Swedish investment company Crown Energy has expanded its backing of Kaya Climate Solutions, an Angola-based developer of nature-based carbon projects, as part of its strategic pivot away from fossil fuels and into sustainable markets, the company said in its 2024 annual report.

No demand - Ryanair has quietly discontinued its passenger carbon offsetting scheme and carbon calculator, citing low uptake, The Irish Times reports. The airline had allowed passengers to pay a small fee to fund environmental projects, but participation never exceeded 3%. The initiative raised over €3.5 mln by 2022 and supported projects including Renature Monchique – a reforestation project in the Algarve; the distribution of energy-efficient cookstoves in Uganda by First Climate; Balikesir’s Wind Power Plant Project in Turkey, and Improved Kitchen Regimes in Malawi powered by CO2 Balance (the latter two in partnership with Shell). Despite promoting itself as Europe’s "greenest airline", Ryanair faced criticism and regulatory pushback over misleading sustainability claims. Advertising authorities in the UK and Netherlands previously ruled that the airline’s green marketing was deceptive, particularly the suggestion that carbon offsetting made flying sustainable. Following these rulings, Ryanair modified its website to clarify that CO2 compensation does not negate the environmental impact of flying, and removed icons such as green leaves.

The West African Development Bank (BOAD) is planning to launch a carbon market place during COP30 in Belem later this year, with an aim to consolidate and channel funding for carbon market development in the West African region, a bank official announced Friday.

Qatar-based Global Carbon Council (GCC) will in July launch an interoperable and integrated carbon market and national registry infrastructure to speed up the implementation of Article 6.2 under the Paris Agreement, its chief operations officer told Carbon Pulse on Friday.

Carbon Pulse has made a string of new hires across Europe and Latin America that will add to its already industry-leading coverage of carbon and nature markets across the regions, as well as bolster its data journalism offering.

Dutch carbon project developer DGB Group reported a wider annual loss for 2024 and received a disclaimer of opinion from its auditor, raising concerns about financial governance even as the company marks progress in project validation and revenue generation.

Back to Baku - Azerbaijan and the World Bank have explored potential collaboration on carbon pricing, as part of efforts to support the country’s transition to a green economy. At a meeting hosted by Azerbaijan’s State Tax Service, discussions focused on the World Bank’s Partnership for Market Readiness and how carbon pricing mechanisms could align with national reforms aimed at boosting energy efficiency and economic diversification. Deputy Tax Chief Samira Musayeva highlighted Azerbaijan’s ongoing tax incentives for green initiatives, emphasising that carbon pricing requires fair, well-researched implementation. World Bank senior climate change specialist Yasemin Orucu recommended that Azerbaijan, if it proceeds, consider launching an upstream carbon tax on fuel imports via the existing excise duty system. This could initially cover around 60% of emissions and evolve into a broader emissions trading system, with revenues used to support low-income households. The discussions took place during a two-day workshop co-hosted by the government and the World Bank. The event introduced global best practices in carbon pricing and examined how mechanisms such as the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) may impact Azerbaijan. The second day focused on international carbon markets, presenting a readiness assessment for Azerbaijan’s participation in Article 6 frameworks of the Paris Agreement. The World Bank presented tools such as the Mitigation Action Assessment Protocol and a roadmap to navigate carbon markets.

A climate non-profit focused on decarbonising cookstoves is partnering with eight project developers to test-run a tool designed to ensure integrity in cookstove credits.

Kenya could access $5-8 billion in carbon credit revenues under Article 6 and the UN’s CORSIA aviation offsetting scheme – but only if the government makes strategic public policy choices, according to the head of Kenya’s carbon industry grouping.

European carbon prices ended a seven-week run of weekly gains as the threat of a renewed trade dispute between the US and China led to an afternoon sell-off across commodity and financial markets, after carbon prices had advanced in the first half of the day and looked poised to record yet another weekly advance.

Fifteen months of the Israel-led military conflict in Gaza have led to projected emissions greater than the annual emissions of dozens of countries, a study has shown, adding to concerns that global conflicts threaten climate targets as well as lives.

Dirty money - Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in Feb. 2022, the country has made more than three times as much money from exporting fossil fuels than Ukraine has received in aid from allies, according to data analysed by the BBC. Oil and gas account for almost a third of Russia's state revenue and over 60% of its exports. Following the invasion, the US and UK banned Russian oil and gas, while the EU banned Russian seaborne crude imports, but not gas. Yet by May 29, Russia had made more than €883 bln in revenue from fossil fuel exports since Feb. 2022, including €228 bln from the sanctioning countries, according to the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air. The majority of which (€209 bln), came from EU member states. Some experts say sanctions imposed on trade in Russian hydrocarbons should be better enforced - particularly the oil price cap adopted by the G7.

Liberia plans to pass its climate change law by the end of this year, which will have provisions for the country’s carbon market, an official told a conference Friday.

Two UN bodies and an Africa-focused trust fund announced Thursday the launch of a $15 million investment initiative aimed at tackling deforestation in the Congo Basin.

Verra is looking for more carbon projects to pilot the open-source digital platform it recently launched at a mangrove project in Senegal, as part of the standard body’s effort to shift from analog to digital, according to a company executive. 

