California power sector CO2 emissions continued to drop in March, albeit at a slower rate amid an increase in electricity use, state data showed.

Exxon knows - ExxonMobil remains committed to its low-carbon solutions, CEO Darren Woods said on an earnings call Friday. The oil and gas giant expects to generate $1 bln in earnings by 2030 from its investments in the division, the majority of which is attributed to CCS. Exxon CFO Kathryn Mikells said that low-carbon solutions constituted 10% of the company's total capital expenditures from 2024 through to 2030, totalling roughly $30 bln. Mikells said that CCS is overall progressing well and the company will soon be bringing on its first customer. She pointed to Exxon’s possession of permanent storage and continued drilling of wells and monitoring measures to be put in place as evidence of progress. Last week, competitor BP reported a plunge in profits following its pivot back to fossil fuels.

The monetary benefits of a new conservation bond are considered secondary to the relationship connecting investors to the land, said a financial conservation expert in an interview with Carbon Pulse.

Lawmakers in Maine this month introduced legislation to update the state’s renewable electricity sales targets, in part by enabling a new category for clean resources to fulfil a portion of the supply.

Crude costs - A coalition of environmental groups, youth advocates, and community leaders urged Maine lawmakers on Monday to pass LD 1870, a bill that would establish a state-level climate superfund requiring oil and gas companies to pay for climate-related damages in the state. The bill would use payments from major GHG emitters to fund local adaptation and preparedness efforts. Similar legislation has recently passed in Vermont and New York, but have increasingly faced legal challenges.

New hire - Noah McQueen has joined Carbon180, a US-based climate NGO focused on carbon removal policy and research, as Director of Science and Innovation. McQueen is a climate scientist, systems strategist, and the cofounder of Heirloom, where they helped scale one of the world’s first direct air capture technologies.

The EU's Climate Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra suggested on Monday that the bloc's 90% emissions reduction goal for 2040 could include "flexibilities" to secure political support, while maintaining scientific credibility.

Extradition granted - A British court has agreed to extradite Amit Forlit, an Israeli citizen US prosecutors are investigating for hacking environmentalists who support climate change, E&E News reported. The outlet said Forlit’s attorneys publicly linked ExxonMobil and the lobbying firm DCI Group to a hacking campaign to steal information from environmental activists who helped US states and cities sue energy companies for contributing to climate change.  

Fleet-focused future - ZM Trucks, the North American arm of zero-emission vehicle manufacturer ZO Motors, has partnered with US-based fleet consultancy The Merlin Group to accelerate the transition of large, multi-state commercial fleets from internal combustion engine vehicles to battery electric alternatives. The collaboration aims to support ZM Trucks’ strategy to offer end-to-end vehicle solutions, including factory upfitting, digital fleet management, incentive guidance, charging infrastructure, and financing.

Swish Art.6 deal for Jordan – The Jordanian government has launched its Designing Article 6 Policy Approaches project, in collaboration with the Global Green Growth Institute. The project, funded by Norway as part of its Norwegian Global Emission Reduction Initiative, will support the Ministry of Environment to develop a policy to attract private sector investment into projects which can generate emission reductions that can be traded under Article 6, the GGGI said in a press release. The Seoul-based intergovernmental organisation is supporting the design of a policy-level crediting scheme as well as negotiations between the two governments, through the Norwegian Article 6 Climate Action Fund. Last year, Jordan’s voluntary carbon market plans stalled while awaiting greater clarity on Article 6.

Global steel giant ArcelorMittal has only spent 2.5% of the billions of dollars it has generated between 2021 and 2024 on decarbonisation, instead prioritising shareholder payouts, an NGO said in a report on Tuesday.

A series of developments across Latin America and the Caribbean over the past two weeks signalled fresh momentum for carbon finance and market mechanisms as governments, standards bodies, and the private sector moved forward on a range of initiatives.

