France is pushing to extend the EU ETS to 2050, according to government sources cited by French media.

A coalition representing the European hydrogen value chain has warned that the EU will miss its climate and industrial decarbonisation goals unless Brussels rapidly simplifies its rules, and backs both renewable and low‑carbon hydrogen.

Pipeline power play - The Trump administration has invoked emergency powers to help restart an offshore oil pipeline in California that has been offline since 2015, with Energy Secretary Chris Wright citing risks to US energy security linked to supply disruptions from the war in Iran and reliance on imported crude moving through the Strait of Hormuz, E&E News reported. The US DOE said more than 60% of the oil refined in California now comes from overseas and argued that restoring the pipeline would support domestic supply and ensure reliable energy for West Coast military installations. Wright’s order follows a Friday executive order from President Donald Trump delegating Defense Production Act authority to the energy secretary, giving him the power to direct domestic industry in the interest of national defence.

Revenue from the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) has not been used to its full extent to fund industrial decarbonisation, leaving room for greater support while keeping the market intact, the European Commission's clean transition chief said on Monday.

Saskatchewan fertiliser - Saskatchewan-based fertiliser company Upcycle Minerals has announced the completion of an exploratory drill programme on its Whiteshore Lake Alkali property in the province. The 50-hole programme was designed to assess sodium sulfate mineralisation and provide the basis for a compliant mineral resource estimate. Upcycle plans to use sodium sulfate from its property as a key input to its proprietary Brine to Potassium Sulfate (SOP) with carbon capture fertiliser production process.

Brazil climate strategy – Brazil officially launched its National Plan for Climate Change, the main instrument outlining how the country will tackle climate change until 2035 and achieve its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement. The document, released on Monday, was developed over three years with the involvement of 25 ministries. The update builds on the first, and so far only, version released in 2008. Additionally, Brazil published in the Official Gazette of the Union on Monday a resolution establishing a technical group within the Interministerial Committee on Climate Change (CIM) that will seek to consolidate a proposal for updating the National Policy on Climate Change (PNMC). The working group will be established for 180 days and be comprised of representatives from the ministries and advisory chambers that make up the CIM. It will also meet monthly, or on an extraordinary basis as called for by coordinators, including the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MMA).

RNG uncertainty – French tech developer Waga Energy said its technology could help unlock renewable natural gas (RNG) production at smaller US landfills, even as the sector faces policy and market uncertainty. The company told Waste360 that its modular WAGABOX units combine membrane filtration and cryogenic distillation to upgrade low-quality landfill gas into pipeline-grade RNG with methane content above 98%. While the approach could make projects viable at smaller sites with limited gas flows, the outlook for landfill-derived RNG remains uncertain amid expiring federal incentives and unresolved eligibility under California’s SB 1440 utility procurement programme.

Connecticut catalyst – Rep. John B. Larson (D) of Connecticut announced $350,000 in new federal funding on Friday to support Connecticut’s hydrogen and fuel cell manufacturing sector through an investment in industry support organisation CONNSTEP. The funds, secured in a bipartisan spending package passed earlier this year, will support the Connecticut Hydrogen Fuel Cell Consortium and local manufacturers, including Infinity Fuel Cell and Hydrogen, Inc. Officials said the investment aims to strengthen small and medium-sized manufacturers and expand the state’s role in hydrogen and fuel cell supply chains.

A new carbon removal (CDR) coalition securing major banks and the Canadian federal government as members shows the tide is turning for climate investment after much uncertainty, said the sector veteran heading up the group.