Big buyers - Germany’s DAX-listed companies are expected to spend hundreds of millions of euros in the coming years to improve their climate records by buying carbon credits, Der Spiegel reports. Between 2025 and 2030, the 40 firms are forecast to purchase certificates covering nearly 33 Mt of CO2, according to Berlin-based trading platform Goodcarbon, which analysed recent corporate sustainability reports. Of the companies surveyed, 28 reported voluntary offsetting, with estimated total costs reaching €500 mln by 2030. However, the effectiveness of these offsets is limited. In 2024 alone, DAX companies emitted 173 Mt of CO2 - more than 15 times the volume they plan to offset. The Goodcarbon study only includes voluntary credits and does not account for mandatory EU ETS purchases by power producers and energy-intensive industries. The quality of offsets also varies. Purchases of more expensive removal credits were found to be less common compared to cheaper, more widespread offsets focussed on protecting existing forests or investing in renewable energy. Volkswagen was the largest buyer in 2024, offsetting 6.7 Mt of CO2 from its electric vehicle supply chain, production, and logistics - though this voluntary programme is set to end this year. DHL offset 1.1 Mt to offer climate-neutral shipping, while utility E.On bought credits for 0.7 Mt to market "green" gas contracts. Despite these efforts, DAX companies still rely heavily on fossil fuels, Der Spiegel reported. In 2024, they met 84% of their energy needs from non-renewable sources, according to EY.

European cement maker Holcim announced Friday it has broken ground on a facility in Greece that will integrate carbon capture technologies to produce 2 million tonnes of "near-zero" cement annually from 2029.

The UN Global Compact (UNGC) has released a guide to mobilise and scale finance to support the transition towards a sustainable ocean economy, projected to reach $5.5 trillion by 2050.

A UK-based registry has launched a standard for nature-based solutions that integrates offsetting, insetting and nature stewardship.

Concerns about the shrinking value of the voluntary carbon market (VCM) have been brushed aside by participants who paint a bright future for their market.

Property rights are not sufficiently considered in biodiversity finance governance, despite determining who controls and benefits from these funds, a group of researchers said this week.

Saltmarsh sequestration - UK saltmarshes are critical carbon sinks that absorb more CO2 in summer than they release in winter, according to a new study by WWF working with the UK's Centre for Ecology and Hydrology. The researchers installed solar-powered GHG monitoring stations on Hesketh Out Marsh, a saltmarsh in Northwest England restored and managed by the RSPB. The findings highlight the importance of saltmarshes in tackling climate change, and call for them to be added to the official UK inventory of how much carbon is emitted and how much removed from the atmosphere each year. It's hoped doing so could provide more of an incentive to restore and protect these sites such as through a UK Saltmarsh Carbon Code. The UK has lost about 85% of its saltmarshes since 1860 largely due to agriculture. (BBC)

Double trouble - British competitors to the global commodities trader Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) have suggested the company is using a loophole in UK regulations to claim a double subsidy on the production of low-carbon biofuels. In submissions to the UK government, ADM's competitors say the company falsely claimed that a biofuel it sold in the UK was made from a waste product. These rivals said that the byproduct, unrefined liquid dextrose ultrafiltration retentate, should not be classified as waste as it has several well-established uses. Experts calculated that the UK double credit may have allowed ADM to generate up to £100 mln in revenue in 2024. (FT)  

Watering down - Weakening of the UK's zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) mandate announced last month could result in fewer electric cars on the country's roads and higher carbon emissions, according to the Climate Change Committee. The official climate adviser said the flexibilities could lead to more plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) being sold at the expense of some EV sales, and also critiqued the government for failing to ban petrol and diesel van sales by 2030, instead opting for 2035. Transport & Environment also said the changes could mean an extra 500,000 PHEVs on UK roads by 2030, which would jeopardise the government's climate goals and increase costs for drivers. The ZEV mandate is intended to force automakers to sell more electric cars each year, or face steep fines, but has been watered down due to industry lobbying that touted its economic unsustainability. (the Guardian)

No brainer - A new study from University College London’s (UCL) Energy Institute suggests that dual-fuel ammonia propulsion could offer the most cost-effective compliance pathway for shipowners under the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) forthcoming carbon pricing structure - provided safety concerns are resolved. UCL’s modelling of the IMO’s complex carbon pricing system, agreed in principle at MEPC 83, found that while LNG-fuelled ships may be more economical in the short term, dual-fuel ammonia vessels will become the least-cost option by the mid-2030s. This shift occurs as the IMO’s emissions intensity standards tighten, increasing compliance costs for fossil-based fuels like LNG. The study's authors called dual-fuel ammonia a “no brainer” choice, citing its ability to generate valuable surplus emissions units - credits earned by exceeding IMO standards - which can be sold to offset fuel costs. Blue ammonia, produced from natural gas with carbon capture, was identified as the only fuel with abatement costs lower than initial penalty prices and capable of generating significant surplus units into the mid-2030s. Ammonia propulsion also offers operators greater flexibility, as dual-fuel ships can run on a range of fuels, including fossil fuels, biofuels, blue ammonia and e-ammonia, allowing owners to adapt to fluctuating energy prices. Conversely, UCL warned that LNG's high emissions intensity limits its long-term viability under the IMO’s rules, unless costly onboard carbon capture is installed. The report cautioned that LNG bunkering infrastructure may become a stranded asset if ammonia gains traction. (Maritime Executive)

RJ Reynolds Vapor Company and its parent British American Tobacco (BAT) are facing a proposed class action lawsuit in California alleging they misled consumers by falsely claiming that their Vuse vape products are carbon neutral by using offsets tied to questionable forestry projects.