As nations in the Global South analyse pathways to decarbonise the agriculture sector, they will increasingly turn to enhanced rock weathering (ERW) and biochar-based carbon removal projects from 2030, according to recent research.

Global renewable energy capacity targets for 2030 have increased by only 2% since countries agreed at COP28 to triple deployment by the end of the decade, according to a report released Thursday.

Cooperation between countries on fossil fuel levies could raise tens of billion of dollars per year in finance to cut emissions in developing countries, or hundreds of billions if prices are also imposed on international aviation and shipping, according to research released on Wednesday.

H2-to-go - German technology conglomerate Siemens has signed a memorandum of understanding with English green hydrogen company Paragon Resources to scale green hydrogen production for industrial decarbonisation, the duo announced Wednesday. Paragon Resources has pioneered a hydrogen production method that doesn't require fossil fuels and external electricity sources, it said.

European carbon prices consolidated the sizeable gains made on Tuesday, failing to match gains for gas as EUAs spent much of the day moving sideways before settling marginally down.

The Democratic Republic of Congo's new land-use planning law marks an important step in ensuring fair and effective governance of natural resources – but planned oil developments pose a big threat to one of the world's biggest carbon sinks, environmentalists have warned.

The urgent need to reduce emissions is enough to justify releasing government debt brakes, an influential climate policy institute said in a report published on Wednesday.

Not so budget-proof - Germany's draft budget for 2026 has been critiqued by environmental non-profits for doing little to support the shift to a greener economy, particularly in housing and transport. Instead of financing new roads, more money should be directed to public transport, said Friends of the Earth Germany. While WWF lamented that support for energy-efficient building modernisation is cut to €12 bln, down from €17 bln earmarked in 2024. Yet local utility association VKU said a top-up of funds for more efficient heating grids marked a step in the right direction. The budget still needs to be adopted by parliament and Germany’s states - expected at the end of the year. (Clean Energy Wire)

Global power demand is forecast to rise much faster this year and next than over the past decade, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Wednesday, but power sector emissions should dip next year as low-emissions sources displace fossil fuels.

The ability of EU forests to absorb carbon is rapidly decreasing due to growing harvest rates and extreme weather events, jeopardising the bloc’s climate goals, according to a paper released on Wednesday.

Green reporting for SMEs – The European Commission on Wednesday published a recommendation for voluntary sustainability reporting by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), aiming to help these firms communicate their environmental and social impacts in a simplified way. The recommendation aims to make it easier for SMEs that are not covered by the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) to respond to specific requests for sustainability information coming from large financial institutions and companies. It comes as EU institutions are currently examining changes to the CSRD that would introduce a “value chain cap” to protect companies with fewer than 1,000 employees from excessive information requests coming from their clients.

The European steel industry is calling for a fundamental rethink of the EU’s 2040 climate policy framework, warning that current plans risk “deindustrialisation” unless reforms are made to support the industry’s decarbonisation efforts, and provide stronger protection from global competition.

The EU's political commitment on Sunday to purchase $750 billion of US energy products in the next three years risks derailing the bloc’s decarbonisation efforts, according to researchers who called the EU-US trade deal a 'high-risk' one.

CCS for shipping - Carbon Ridge has deployed its centrifugal onboard carbon capture system (OCCS) aboard a product tanker owned by Scorpio Tankers. The pilot marks the first deployment of such a system in maritime, stated the release on Wednesday. The pilot started in July at Besiktas Shipyard in Turkey aboard the STI SPIGA, owned by the petroleum seaborne transport company. Carbon Ridge also completed an additional financing led by Katapult Ocean and Alfa8, bringing its total funding to over $20 mln.

A carbon capture technology company currently operating in 12 countries is betting that its compact modular units can be the “solar panels” of industrial decarbonisation – cheap, scalable, and easy to replicate – but its global progress hinges on clear policy signals and access to financing.

Pastoral protests - Communities Kenya's Kajiado County are calling for a formal investigation into carbon credit agreements negotiated over their ancestral lands, the Daily Nation reported. Thirteen individuals from Ewuaso Oonkidong’i Ward stated that local brokers have pushed opaque and potentially exploitative 40-year contracts for rangelands covering 2.4 mln ha in the county, without mandatory free, prior, and informed consent (FPIC) from the pastoral communities. They argued these deals amount to flawed, market-driven arrangements that disproportionately benefit intermediaries at the expense of local residents. This is not the first time Kajiado has pushed back against carbon deals. The county saw a similar protest back in April over a 68,000 ha activity.

A Delaware-based holding company said Wednesday it will co-develop a large-scale afforestation carbon credit project in Ghana and launch a regulated exchange in Asia to trade tokenised carbon units.

How to sail low-carbon - The International Bunker Industry Association (IBIA) has joined a consortium that has been awarded UK government funding through the country's Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition, it announced last week. The project aims to strengthen the skills the workforce on ships, at ports, and across the fuel supply chain to adopt low- and zero-carbon fuels. The group includes the University of Plymouth, ferry operator DFDS, information hub Ship.energy, and the British Ports Association.

Sunlight reflection methods such as stratospheric aerosol injection (SAI) could theoretically have a global cooling impact and reduce extreme heat, but may also have adverse effects such as altering rainfall patterns, and would require ongoing political momentum to be effective, say experts.

A Dutch start-up certifier has secured conditional endorsement for its carbon insetting certifications, from a trade group that promotes best practices for voluntary carbon offsetting, the company announced on Wednesday.

The European Central Bank (ECB) on Tuesday announced the introduction of a climate-related risk factor into its collateral framework, in a move expected to impact eurozone lending and accelerate the shift to a low-carbon economy.

EU renewables project list – The European Commission on Tuesday adopted an updated list of cross-border renewable energy projects eligible to receive EU funding under the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF). Projects included in the list have a special status that gives them more visibility and also makes them eligible to apply for grants for studies or construction under the CEF. The list includes 13 projects, including offshore wind (Estonia and Latvia), green hydrogen (Germany, Spain and the Netherlands), district heating (Germany and Poland), and the Medlink project (Italy, Algeria, and Tunisia).

The world needs to drastically reverse its huge expansion of coal mines if it is to reach net zero and keep warming at or below 1.5C, given the upstream methane bomb these mines represent, a think tank warned this week.

Mari-time to capture carbon – CCS developer Carbon Ridge successfully deployed a centrifugal onboard carbon capture system aboard a tanker, a shipping industry first, the company said on Tuesday. The pilot commenced in July at Besiktas Shipyard in Turkiye, in partnership with Monaco-headquartered Scorpio Tankers. Carbon Ridge also completed additional financing to bring the company’s total funding to over $20 mln.