Emitters added net length to their California Carbon Allowances (CCAs) and their RGGI Allowances (RGAs), diverging from financial players, who cut their net holdings across the two compliance carbon markets, the latest US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) showed.

A gem of a fix - Colorado's Air Quality Control Commission (AQCC) agreed during its latest meeting to hold a rulemaking hearing in July 2026 to consider revisions to Regulation 27, which sets GHG reduction targets for the state's 21 highest-emitting industrial and manufacturing facilities under its Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Energy Management for Manufacturing (GEMM) programme, according to a presentation from the regulatory body. Facilities covered under the programme had cut emissions 23.4% from 2015 levels as of 2024, the presentation showed, with the GEMM group projected to far exceed its 2030 group target. Proposed revisions would not change fundamental emissions reduction requirements but would improve trading programme transparency, clarify credit issuance rules for direct air capture (DAC) and carbon capture and storage (CCS), and require regulated sources to disclose key terms of future and long-term credit transfer contracts within 30 days of signing. According to the AQCC, the industrial and manufacturing sector is on-track to meet its 2030 goal of 20% GHG reduction vs. 2015 levels.

US clean energy and transportation investment ended 2025 marginally ahead of 2024, but a Q4 slowdown signals a tightening clean tech pipeline.

Pilot scrapped – US-based fertiliser producer CF Industries reported strong full-year 2025 results in its earnings release this week, Market Beat reports. The company discussed high operating rates, constructive global nitrogen market conditions, and continued shareholder returns. Executives addressed an extended outage at the Yazoo City complex ammonia production plant in Mississippi. Management said global nitrogen pricing has remained above levels implied by its indicative cost-curve framework. The company also halted its Donaldsonville electrolyser pilot, booking a $51 mln impairment charge due to its return profile.

Jet set, go - Montana Renewables and World Energy on announced a three-year  agreement to deliver more than 70 million gallons (265 mln litres) of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), which the companies said could cut as much as 600,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions. This agreement took place as Montana Renewables prepares to expand production capacity through its MaxSAF 150 project this spring, which seeks to increase its fuel output up to 150 mln gallons. World Energy, which describes itself as the world's first commercial-scale SAF producer, said it would use the supply to serve corporate clients seeking to decarbonise their aviation operations through carbon insets, a market that enables companies to acquire environmental attributes derived from SAF.

New sheriff, same grid - California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) named John Reynolds as the new president of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), the state regulator overseeing utilities and clean energy policy, as the body faces pressure to cut electricity bills while advancing the state's 2045 clean power target. Reynolds, a commissioner since 2022, replaces Alice Reynolds, who is set to step down in late February and move to the California Independent System Operator's (CAISO) board.

Kernel of truth - BASF launched a digital platform to help US ethanol producers verify the carbon intensity (CI) of their agricultural feedstocks and capture value under the Section 45Z clean fuel production tax credit, as biorefineries seek to document low-CI corn supplies ahead of federal implementation. The Circalo: Low Carbon Intensity Crops platform links farm-level data collected by agronomists through BASF's xarvio software to biorefinery procurement systems, enabling third-party verified feedstock reports that could qualify producers for low-CI premiums, the company said. The platform is operational for the 2026 growing season, with a look-back option covering 2025.

A US company working with farmers and landowners launched a third-party audited soil carbon certification programme, according to a Thursday announcement.

The US EPA announced on Friday the finalisation of its repeal of a Biden administration 2024 rule regulating hazardous air pollutant emissions from power plants.

A climate group has urged sweeping reforms to California's ETS, warning proposed updates fail to address flaws that sustain fossil fuel usage and defer decarbonisation.

The state of Colorado tightened methane rules for its oil and gas sector, bringing the state into alignment with federal standards.

Carbon calling - In its third year, the Productive Arrangements programme from the legislature of the Brazilian state of Espirito Santo is entering a new strategic phase focused on the carbon credit market, reported A Gazeta. The initiative will guide family farmers in structuring environmental projects capable of reducing GHG emissions, seeking to combine environmental preservation and income generation in rural areas. The new focus complements the already established actions for technical training and productive diversification, and runs parallel to the territorial expansion of the programme, which will cover 35 municipalities in the state starting this year.

