RGGI Allowance (RGA) futures set a record high settlement before speculator-driven selling brought prices back down on the week, traders said.

Latin American governments are backing large-scale CO2 reduction activities as a sustainable development strategy, scoring several high-profile wins last week, while the voluntary market (VCM) for CO2 removals (CDR) reeled from the announcement of mega CDR buyer Microsoft halting purchases.

Wind break - The developer of Massachusetts' 800MW Vineyard Wind offshore project sued turbine supplier GE Vernova after the manufacturer said it would terminate service contracts at the end of April, citing $300 million in unpaid bills, the AP reported. Vineyard Wind countered that GE Vernova owes roughly $545 million for a turbine blade collapse in July 2024 that set the project back nearly two years. The developer said GE Vernova is the only company capable of completing the remaining work, and its exit would cause irreparable harm to the project. GE Vernova said it was exercising its right to terminate for non-payment and would "vigorously defend" its position.

Spark notes - Wildfire costs now account for nearly a fifth of the average California electricity bill and threaten to slow the state's electrification drive, a California Earthquake Authority report said on Friday. The authority, which manages a $21 billion wildfire insurance fund for the state, said the charges added $41 to the average monthly bill of residential customers at Pacific Gas & Electric, with wildfire-related surcharges also accounting for 17% of monthly Southern California Edison bills and 14% of San Diego Gas & Electric bills, Bloomberg reported. Meanwhile, residential rates rose 37% between 2020 and 2025. Higher power prices would slow uptake of electric vehicles and heat pumps, hampering California's decarbonisation goals, the report warned. The report recommended establishing a state-sponsored wildfire home insurer and ending utilities' liability for inadvertently starting fires.

Fossil fuel shield - Fossil fuel companies would be protected from legal liability for damages caused by climate change under new legislation under consideration in Tennessee, WKMS reported. The legislation was drafted by Consumers Defense, a group that has advocated against environmental standards. House Bill 2070 (HB 2070) was approved by legislature earlier this month and awaits action by Gov. Bill Lee (R) after replacing a similar Senate proposal (SB 2560).

Virginia’s Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has published draft regulatory text for its planned re-entry into regional power sector ETS RGGI, including proposed base CO2 allowance budgets.

Alberta has opened the public comment period for the second version of its vent gas reduction protocol, in line with a target to finalise the protocol this summer.

Solar setbacks - Texas officials are intensifying efforts to curb solar energy development through regulatory actions, legislative scrutiny, and legal investigations, as the state prepares for rising electricity demand, E&E News reported. State senators raised concerns about foreign-made solar panels and grid security, regulators questioned new solar and battery projects in favour of natural gas, and Attorney General Ken Paxton(R) launched probes into alleged fraud in the rooftop solar industry. These moves come despite rapid growth in solar capacity within the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, where solar recently surpassed coal in generation share and dominates future interconnection requests alongside battery storage. Officials argue that greater investment in dispatchable power such as natural gas is needed for grid reliability, particularly after outages during the 2021 winter storm, while critics warn that limiting renewables could increase electricity costs and constrain the state’s ability to meet surging demand from sectors like data centres.

California regulator ARB announced it will publish on Tuesday modified texts and additional documents related to its planned update of the state's Cap-and-Invest Program for a 15-day comment period.

A biomass carbon removal and storage plus renewable natural gas (BiCRS+RNG) project in the US has secured a route to market via a procurement platform, it was announced on Monday.

Moving ahead - Dib v. Apple is proceeding on a revised briefing schedule after a short-lived mediation referral did not result in a settlement. The case was released from the court’s mediation programme on Apr. 7, indicating no resolution at that stage. Subsequent filings show procedural activity continuing, including a disclosure statement from Apple on Apr. 8 and a request by appellants for more time to file their opening brief. The court granted that request on Apr. 9, setting a revised briefing schedule with the opening brief due July 15, the answering brief due Aug. 14, and an optional reply brief due 21 days after service of the answering brief.

Foreign plaintiffs could use a long-standing US human rights statute to bring claims against companies involved in harmful carbon offset projects, despite recent court rulings narrowing its scope, a recently-published legal analysis argued.

Advanced market commitment in carbon removal (CDR) has doubled nearly every year since 2022 from buyers other than Microsoft or the carbon buyers group Frontier, a market platform reported on Monday.

News of Microsoft possibly pausing carbon dioxide removal (CDR) buying sent shockwaves through the nascent market late last week.

Protocol overhaul - The Climate Action Reserve (CAR) has proposed a new modular protocol structure splitting overarching requirements into a Common Protocol and jurisdiction-specific modules, it said on its website last week. The proposed change aims to streamline updates and support expansion across regions. The changes also introduce technical guidance modules where needed, with public comments on draft Program Manual updates open until Apr. 27.

An open letter signed by almost 30 companies led by Greek shipowner Angelicoussis calls on member states of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) to pursue alternatives to a global carbon pricing framework for shipping, a trade journal reported.

Finance departments across the world must take a central role in driving the global shift to low-carbon economies by deploying coordinated policy packages rather than relying on carbon pricing alone, according to new analysis from the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment at the London School of Economics.

A6 partnership - The Article 6 Implementation Partnership (A6IP) and the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) announced at a meeting last week in Geneva a Joint Declaration laying out their intention strengthen cooperation on capacity-building, policy support, and technical assistance to help countries develop the institutional arrangements required to implement Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. The collaboration aims to accelerate the development of trusted carbon markets and mobilise additional finance for low‑carbon industrial transformation, the partners said. Additionally, Naoki Torii, industrial development officer at UNIDO, introduced the organisation's new initiative, the Carbon Market for Development Partnership (CM4D), which seeks to leverage private sector support by mobilising upfront climate finance and accelerating participation in high-integrity international carbon markets.

Making moves - Singapore’s sustainability minister, Grace Fu, will lead a business mission to South American countries from Apr. 13-22 to boost cooperation on carbon credits, the ministry said on Monday. The trip aims to advance Article 6 carbon credit partnerships and build a pipeline of projects, alongside efforts to deepen trade and investment ties, the minsiter said. Fu will meet counterparts, host business sessions, and visit project sites, accompanied by officials and industry delegates. The mission signals Singapore is moving from deals to building pipelines under Article 6 with Peru, Paraguay, and Chile - countries at relatively advanced stages of bilateral cooperation.

The volume of carbon credits for the aviation offsetting scheme CORSIA may have doubled in the past year – but the market's true supply will remain constrained without the spread of insurance, according to analysis published on Monday.

A reported pause to Microsoft's carbon removal (CDR) purchasing programme exposes a major demand challenge for the nascent technology-based market, but also represents a "bittersweet" opportunity for the sector to mature, project developers and experts told Carbon Pulse.

First step - South Korea has issued a tender to conduct a preliminary feasibility study on the potential of REDD+ projects in Guatemala, with a budget of around 201 mln won ($135,100), according to a notice. The bid deadline has been set at Apr. 22, the notice showed. South Korea aims to accelerate overseas development assistance programmes with countries in Latin America, such as Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador, to share its expertise in forest restoration. Government agency Korean Forest Service (KFS) has also said it will explore opportunities to expand its REDD projects beyond Asia.