Most OECD pension fund assets are now covered by some form of climate target, but the ambition and design of those commitments remain insufficient to drive real-economy decarbonisation, according to a new report.

Unclear government policy signals are creating ambiguity over how voluntary carbon credits should align with national climate strategies, particularly as countries roll out economy-wide decarbonisation measures and carbon pricing, a report released this week said.

Oil and gas companies in the UK, Canada, and Australia are failing to give investors full information about their obligations to decommission fossil fuel related infrastructure, and timelines for doing so, according to new analysis.

Pakistan is looking to carbon credits under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement as a potential way to improve the commercial viability of clean transport and energy projects, particularly where financing gaps remain, the country’s minister for climate change said Wednesday.

A new academic study has highlighted how carbon pricing mechanisms, particularly cap-and-trade systems, can materially alter how industrial manufacturers plan their inventory orders, suggesting that emissions costs could increasingly influence basic operational decisions.

Japan's Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL) has picked a carbon removals registry to issue credits in line with the shipping company's goal for net zero emissions by 2050, it announced on Wednesday. 

A voluntary carbon standard has issued its first methane reduction credits from rice cultivation practices, a sector embroiled in an over-issuance scandal over the past few years.

China should consider leveraging existing natural gas supply chains to develop a transnational carbon capture, utilisation, and storage (CCUS) cluster, given its domestic storage constraints, a new study has argued.

Global coal demand edged up to a record 8.845 billion tonnes this year, but the market has plateaued and should tick lower by 2030, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).

The New Zealand government on Wednesday released a document outlining how it plans to regulate businesses conducting carbon capture and storage (CCS) in natural geological formations, and how they could be rewarded through the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS), with the aim of introducing legislation in the new year.

Approved - Rio Tinto has received approval from the Gladstone regional council to build its 1.1 GW Upper Calliope solar project, developed by European Energy, that will go towards powering its smelting and refinery operations and closing its Gladstone coal-fired power station by 2029, Renew Economy reported. The 8,000 ha solar development now has both development and federal environmental approvals, and will likely be Australia's largest solar project for some time. The project is one of the several that will power Rio Tinto's Boyne smelter, and the Yarwun and Queensland alumina refineries, all facilities covered under the Safeguard Mechanism.

Recycled credits - RecyGlo and Wongpanit have partnered with ERTH Ventures to develop Thailand’s first integrated measurement, reporting, and verification (MRV) system that links waste-collection data directly to digital carbon credit issuance at a national scale. Under the agreement, RecyGlo’s digital recycling data and Wongpanit’s waste-management operations will be combined with ERTH Ventures’ AI-based MRV and blockchain-based verification technology to create a transparent and end-to-end system for tracking emissions reductions from recycling. The initiative is designed to support credible carbon credit generation while strengthening Thailand’s circular economy and climate infrastructure.

Food waste credits - Indonesia is exploring ways to monetise food waste from its Free Nutritious Meal programme as carbon credits, with the National Nutrition Agency (BGN) seeking to integrate reductions in methane emissions from food waste into voluntary carbon trading markets, Antara News reported. Officials said the aim is to structure measurement, reporting, and verification so that greenhouse gas cuts achieved through managed food waste processing could generate tradable carbon credits and create economic value for communities involved in waste handling and related activities such as feeding maggots and composting.

A set of Cabinet papers released on Wednesday provide more details to proposed oversight changes for the New Zealand ETS, including the introduction of new penalties.

The New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) is broken at present and is in need of a significant review to ensure it cuts down gross emissions, Labour's climate spokesperson told Carbon Pulse Wednesday.

Officials from Singapore, Switzerland, and Brazil signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) last week to accelerate climate action using the Article 6 of the Paris Agreement framework.

Coastal cash splash – The Asian Development Bank has approved a grant of $16.7 mln for initiatives in Fiji to protect coastal communities, it said in a Wednesday press release. The Enhancing Climate Resilience of Coastal Communities Sector Project will benefit around 15 communities, the bank said, through the provision of nature-based coastal protection measures. It will also support revegetation and mangrove plantings to restore around 3,000 m of coastline and riverbanks, as well as strengthen institutional capacity to design, implement, and manage coastal protection measures.

Watch this space – The Pacific Islands Forum secretariat is working with members to finalise the details for the pre-COP31 leaders’ summit to be held in the region, Secretary General Baron Divavesi Waqa told journalists on Wednesday. More information and the finer details will be announced early in 2026, he added. Waqa noted that the region sees the COP31 arrangements as a chance to elevate its priorities, including the climate-ocean nexus, the just transition, and access to climate finance. A COP veteran told Carbon Pulse last month that Fiji has the space and facilities to host a pre-COP; the island nation is one of the front-runner’s for the summit, alongside Palau, which will host the 2026 PIF Leaders’ Meeting.