RGGI Allowance (RGA) futures jumped over 5.2% week-on-week (WoW) to reach year-to-date (YtD) highs following Democratic victories in statewide elections in Virginia and New Jersey.

Ready to ship – Calcarea, a climate tech startup founded by Caltech University, announced an ocean-based CDR collaboration on Monday with Dutch maritime engineering firm Aurelia Design BV. Calcarea’s limestone weathering technology uses seawater to safely store CO2, touting its technology as a nature-based, permanent solution. The companies will create a next-generation bulk carrier including Calcarea’s reactor and supporting systems.

Nothing corny about it – Multinational food processing company Archer-Daniels-Midland (ADM) announced on Monday the linking of its Nebraska bioethanol carbon capture facility with energy infrastructure company Tallgrass’ Eastern Wyoming Sequestration Hub. Tallgrass constructed a line connecting ADM’s corn processing facility to the Trailblazer pipeline system using voluntary easements from landowners. The Trailblazer pipeline can transport more than 10 mln tonnes of CO2 per year, running through Nebraska, Colorado, and Wyoming. The announcement marked the beginning of operations at the Columbus, Nebraska corn processing plant for CCS activities.

No RGGI renege – Environmentalists are urging Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) to remain firm on the state's participation in RGGI, according to a report by the Philly Voice. The outlet reported advocates said compromising RGGI participation to get the state's four-month stalled budget passed would be shortsighted and harmful. Republicans, who control the state Senate, have rejected Democratic budget proposals and oppose the programme.

In a report, published at COP30, marking 10 years of the Green Climate Fund, the organisation said that it has reduced 96 million tonnes of CO2 in its first decade.

A Canada-based carbon financier booked an $11.8 million unrealised gain in the third quarter of 2025, reflecting higher asset values tied to its flagship cookstove project.

Trumped-up energy - New York state environmental regulators have approved the Trump-backed Northeast Supply Enhancement (NESE) gas pipeline, reversing earlier rejections and marking the state’s largest fossil fuel expansion since its 2019 climate law. The Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) issued key water permits after talks between Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) and President Donald Trump revived the $2 bln project this spring. While Hochul defended the decision as balancing energy reliability with climate goals, environmental groups vowed legal action, condemning progress on the NESE pipeline as a capitulation to fossil fuel interests. The DEC acknowledged the pipeline conflicts with state emissions targets but said energy regulators deemed it necessary to ensure gas supply for New York City and Long Island. Business groups praised the move, citing reliability and affordability, while the pipeline’s developer said construction would soon begin following similar approvals in New Jersey.

Changing pace - ExxonMobil CEO Darren Woods said in an interview with the Financial Times Sunday that the oil giant will “pace” its spending on low-carbon projects due to low customer demand and failing government policies. Assumptions the company had made when it set a $30 bln budget last year for low emissions opportunities through 2030 had not been met. Woods said hydrogen and biofuels lacked demand, adding that decarbonisation policies aren’t working. The company will now pace that spending based on how quickly the market and policies evolve.

Global greenhouse gas emissions are finally showing signs of peaking, according to the latest update to the UNFCCC’s 2025 Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) synthesis report, but the pace of decline remains far too slow to meet the Paris Agreement’s 1.5C temperature goal.

US House Republicans are cheering the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) decision to resume publishing a policy scenario that projects slower adoption of clean technologies, arguing that the restart helps “restore the IEA’s credibility and impartiality", according to a letter.

The rapid expansion of AI servers across the US could generate up to 44 million tonnes of CO2 and 1.1 billion cubic metres of water use annually by 2030, jeopardising industry pledges to reach net zero, according to a new study published Monday.

Bad signal – A civil court in Brazil's capital Brasilia ordered radio network Rede de Radio Difusao Novidade Tecnica, which operates under the brand 18 Horas, to pay R$50,000 ($8,700) in moral damages and publish a public retraction for defaming carbon project developer Agfor. The ruling said a 2023 report falsely alleged that Agfor used public Amazon land for carbon credit sales, ignoring official documents that confirmed the company’s land titles. Agfor had sought BRL 1 mln in damages, but the court set a lower amount while finding the broadcaster negligent in verifying information, according to the Oct. 15 decision.

Public and private spending via Article 6 could count toward the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) on climate finance negotiated at last year’s COP29, so long as the benefits that ‘donor’ institutions receive are discounted from the total spend, according to researchers.

