai Environment Energy Exchange and Hong Kong-listed China Gas Holdings, China Energy News reports. The newly built organisation will provide consultancy services for corporates, develop new projects, and create an emission database exclusively for the natural gas sector, according to the report.

New tender – South Korea’s environment ministry has planned to spend 500 mln won ($376,806) for a carbon storage pilot project, with the bidding submission deadline set on June 14, according to a notice published Wednesday. The new tender aims to effectively collect floating waste in the dam right after the flood season to produce biochar and the project period will last until Dec. 31 this year, the ministry said.\

AVIATION

Contrary tails – Global airline trade group International Air Transport Association (IATA), representing 300 airlines, is setting up a task force for its annual meeting in Istanbul, Turkey next week, to discuss reducing non-CO2 emissions that cause cloudy streaks, or contrails, Reuters reported Wednesday. Formed in moist atmospheric conditions, contrails are made up of frozen ice crystals that can trap and reflect radiation back down to earth, thereby increasing temperatures. The task force will coordinate efforts by researchers and airlines to limit the creation of contrails by accurately predicting conditions that favour the formation of contrails and minimise risks of increased fuel when avoiding them, an IATA spokesperson told Reuters. Aviation software firms like SATAVIA in the UK and Paris-based Estuaire use digital modelling to help track patches of moist air deemed most likely to cause contrails, in some cases offering up alternative routes that don’t create the streaks, the report noted. However, to date, only a handful of airlines have announced investments in preventing contrails, with others arguing the new flight plans dodging moist air actually cause higher fuel burn and therefore release more carbon.

VOLUNTARY

Making friends – A carbon accounting startup, Normative, has launched the ‘Normative Net-Zero Community’, a platform which seeks to connect sustainability professionals to industry to facilitate the exchange of guidance and information. The free-to-join community aims to provide sustainability professionals with relevant and practical learnings in the form of newsletters, expert-led webinars, and periodic meetings. So far, over 400 sustainability professionals have signed up, with around 30% of the members based in the UK.

Pricing predictor – Data aggregator AlliedOffsets is updating the methodology for its price prediction model on Friday, June 2. Previously the model was based on the last 45 days’ worth of sample prices received, which discounted the majority of the data collected and treated prices received 45 days ago with the same weighting as prices received yesterday. The new model will be based on all the sample prices received, which is more than 10,000, and include the including the ‘age’ of each sample as a variable. The pricing model predictor will also have the new feature of flags for Xpanisiv CBL’s N-GEO standard contracts as well as other outlier projects that are prone to price swings unrelated to market trends. Other changes include using trade data from brokers as well as just bid and offer spreads.

Staying the course – Carbon credit standard developer and manager Verra and Chilean sustainable forest management company Foredor on Wednesday announced they will work together to develop an educational course on carbon markets, with an emphasis on the forestry sector. At the end of this course, participants will have the ability to develop the necessary activities to achieve certification of forestry projects under the Verra VCS Program. They will also have a comprehensive understanding of carbon markets (voluntary and compliance), how they work and the carbon credit transaction processes. The course will be attended by Verra professionals, government representatives, and key market players.

Part(anna)ing the Red Sea – Red Sea Global and Bahamas startup Partanna have agreed to trial the use of carbon-negative concrete and other products at Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea and Amaala giga-projects. The deal – the value of which is not disclosed – is the next stage of partnership between the companies. As revealed by AGBI, the two signed a memorandum of understanding last November to explore ways in which Red Sea Global (RSG) could use Partanna’s processes in Saudi Arabia. Partanna specialises in the production and use of carbon-negative concrete and other building materials. The company has developed what it calls a “pioneering” technology for making products that absorb, rather than emit, CO2.

Awards season – WWF-Canada has announced three award recipients of the Nature x Carbon Tech Challenge, “which is catalysing the development of cost-effective, innovative, and user-friendly technologies and approaches to facilitate the community-led measurement of carbon in nature”. The following organizations will be awarded C$100,000 in contracts:

• Innovatree Carbon Group (Kamloops, BC) for its forest carbon monitoring software.
• Korotu Technology (Toronto, ON) for its LandSteward platform that enables community forest monitoring and carbon reporting through CarbonWatch.
• Digital Forest Lab at Laval University (Quebec City, QC) for its Forest BIOmass measurement system, which uses 3D terrestrial LiDAR SCANning (BioScan3D)

SCIENCE & TECH

Fighting fire with firefighters – The EU said on Tuesday it is doubling its aerial firefighting fleet for the summer of 2023, citing challenges such as increasing forest fires due to the climate crisis. Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarcic said in the last decade there had been on average a 350% increase in requests for assistance from its RescEU programme, with wildfire risks growing in areas that have not previously been vulnerable and floods, for example in Belgium, Germany, and Italy. For the coming wildfire season the RescEU firefighting aircraft reserve will include 24 planes and four helicopters from 10 member states, the EU said. In addition, 11 member states will send almost 450 firefighters who will be based in France, Greece and Portugal. Southern Europe is bracing for a summer of ferocious drought, with some regions already suffering water shortages and farmers expecting their worst yields in decades. (Reuters)

AND FINALLY…

The Papal pledge – The Vatican City has submitted its NDC climate plan to the Paris Agreement, having previously been the only government remaining to have ratified the 2015 UN pact but not submitted a pledge. The micro-state in Rome where the Pope lives earlier this month became the first nation to receive a rebuke from Paris’ Implementation and Compliance Committee for its lack of pledge. It has a population of just 421 and only ratified the agreement last September. The pledge sees the Vatican commit itself to reduce its GHGs to 20% below 2011 levels of 18,940 tCO2e by 2030. It said the state intends to achieve its target through national measures but if these prove insufficient “the use of international mechanisms will not be excluded”. This is despite Pope Francis’ warning in his landmark 2015 Laudato Si encyclical on climate change that carbon credits would not help global efforts to cut emissions and were “a quick and easy solution under the guise of a certain commitment to the environment, but in no way does it allow for the radical change which present circumstances require”.

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