Place your bets - Online prediction markets such as Kalshi and Polymarket are expanding rapidly, enabling users to bet on a wide range of future events, including climate-related outcomes, geopolitical developments, and extreme weather risks. Climate-linked trading remains a relatively small but fast-growing segment, with hundreds of millions of dollars already wagered and volumes expected to increase significantly. The broader industry now handles around $10 bln in monthly bets and is attracting substantial investment, with leading platforms valued in the tens of billions of dollars. Supporters argue that these markets provide a useful mechanism for aggregating information, as participants are financially incentivised to assess evidence and price probabilities accurately. In this view, prediction markets can help cut through political bias and offer a real-time signal of expectations on complex issues such as climate policy, temperature trends, or regulatory change. They can also serve practical functions, such as allowing businesses to hedge risks linked to policy shifts like carbon pricing. Critics, however, contend that the platforms risk trivialising serious global challenges by turning them into speculative betting opportunities. Ethical concerns have emerged around markets that involve sensitive or harmful scenarios, including natural disasters, arrests, or ongoing conflicts. There are also worries about insider trading and manipulation, particularly where individuals could profit from non-public information or even influence outcomes. Regulatory scrutiny is intensifying, especially in the United States, where federal authorities claim jurisdiction while several states argue the platforms resemble unregulated gambling. The sector’s political connections have further raised questions about oversight. Despite these concerns, the industry is projected to grow substantially over the coming years, with new entrants entering the market and revenues potentially reaching $10 bln annually by 2030, even as debate continues over its societal value and risks. (E&E News)

The global impact investment arm of a major philanthropic network has invested in an agriculture-focused venture capital fund, it announced.

Farmers round – In Brazil, the state of Para has concluded another step in its ongoing free, prior, and informed consultations (FPICs) for its jurisdictional REDD+ (J-REDD+) programme. Last Wednesday, the state government held the first consultation with family farmers, bringing together producers from more than 35 municipalities around the capital, Belem. Six additional meetings are scheduled to take place.

A proxy battle and parallel legal disputes between project developer Zefiro Methane Corp. and its founder Talal Debs have intensified in recent months, with both sides issuing competing claims ahead of a shareholder vote expected later this month.

EU carbon prices dropped heavily late on Monday afternoon, wiping out earlier gains as the market reacted to a letter from the European Commission confirming that the market's supply regulation mechanism was to be reviewed as scheduled, but also "to address excessive price volatility and keep prices in check in the short term".

The administration of US President Donald Trump (R) said on Friday that the EPA’s recent rescission of its 2009 endangerment finding does not affect its challenge to a state climate superfund law, arguing the rule change is “irrelevant” to the case.

CORSIA carbon futures continued to slump as the supply of credits crept higher and the conflict in Iran pushed up jet fuel prices, leading to expectations of a possible downturn in demand from the aviation sector.

A US materials developer has signed a supply agreement to secure engineered biochar for use in carbon-sequestering asphalt products, in a move designed to enable carbon removal (CDR) credit generation.

The European Commission will propose increasing the “firepower” of the Market Stability Reserve (MSR) in a bid to ease EU ETS costs in the near term, and will factor in industry concerns as it finalises changes to free allowance allocation rules, President Ursula von der Leyen has told EU leaders in a letter ahead of this week’s summit.

SAF route - Norwegian Airlines has launched a new domestic route in Denmark, between Aalborg and Copenhagen, which will be Europe's first to use sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) on a permanent basis. A 40% blend will be used on all departures this year and next, with the fuel produced from European raw materials and made by Finnish energy company St1 at its biorefinery in Gothenburg, Sweden. The route has been created via a Danish govt tender where the state actively supports more SAF use. Emissions from the route are expected to be reduced by more than 3,000 tonnes of CO2 on a lifecycle basis. Norwegian is also battling in the courts NOK 400 mln (€36 mln) penalty incurred for non-compliance with the EU ETS during the Covid-19 pandemic. (Green Air)

The record release of emergency oil supplies from International Energy Agency (IEA) countries is helping to quell supply shortages, especially in parts of South Asia – although the crisis will persist until the Middle East war subsides, the IEA's chief said on Monday. 

After a difficult three years for nature-based voluntary carbon projects, Latin American standards, developers, governments, and multilateral partners are pouring support into forest carbon.

Researchers from ETH Zurich have suggested that strategically located reforestation efforts would achieve the same planetary cooling effect as more randomly situated projects, even if fewer trees were planted.

