Scrapping the UK's carbon pricing would lead to higher household energy prices and expose British companies to extra EU taxes under the bloc's border carbon fee, according to the country's energy industry group.

On the move – Spanish multinational energy company Moeve has partnered with Accenture to decarbonise the value chain of the former’s industrial customers, they announced Monday. Moeve will offer a portfolio of energy solutions, while Accenture will use digital tools to analyse data and plan a transition to clean energy.

Jet set fuel - California-based Captura, a carbon removal startup, and Quebec-based SAF+ International Group, a sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) developer, are planning a commercial electro-SAF plant at the Port of Port-La Nouvelle in France. The facility is targeting 75,000 tonnes of annual eSAF production by combining green hydrogen with captured CO2, with project partners including BBA Consultants and Schneider Electric. SAF+ said the project is intended to help meet ReFuelEU requirements from 2030, while producing fuel that can reduce emissions by up to 90% compared with kerosene or conventional diesel and jet fuels. The companies said eSAF is compatible with existing aviation and transport infrastructure, offering a liquid fuel pathway for sectors such as aviation and shipping.

Regen ag - UK-Brazilian developer NaturAll Carbon has partnered with Nova Piratininga Farm - said to be the largest farm in Latin America - for a new carbon project, the companies announced on Tuesday. Located in the states of Goias and Tocantins, Brazil, the farm will host a carbon project applying regenerative agriculture practices across an initial area of 12,300 ha. The partners estimate a potential issuance of 30,000 carbon credits, according to the press release. They did not disclose the financial terms of deal.

Missing the penalty - The European Commission is considering loosening enforcement of methane emissions rules for fossil fuel companies, potentially allowing penalties to be delayed or avoided during periods of market stress, according to Reuters reporting. This follows pressure from industry and the US government. In draft guidance to EU countries' national authorities, seen ​by the news outlet, the Commission said countries could choose not to enforce penalties ⁠for breaching the rules during an energy supply crisis. NGOs, criticising the move, warn it could undermine the effectiveness of the EU Methane Regulation by weakening deterrence and creating uncertainty, especially if early enforcement is paused or penalties remain too low. Penalties are essential to making the EU Methane Regulation work in practice, said Lea Pilsner from EDF Europe, noting that the bill already includes safeguards to ensure penalties are proportionate and do not undermine security of supply, even if more info is needed.

A Finnish deep tech startup has raised €3.6 million to build a 1MW industrial-scale pilot for technology that converts captured CO2 into carbon monoxide (CO) for use in sustainable fuel and other processes.

The EU’s top climate official ruled out the use of international credits as a compliance tool in the bloc’s Emissions Trading System (ETS), during a panel on Wednesday.

Global airline trade body International Air Transport Association (IATA) has launched a deferred payment facility on its Aviation Carbon Exchange (ACE), aiming to ease liquidity constraints for carriers facing mounting compliance demand under CORSIA.

BP is seeking to offload significant stakes in two major carbon capture and storage (CCS) developments in northeast England, marking another potential shift in strategy for the energy giant as it reassesses its long-term UK portfolio, according to media reports.

A mixed picture emerged for voluntary carbon market (VCM) participants in April, with lower overall supply and demand figures but positive data for units with either a CORSIA or Core Carbon Principles (CCP) label, while benchmark indices showed healthy price increases across the most popular projects.

Voluntary carbon market (VCM) standard body Verra has launched a month-long consultation on a proposed forestry methodology designed to improve measurement of sequestration gains through experimental controls.

EU carbon prices ended marginally higher on Wednesday after a brief spike had driven the market to its highest in nearly three weeks as energy markets swung sharply on reports that the United States and Iran were nearing a peace deal, before EUAs gave back most of their gains.

An initiative launched to support the carbon removal market by offering an open-source credit purchasing agreement framework, has unveiled a version for the Swiss market.

European Central Bank (ECB) President Christine Lagarde has called for Europe to reduce its "unsustainable" dependence on imported fossil fuels, and for increased renewables to mitigate the financial impact of climate change.

Greener shipping fuel - UK-based PuriFire Energy has signed a letter of intent (LOI) with carrier company X-Press Feeders to support the development and supply of green bio-methanol for shipping. The LOI will see both parties explore the potential for X-Press Feeders to offtake bio-methanol produced by PuriFire, including initial targeted production of 10,000 to 15,000 tonnes per year from PuriFire’s planned facilities. Both parties will also explore the co-development of larger port-based bio-methanol production facilities across the UK and Europe to support a distributed fuel supply system. PuriFire’s hydrothermal gasification technology converts wastewater and waste carbon into green fuels such as bio-methanol and biomethane, said the press release Wednesday.  