Two US islands appear to be taking different approaches to weathering the US Department of Justice’s anti-climate lawsuit campaign.

Where does the money go? – Representatives from California agencies will hold a media briefing at 1200 EST (1600 GMT) on May 7 on the state’s Climate Investments Report, which details investments supported by the cap-and-trade programme. The report said revenue from the scheme supported 12,000 new projects using $1.9 bln in funding in 2024. The programme has also delivered $15 bln in rebates to utility customers, it added. The report emerges as ARB navigates multiple challenges surrounding the ETS, including concerns about its cost impacts, delays to updates, and attacks from the Trump administration, while state lawmakers look to reauthorise the scheme beyond 2030.

A coalition of 24 US state attorneys, led by West Virginia, filed a lawsuit on Thursday seeking to block Vermont’s newly enacted Climate Superfund Act, arguing that the law imposed unconstitutional and retroactive penalties on out-of-state energy producers.

Heads up - On May 28 at 1800 CET, the European Commission will publish the total number of allowances in circulation (TNAC) on the EU ETS in 2024. The annual publication of the TNAC plays an important role in the functioning of the Market Stability Reserve (MSR), and determines whether allowances are withdrawn from the auction volume and placed in the reserve, or released and auctioned.

What's up docs? - Russia has published new documents relating to crediting standards for projects in the country. Following work in 2024 by a technical body, six new documents relating to the national standardisation system regarding the implementation of climate projects were released on the Russian registry's website. Through expert work, national standards establishing methods for the quantitative determination of greenhouse gas emissions and absorption, including calculation and instrumental methods for the quantitative determination of greenhouse gas emissions and absorption, have been developed and approved for the first time at the national level, the registry stated Monday.

The European Commission has firmly restated its commitment to a 2027 launch of the EU ETS2, underlining that the “legislation is already adopted and in force” and that no revision of its provisions is foreseen before 2028.

Seagrass conservation projects offer the highest carbon credit potential among four methods studied, with a 100-hectare site projected to earn up to $1.53 million over 10 years, according to a new report.

Voluntary carbon prices were little changed little last week, despite the official launch of the VCMI’s new Scope 3 action code that highlighted a market caught in limbo by the ongoing lack of Core Carbon Principles (CCPs)-stamped credits.

Protocol revision - California-based registry Climate Action Reserve (CAR) is seeking feedback on a draft update to its US Nitric Acid Production Protocol. Version 3.0 proposes expanded eligibility for combined secondary and tertiary catalyst projects, as well as added safeguards. Comments are due by May 29, with a public webinar set for May 13.

Verra now has its sights set on approval of more of its methodologies by the Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market (ICVCM), as well as scaling supply eligible for the UN's CORSIA international aviation offsetting scheme, an executive told Carbon Pulse.

Combining biodiversity and carbon credits systems is urgently needed to incentivise funding in underwater ecosystems such as corals, according to a recent academic report.

See ya - Erin Leonard, global head of sustainability at HSBC Asset Management, is set to leave the firm, ESG Today reports. Her departure is the latest in a series of leadership changes affecting HSBC’s sustainability team after Group CSO Celine Herweijer exited the company after the role was removed from the bank's executive committee last November. The move follows an ongoing restructuring under new CEO George Elhedery. The firm has also recently launched an infrastructure finance unit focused on low-carbon transition.

No surprises - A leaked UN document reveals that the US under President Donald Trump's administration is actively working to weaken global development finance efforts aimed at assisting developing countries in addressing challenges such as climate change, Reuters reports. The document, prepared ahead of the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development (FFD4) scheduled for June in Seville, Spain, indicates that the Washington opposes proposed reforms related to international taxation, fossil fuel subsidy reductions, and changes to credit-rating systems intended to benefit poorer nations.