After two years of promoting its proposal to reward countries for conserving tropical forests, Brazil officially launched the Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF) last week with more than $5 billion already committed, although experts expressed mixed reactions to the announcement.

The Supervisory Body for the Article 6.4 mechanism submitted its fourth annual report to parties during COP30 on Monday, detailing progress made over the past twelve months toward operationalising the new UN carbon market under the Paris Agreement, though underlined it now faces a significant funding shortage.

Only six countries, as well as the EU, have reported any measurable reductions in methane emissions since a historic global pledge made at COP28 to tackle the high-polluting gas.

Eleven governments and more than 300 companies and civil society groups have endorsed the Principles for Responsible Timber Construction, a science-based framework guiding the sustainable use of timber.

Brazil and international partners have launched the Bioeconomy Challenge at COP30, marking the first time bioeconomy has been formally integrated into the COP Action Agenda as a pathway to achieve climate and development goals, the host country said.

Retirement levels for voluntary carbon credits were slim last week and overall levels remain lower than last year, sending mixed signals about the market outlook as the COP30 international climate summit gets underway in Brazil.

South America is failing to attract enough investment for an energy transition to renewables that could help to drive sustained progress, according to a report published on Monday.

A US-based carbon management company has acquired a climate technology provider, combining scientific advisory expertise with digital tools for forest carbon monitoring, the companies announced on Monday.

Finance flourish - Guyana expects to announce new forest carbon credit deals before the end of 2025 as it continues to promote nature-based climate solutions at COP30 in Belem, Brazil, President Irfaan Ali said on the sidelines of the conference. Speaking during the World Leaders Summit on Saturday, Ali urged negotiators not to sideline nature-based approaches in global climate policy. Ali said Guyana's carbon credit revenues for 2025 are expected to reach $200 mln, with at least 15% directed to Amerindian and Hinterland communities. He also endorsed Brazil’s Tropical Forests Forever Facility, a $125 bln fund paying nations to preserve forests, as complementary to Guyana’s co-chair role in the Forests and Climate Leaders Partnership.

First CRA trade - Brazil’s BVRio completed a symbolic first purchase of Forest Reserve Credits (CRA), marking the country’s first-ever transaction under the new market launched by the Brazilian Forest Service. The move signals the operational start of CRA trading, a mechanism created by the 2012 Forest Code to reward conservation and enable landowners to offset Legal Reserve deficits.

Forestry carbon initiatives should base risk planning on severe climate conditions rather than historical norms, as moderate scenarios are failing to capture the true scale of wildfire threats, according to new analysis by a London-based insurance firm.

As the UN climate conference opens in Belem, Brazil is stepping into the spotlight with an ambitious agenda built around forests, carbon markets, and energy transition — hoping to turn COP30 into the “COP of forests and implementation”.

Brazil and the UK have launched at COP30 in Belem an initiative to tackle global super pollutant emissions, with developing countries receiving an initial $25 million in support.

Brazil has managed to head off potential delays to negotiations at COP30 on Monday, even as concerns with climate change-related unilateral trade measures were put forward by parties in an early agenda text.

The Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) Executive Board approved key methodological updates and ruled on several accreditation and issuance matters during its 126th meeting in Belem, Brazil last week.

The international agreements needed to accelerate climate action are already in place – from speeding up clean energy, to mobilising more money, to boosting adaptation – so COP30 is where countries need to decide how they will fulfil their promises, the UN's climate chief said on Monday.

This year is set to be the second or third warmest year on record, extending an 11-year streak of exceptional global warming driven by record GHG concentrations in the atmosphere, according to the State of the Climate Update for COP30 published Nov. 6 by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).

It is Day 1 at COP30 in Belem. The mood is warm and the humidity is high following last week's leadership summit in Sao Paulo, as Monday marks the first official day of negotiations. In our daily running blog, Carbon Pulse will report relevant or useful updates throughout the day. Timestamps are in local time (GMT-3).

As COP opens in Brazil, Gold Standard is the first major independent carbon standard to fully align its methodologies with the Paris Agreement — a move that cements integrity, safeguards market confidence, and signals that credible climate action under the Paris framework is no longer optional but essential.

Inter IKEA Group has launched a new forest restoration and management initiative in Brazil in partnership with BTG Pactual Timberland Investment Group (TIG), marking the first deployment under its previously announced €100 million commitment to remove and store carbon.