Japan-Cambodia JCM - Japan and Cambodia adopted revisions to rules and guidelines for their bilateral Joint Crediting Mechanism (JCM) in line with Article 6 of the Paris Agreement during the seventh joint committee meeting held on Mar. 5, including new guidance for REDD+ and afforestation and reforestation projects. The committee also approved one new project idea note (PIN), granted PIN exemptions for six existing projects, adopted one cookstove methodology, and authorised the issuance of 1,039 credits from a LED streetlight project. Participants also discussed the pipeline of upcoming projects and confirmed plans to update bilateral documents to enable the mechanism to continue operating beyond 2030.

Irish hints -  The prime minister of Ireland -  Taoiseach Micheál Martin - has hinted at fuel tax cuts in Ireland but ruled out cutting the carbon tax, in response to growing pressure to reduce energy prices for consumers. The impact of delaying or scrapping carbon taxes “is not anywhere near the impact of other levies and taxes”, said Martin in Philadelphia to reporters, timed with St Patrick's Day celebrations in the US. The carbon tax is a “very important” tax that allows the government to expand the fuel allowance to working families, as well as retrofitting homes, he said. He referred to "other mechanisms that we can use" instead, in a hint towards reducing excise duty on fuel. More than half the price of a litre of fuel in Ireland goes to taxes, the bulk of which in the form excise and VAT. Carbon tax amounts to about 9-10% of the cost. (msn.com)

The European Union’s newly approved 2040 climate target represents an important step toward long-term decarbonisation, but experts at a climate NGO have warned that loopholes in the framework could weaken the bloc’s climate ambition.

Biochar module expansion - Isometric is consulting on a major expansion to its distributed biochar module until Apr. 15. The update significantly expands the Biochar Production in Distributed and Small Scale Projects Module - opening it to more projects by accommodating more kiln types and project structures. Distributed biochar projects will now be held to the same bar for quality and rigour as industrial biochar, in recognition of the meaningful co-benefits such projects bring to the environment and local communities. The module includes new additions such as better guidance on community engagement and benefit sharing, and allowing the use of new technologies to automate data gathering. Stakeholders are invited to submit comments here for the next 30 days.

Agri credits - Japan-based project developer Faeger has last month signed an MoU with rice milling equipment manufacturer Satake Asia to collaborate on developing agricultural projects in Southeast Asia. The partnership will focus on reducing GHG emissions from farming activities while creating additional revenue streams for farmers and rice milling businesses through carbon credit generation. The initiative will explore the use of locally available resources such as rice husk biochar and aims to establish systems that return environmental value to agricultural communities while supporting more sustainable farming practices, the firms said.

Germany's greenhouse gas emissions dropped by just 0.1% in 2025, with increases from transport and heating offsetting weak industrial emissions and newly net-absorbent forests, according to official figures released Saturday ahead of a new climate package due next week.

The UK government has invested £45 million in a 1.4 MW supercomputer, dedicated to solving issues that are holding back nuclear fusion energy.

Electrifying transport, buildings, and industry could displace up to 60% of global fossil fuel use and energy-related emissions while lowering costs and improving energy security, new analysis has found.

Green priorities - Brunei has allocated $480 mln for infrastructure and development projects under its 12th National Development Plan (RKN12), which outlines 305 projects worth about $4 bln through 2029. The plan includes funding for forest conservation and the development of carbon trading, alongside initiatives to improve tourism sites and restore natural areas such as Kampong Ayer and Pulau Selirong Forest Recreation Park. The investments are part of the government’s broader efforts to support sustainable development while diversifying the country’s economy.

A regenerative system combining improved grazing management and pasture composition can increase soil carbon and reduce greenhouse gas emissions on livestock farms, but the economic benefits depend more on productivity and climate conditions than carbon revenues, a recent study found.

