A France-headquartered sustainable asset manager has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with an English non-profit to boost forest finance.

The Voluntary Carbon Markets Integrity Initiative (VCMI) has launched its Scope 3 Action Code of Practice that allows companies to use Core Carbon Principle (CCP)-tagged credits to help them close the gap to interim Scope 3 targets.

Renewables dip – Only 50% of renewables respondents in a new energy market survey expect to meet revenue targets, and just 43% are optimistic about profits – down from 75% and 67% three years ago, reported assurance and risk management company DNV on Tuesday. The annual survey also finds that only 39% expect their organisation to increase capital investment in the coming year, down from 55% in 2023. Nevertheless, 67% of renewables respondents remain optimistic about growth. DNV surveyed over 1,100 senior energy professionals, including more than 400 from the renewables sector, in February and March 2025 to understand how short-term volatility and long-term optimism are creating new challenges and opportunities for the energy industry.

The term 'net zero' is a "fraud" that has allowed fossil fuel emissions to keep rising faster, as carbon credits earn money for bankers but do little to protect the environment, the head of a multinational company said on Tuesday.

Indonesia’s Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) secured $60 million on Tuesday to fund a 92 MW solar power project, signalling that despite the US exit earlier this year, the partnership that aims to help the Southeast Asian country reach net zero emissions by 2060 is alive and kicking.

New CEO - Climate Action Data (CAD) Trust is recruiting for a newly defined role of CEO and executive director, based in Singapore. The role is open to full time or part time of 3/4+ days per week, stated the announcement on the organisation's website. It's part of the transition towards "a permanent governance model supported by an operationally independent and sustainably funded Secretariat", the release stated. CAD Trust's medium-term priorities are promoting data harmonisation and interoperability in carbon markets, improving access to information on key credit attributes, and supporting regulators with data management on carbon markets. Applications will be considered on a rolling basis over Q2 2025.

The recently added members of the BRICS bloc are building over 10 times as much coal, oil, and gas capacity as wind and utility-scale solar, according to a report released Tuesday, which found that Chinese finance and construction majors are still backing new fossil projects in these nations.

China has laid out this year's policy priorities for regional governments to speed up the construction of spot power markets, according to a government notice published Tuesday, its latest bid to accelerate power system reforms seen vital for its carbon price to be effective.

The path to a global carbon pricing system is fraught with challenges, from market fragmentation to leakage issues, but by fostering regional cooperation and utilising Article 6, countries can bring together disparate mechanisms to make meaningful progress towards Paris Agreement targets, researchers said Tuesday.

It is difficult for buyers to find projects that meet both carbon integrity and sustainable development criteria, new data shared and analysed by Carbon Pulse has found.

A Sydney-headquartered nature-based asset manager has invested in a Laotian agroforestry firm with a Verra-registered carbon project as it expands its Southeast Asia footprint after a successful, multi-million dollar raising several years ago.

New product - China's national trading system for carbon allowances will allow transactions of CEA24 from Tuesday (Apr.29), according to a notice published by Shanghai Environment and Energy Exchange (SEEE). The listing of the new product means the exchange will accordingly adjust the way it calculates the weighted carbon price in the Chinese market. The announcement comes after China's environment ministry earlier this month outlined this year's compliance deadlines and relevant tasks, which required pre-allocation of carbon permits to regulated power plants should be completed by Apr.20.

Collateral - Vietnam should develop a legal framework to recognise carbon credits as collateral to boost access to capital and support the green economy, experts urged at a banking conference in Hanoi on Monday. Although global examples exist, with Thailand and some EU nations allowing carbon credits as loan security, Vietnam’s laws still only accept tangible or traditional financial assets. Legal gaps are hampering green finance growth, speakers said, urging updates to the Civil Code and financial regulations.

Support - South Korea's trade ministry (MOTIE) is looking to fund domestic climate tech companies seeking overseas expansion, according to a statement released Tuesday. Selected companies will receive around KRW 200 mln ($139,135) to promote their businesses abroad. Until last year, the funding programme mainly focused on international emissions reduction initiatives, but MOTIE has reorganised the project into a bottom-up structure that supports various business models. Applications will be accepted until May 26.

Green bonds - South Korean steelmaker Posco on Tuesday said it had raised $700 mln by selling green bonds in overseas markets, its first global bond sale since the 2022 reorganisation. The bonds were issued in two tranches: $400 mln in five-year bonds and $300 mln in 10-year bonds. Posco plans to use the proceeds to develop its energy materials business.

Pacific plea on NDCs – Pacific Island nations have written to developed country governments, urging them to submit ambitious NDCs and make the steep GHG cuts needed to stay within the 1.5C global warming limit, according to the Guardian. The third NDCs, covering the period out to 2035, were meant to be submitted to the UNFCCC by February, but many missed the deadline, forcing the climate secretariat to extend it to September. The letter added that governments should be prepared to strengthen their NDCs again, should they be found lacking at the UN climate talks in Brazil later this year. They should also detail how governments will make good on a previous COP decision to phase out fossil fuels, the newspaper reported. As of Apr. 28, 19 countries had submitted their plans, according to Carbon Pulse’s NDC Portal.

Weakening prices in the Australian and New Zealand carbon markets in the first quarter led to a near-8% fall in the value of an Antipodean carbon fund.

Clean shipment – Swire Shipping has swapped three of its ships in the South Pacific region to biofuels, the firm said in a press release. The biofuel programme – in conjunction with sister firm Argent Energy and BP – will see the ships bunkered with B24 in Singapore in Q2 then transition to B30. Meanwhile, Swire said it will also be launching a platform for customers to offset their Scope 3 emissions, called Voyage to Zero. Those which opt to use the platform will receive certificates of independently verified emissions savings, the firm said. The announcement follows a historic deal at the IMO earlier this month to tax emissions from the shipping sector from 2028.

NZU prices fell by around 5% on Monday as experts raised concerns about the Climate Change Commission’s advice on emissions trading scheme settings.