Mangrove market valuation – Mangrove forests in Ecuador’s Churute Ecological Reserve stored an average roughly 1.7 mln tonnes of carbon between 2015-2021, equal to around 6.1 MtCO2e, according to a study published this week. Using satellite land-cover data and standard IPCC factors, the authors determined that carbon stocks were largely steady from 2015-19, while a sharp decline in 2020 was mainly linked to changes in mapping methods rather than actual forest loss. Based on carbon prices used in the analysis, the reserve’s notional annual market value ranged from $18-123 mln, with price swings driving most of the variation. The authors stressed the need for consistent high-resolution data to track real changes over time.

Canada's natural resources ministry will spend C$3 million ($2.2 mln) to forward net zero goals in Quebec.

The US Gulf Coast ranks as the most suitable region for large-scale deployment of electrochemical marine carbon removal (e-mCDR) systems, outperforming other coastal hubs on cost, infrastructure readiness, and overall suitability, according to a new peer-reviewed study.

RGGI relief – New Jersey will redirect unused but available RGGI revenues to subsidise electricity bills, shifting funds away from emissions reduction programmes as Governor Mikie Sherrill (D) moves to freeze utility rate. In a joint statement on Thursday, administration officials said RGGI auction revenue will be steered toward affordability measures. RGGI, the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic power sector cap-and-trade programme, has raised roughly $950 mln for the state to date, according to the statement.

Motion commotion – A US district court has scheduled a Mar. 30, 2026 hearing in two cases, including one brought by the Trump administration challenging actions by Vermont. The hearing will take place in Rutland before District Judge Mary Kay Lanthier and will consider multiple motions to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction and failure to state a claim, alongside motions and cross-motions for summary judgment in both proceedings. The Trump administration is seeking a ruling declaring Vermont’s Climate Superfund Act unconstitutional.

Balancing act - Rising carbon prices may signal stronger climate policy, but they also expose significant risks, the World Economic Forum wrote in a blog post published Friday. As prices have climbed - especially in Europe’s carbon market - financial investors such as hedge funds are increasingly trading emission permits as speculative assets rather than compliance tools. This “financialisation” could detach prices from real emissions reductions, turning carbon markets into volatile commodity markets similar to oil or food, the WEF said. Unpredictable price swings would weaken the credibility of the carbon signal that companies rely on for long-term investment decisions. Firms might delay clean-technology investments if they suspect prices reflect short-term trading rather than stable policy direction. Sudden spikes could also raise energy and industrial costs, provoking political backlash and pressure on governments to intervene or weaken climate measures. If trust in the market erodes, the effectiveness of carbon pricing as a decarbonisation tool diminishes. The article warns that without stronger oversight and complementary policies, rising carbon prices could undermine - rather than accelerate - the energy transition by creating instability instead of certainty, according to the post.

Climate-related disasters and high carbon emissions are increasingly pushing up sovereign borrowing costs, with fiscally fragile and developing countries facing the steepest penalties on their debt, according to new research by the European Central Bank (ECB).

Colorado's climate cowboy - US Senator Michael Bennet (D), running for Colorado governor, said his proposed an economy-wide cap-and-invest programme would look to link to trading schemes in other states or countries, including California or Canada. Bennet told the Steamboat Pilot & Today the plan would aim to accelerate progress toward net zero by 2050. He also criticised federal efforts to keep ageing coal plants open, saying Colorado should instead double down on clean energy.

Thanks Trump? - Sacramento lawmakers are discussing whether the Trump administration's rollback of the federal endangerment finding could give California the power to set its own vehicle tailpipe standards without federal approval, Politico reported. Assemblymember Cottie Petrie-Norris (D), chair of the Utilities and Energy Committee, said said the repeal could hand California greater latitude and direct responsibility over vehicle emissions rules. Transportation accounts for roughly half of California's carbon emissions, state officials estimate, making tailpipe standards a key lever for the state's cap-and-invest programme. Governor Gavin Newsom (D) has said California will sue to stop the rollback.