ETS suspension - Antonio Gozzi, president of steel trade body Federacciai, is calling for the temporary suspension of the EU ETS in Italy due to rising electricity prices. The carbon pricing scheme has gradually evolved from a decarbonisation tool into a carbon tax that depends on financial markets, said Gozzi in Rimini. Also, any criteria for low-emissions steel in Europe should be solely based on the product's actual carbon footprint and avoid mechanisms such as sliding scale for waste that unfairly limit production in electric arc furnaces, said Gozzi. About 85% of Italian steel is produced in EAFs, according to Federacciai. (Metallurgprom.org)

Methane absorbers - Forest soils are increasingly taking up methane from the atmosphere, according a new study from Germany's University of Göttingen and the Baden-Württemberg Forest Research Institute (FVA). Their absorption capacity even increases under certain climate conditions, which could occur more often in future, it found. Forest soils are absorbing an average of 3% more methane per year, according to repeated measurements at 13 forest sites in southwestern Germany over periods of up to 24 years. The scientists attributed this to climate change as lower rainfall leads to drier soils, into which methane penetrates more easily, while microorganisms break down methane more quickly at higher temperatures. This counteracts a study from the US that found declining methane uptake due to climate change. (Top agrar)    

€103 mln for LIFE support – The European Commission on Monday announced over €103 million in funding under its LIFE programme for seven strategic climate and environment projects in as many EU countries. The projects in Finland, France, Greece, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia and Spain are designed to support EU climate, water and biodiversity laws while leveraging additional national and private investment. Spain’s LIFE HumedalES wetland restoration initiative, the largest LIFE project to date, will receive €29.7 million to restore 26,200 hectares across 107 Natura 2000 sites.

A UK construction materials firm and a London real estate developer last week announced they had produced the country’s first net zero concrete, using biochar made from spent coffee grounds and wood residues.

Ghana has updated its default value for a crucial metric in determining credit generation from clean cooking projects and other biomass-based mitigation activities, the country’s Carbon Market Office (CMO) has announced.

Energy ministers from the EU27 underlined the need for short-term measures to address high and volatile prices in the bloc's Emissions System (ETS) but stopped short of calling for a suspension of the scheme, they told journalists before a meeting of the EU's Energy Council on Monday.

Palm fraud - Indonesian companies under investigation for alleged palm oil fraud supplied biofuel feedstocks to European firms including Eni and Neste, according to an investigation by AFP and SourceMaterial. Authorities allege the firms mislabelled palm oil as palm oil mill effluent (POME), a waste byproduct used in biofuels, in a scheme that allegedly involved bribing officials and cost the Indonesian government millions in lost tax revenue. Both Eni and Neste said they had no direct contracts with the implicated companies and moved to exclude them from their supply chains after the probe emerged.

The European Commission is updating its state aid rules to better support sustainable modes of transport for passenger and freight trains - in an effort to shift attention away from roads, it announced on Monday.

Ghana has authorised a sustainable cooling initiative designed to accelerate the deployment of climate-friendly air conditioning systems, marking the latest mitigation activity approved under the country’s Article 6.2 agreement with Switzerland.

Funding secured - NASDAQ-listed Indian renewable energy company ReNew said its subsidiary for commercial and industrial customers has secured a $95 mln equity investment led by private equity firm LeapFrog Investments, which agreed to commit $50 mln.  The subsidiary ReNew Green has 2.5 GW of committed capacity for corporate clients, of which more than 2 GW is already operational, the company said. The investment aims to expand capacity to the industrial sector, which accounts for roughly half of the country’s electricity demand. A paper earlier this year said rising financing costs risked slowing down India’s renewable energy deployment.

The UK government has laid out several measures to bolster energy security, including bringing forward the next renewables auction and making plug-in solar energy available to households.

China has launched a pilot programme to extend support for the commercial applications of hydrogen across multiple industrial sectors, according to a government notice published Monday.

Bargaining chip - UK officials are reportedly drawing up costs for EU students to pay cheaper university fees in Britain in a bid to secure closer post-Brexit trading ties with the EU. The divide over tuition fees has derailed plans for a reset of relations and left negotiations over a youth mobility scheme at an impasse. EU negotiators remain confident that a deal to link the UK and EU's Emissions Trading Systems can be reached, but say a youth mobility deal is key to an overall package. Any discount for EU students at British universities may prove unpopular domestically, with a move to equalise fees estimated to cost the country's universities an estimated £140 mln a year in lost income, which the Treasury may have to cover. (the Telegraph)

Oil release - Oil from the IEA emergency reserves is set to soon start flowing to global markets, according to an agency statement. This follows last week's announcement that IEA member countries will make 400 mln barrels of oil available to the market in response to disruptions caused by the Middle East conflict. Member countries in Asia Oceania will make stocks available immediately, while stocks from member countries in the Americas and Europe will be made available starting from the end of March. Details about the volumes that member countries shall make available are stated here. "The war in the Middle East is creating the largest supply disruption in the history of the global oil market," wrote the IEA. This emergency collective action will be a "welcome buffer" but the most important factor to ensuring a return to stable flows is the resumption of regular shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.