Port of call - The Port of Rotterdam has launched a new €3.5 mln funding initiative, Carbonid, to support projects that reduce GHG emissions in areas of the port not covered by the EU ETS, reports Seatrade Maritime News. A minimum of five projects will each receive up to €700,000, aiming to fast-track the adoption of sustainable solutions with an emphasis on cost-effectiveness. Eligible applicants include start-ups, service providers, and manufacturers of machinery and equipment, both within the port and from outside.

A recent study has found that neither farmland expansion nor intensive agricultural practices aimed at increasing yields are beneficial for biodiversity, though one approach is less damaging than the other.

A Norwegian carbon capture and storage (CCS) developer has been selected to receive up to NOK 23.8 million (€2 mln) in government funding for two feasibility-stage projects.

Centre-right and far-right groups in the European Parliament are reportedly pushing to weaken the EU's Habitats directive, with a plenary scheduled for this week seen as critical for the future of wildlife protection across the bloc.

Zimbabwe has published new carbon trading regulations in a bid to attract fresh investment and align with Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, launching a new registry, clarifying mandatory project fees and revenue sharing provisions, and raising the bar for clean cooking activities permitted in the country.

The centre-left's pick as the new German climate minister will head up a fortified environment ministry that takes back responsibility for national and international climate policy from the energy and economic affairs, and foreign departments.

European carbon prices corrected back on Monday as they snapped last week's three-session rally, as strong renewable generation and a return to more normal levels of auction supply weighed on the market.

Helping hand - Indonesia and Norway over the weekend signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) for strengthening climate diplomacy and promoting biodiversity conservation, the Indonesia Business Post reported. The nations will work together on areas including climate change mitigation and adaptation, peatland and mangrove ecosystem preservation, waste management, and the promotion of a circular economy. Since 2022, Norway has backed Indonesia’s efforts to reduce emissions from the forestry and land-use sector (FOLU), and has pledged $216 mln in support. Norway has also helped the Southeast Asian nation developed a carbon trading system to help achieve its NDC.

The Paris-headquartered Organization for Biodiversity Certificates (OBC) on Monday announced the launch of a pilot biodiversity credit framework in France, aiming to back the market uptake across the country.

South Korea's trade ministry has decided to support a low-carbon naphtha cracking project in South Jeolla province, as part of the country's broader effort to decarbonise the domestic petrochemicals industry.

Out of gas - The EU plans to introduce measures aimed at banning Russian gas imports by the end of 2027, Bloomberg reports. To advance its strategy to reduce reliance on Russian gas, the EU intends to propose a ban in June on all imports tied to new agreements with Russia, as well as existing spot contracts. These measures — which target spot contracts that make up roughly a third of current imports — are expected to take effect no later than the end of 2025.

Australian Carbon Credit Unit (ACCU) prices climbed on Monday in reaction to the Labor party's weekend election win, as the market looks to what the final make-up of the Senate will mean for future climate legislation.

New fund - The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the government of Japan have launched a new multi-donor trust fund to help developing countries in Asia and the Pacific strengthen private sector development, the multilateral development bank announced over the weekend. The fund aims to attract private sector participation in a wide range of development areas, such as infrastructure and clean energy. Japan is the founding contributor, with an initial commitment of $20 mln, according to the statement.    

The World Economic Forum (WEF) has collaborated with GenZero, a subsidiary of Singapore government-owned investment firm Temasek, to scale demand for sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) with an aim to decarbonise the sector in the Asia Pacific region, they announced Monday.

It is Friday, June 14, 2019 and I am in the Vatican waiting for the Pope to make his entrance.

Southeast Asia could emerge as a beneficiary of global climate capital amid ongoing policy volatility in the US and Europe, panellists told a conference Monday, citing the region’s growing role in nature-based and technology-led carbon solutions.

A leading Australian power generator and retailer has confirmed it has disbanded its nature-based projects team to focus on developing renewable energy instead.

Singapore’s Economic Development Board (EDB) on Monday awarded grants to two project developers and a non-profit as part of an expanded push to catalyse early-stage Article 6 projects in the region.