Colombia’s Emissions Trading System (Spanish: PNCTE) is one of the oldest planned cap-and-trade initiatives in Latin America – but it should serve as a warning rather than a model for others, due to weak policy foundations, scarce data, and poor stakeholder coordination, experts told Carbon Pulse.

Japan is seeking public input on revisions to several existing methodologies under its national voluntary J-Credit programme, according to a recent notice from the environment ministry.

Nepal has launched a national carbon registry as it steps up efforts to participate in international carbon markets under the Paris Agreement.

A coalition of global companies and a civil society group have both called on Europe to accelerate deployment of clean electrification and to preserve integrity of the EU ETS.

The Regional Voluntary Carbon Market Company (VCM) in Saudi Arabia will imminently launch a pilot programme for carbon trading at Islamic banks, Carbon Pulse heard from its chief executive – without abandoning its core exchange, auctioning, or regional project development mission.

Mark it down - Emitters under China's national ETS planning to carry over their unused permits from FY2019-24 are required to submit their applications in the coming months, according to a notice published by the national registry. Those intending to participate in the second batch of allowance carryover should file their applications before Mar. 20, it showed. The application window for the last batch will be open during Mar. 31 - June 10, and the registry will complete the relevant work by June 26, the notice added.

Clean electricity is here - Energy retailer Flow Power has partnered with Octopus Australia to support the Blind Creek Solar Farm and Battery project in New South Wales, designed to deliver clean electricity to the grid. The project combines a 300 MW solar photovoltaic plant with a 243 MW/486 MWh battery energy storage system near Bungendore and is part of a broader effort to strengthen renewable generation and grid stability in the region. Once operational, the facility is expected to produce significant volumes of renewable power and help meet peak demand by storing solar energy generated during the day for evening use, contributing to Australia’s transition away from ageing coal-fired generation.

Going green - Indonesia plans to gradually retire diesel-powered electricity generators as new solar plants come online in a bid to end diesel imports in 2026, Jakarta Globe reported, citing Energy Minister Bahlil Lahadalia.  The government aims to build up to 100 GW of solar capacity, largely aimed at electrifying roughly 5,700 villages that still lack reliable power. Diesel units will be switched off once solar projects reach commercial operation, with geothermal plants also being developed to support the transition, the minister said, adding that Indonesia may increase the use of crude palm oil to produce biodiesel if global oil supplies become difficult to secure.

Improving the project method development process, strengthening Indigenous leadership, and improving market signals were laid out as key elements that would help Australia's carbon market achieve the country's climate goals, according to a report by the Climate Change Authority (CCA).

I’ll be there for you - The Global Carbon Council has launched a proprietary carbon market infrastructure designed to help countries implement Article 6.2 of the Paris Agreement, enabling them to participate more effectively in international carbon trading. The platform provides an integrated system that includes modules for project registration, national carbon registries and transaction tracking, allowing governments to authorise and transfer Internationally Transferred Mitigation Outcomes while ensuring transparency and compliance with global reporting requirements. The infrastructure will give countries, particularly in the Global South, an interoperable and ready-to-deploy solution for operationalising carbon markets and mobilising climate finance through high-integrity emissions-reduction projects, the GCC said.

Raise the bar, please - South Korea's planned roadmap for ESG data disclosure mandate has drawn criticism, as the proposed inclusion threshold is considered not ambitious enough, Hankyoreh reported. The number of companies subject to mandatory climate disclosure proposed by the Financial Services Commission (FSC) is only 58, even though the number of companies that voluntarily disclosed climate information already reached 700 last year. FSC plans to gather opinions by the end of this month and announce the finalised plan for ESG data disclosure in April.