Homeward bound - Orsted is refocusing on developing and building offshore wind farms in Europe following its costly expansion into the US whereupon projects were cancelled and losses incurred. CEO Rasum Errboe said that the case for renewables and electrification in Europe is stronger than ever, due to the energy crisis accelerated by the Iran war. The Danish utility expects EBITDA, excluding new partnerships and cancellation fees, to exceed DKK 28 bln (€3.7 bln), it said in an earnings call Wednesday. However, Orsted does still continue to progress two major US projects previously delayed by legal challenges, with both on track to complete this year and next. But the completion of a German offshore wind farm has been delayed this year due to grid issue and a UK project was also delayed slightly. (Bloomberg)

Denmark's €4 billion carbon capture and storage (CCS) subsidy scheme has ended, awarding a single contract to a large cement producer.

A specialised unit in Egypt’s foreign trade ministry has introduced a platform to streamline the environmental verification process and support data management, the unit’s executive director told Carbon Pulse.

The EU’s €577 billion post-pandemic recovery fund suffers from significant gaps in transparency and traceability, according to the European Court of Auditors (ECA), raising questions over how future climate spending programmes should be monitored as Brussels debates the bloc’s next long-term budget.

Tokenised carbon - The UK Carbon Registry is joining forces with Archax for tokenised carbon credit-linked securities, it was announced Wednesday. Under the partnership, Archax will support custody and distribution through its regulated digital asset and securities infrastructure, allowing institutional and professional investors to access the product via established market frameworks. The first issuance is from Pure Carbon, a high-impact water conservation and emissions reduction project, with emissions data captured at source, securely processed, and structured in collaboration with GenTwo into a regulated note, issued as a tracker certificate with an ISIN and listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange. The structure supports corporate compliance and reporting requirements - including the ETS and EU/UK Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) and Article 6 of the Paris Agreement - by opening access to in-boundary verified carbon mitigation activity across reporting scopes. Read more here.  

CCS partners - Norwegian energy companies Var Energi CCS, Aker Solutions, and Knutsen NYK Carbon Carriers are partnering on the Trudvang carbon capture and storage (CCS) project in the North Sea. By combining their strengths in offshore engineering, CO2 storage development and operations, and marine transport, the trio aim to strengthen the Trudvang CO2 transport and storage project for European industry. The concept targets initial injection volumes of about 2 Mt per annum, with potential to scale to more than 20 Mtpa. The Trudvang project will inject CO2 into the Utsira Formation, which benefits from operational experience in the nearby Sleipner field, where CO2 has been successfully stored for almost 30 years. The project has yet to reach financial close. (Gasworld)

In regions with the best sun and wind, solar PV alongside onshore wind and batteries can already deliver round-the-clock electricity at costs competitive with, and often below, new fossil fuel generation, the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) said.

The European Commission’s provisional approach to CORSIA credit eligibility for its operators has provoked a strong reaction across the carbon market, with participants warning that the tight criteria under consideration would dramatically tighten supply for European airlines and create a bifurcated market.

Sweden and Switzerland have signed a new cooperation agreement on international trading of negative CO2 emissions.

Switzerland in 2100 - A study by the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL) outlines five possible socioeconomic futures for Switzerland by 2100, highlighting how societal choices will shape emissions and climate outcomes. The scenarios range from a high-tech, renewable-powered economy to a fragmented society marked by inequality and institutional breakdown. Three pathways are based on global models used by the IPCC, while two are tailored specifically to Switzerland, including one reliant on prolonged fossil fuel use and another prioritising well-being over economic growth. Researchers stress that while no single outcome can be predicted, social, political and economic developments will strongly influence resource use and climate impacts. WSL spoke to 59 scientists from 20 research institutions to develop the scenarios. A new publication from the National Centre for Climate Services (NCCS) presents the modelled GHG emissions for each scenario out to 2100. (Swissinfo.ch, NCCS and study pages)

Renewables must pay - Large electricity generators - solar parks, wind farms, and power plants - in the Netherlands should pay a fee to feed electricity into the grid from 2032 onwards to help finance network build-out, said the Dutch Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) on Apr. 30. It cited similar plans under development in Germany as a basis for the decision. However, energy industry association Energie-Nederland warned that the measure could undermine investment certainty, delay renewables deployment, and ultimately increase system costs. The greatest potential for grid efficiency lies on the demand (consumer) side, it argued; by shifting the focus to producers, that opportunity risks remaining largely untapped. Network build-out costs are currently solely borne by consumers. (Photon and Energie-Nederland)

Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa have partnered with an international non-profit to help them develop national plans for cutting emissions from one of Africa's fastest-growing sources – buildings and construction, the organisation announced on Wednesday.

NGO to Tata - Donald Pols, director of Dutch environmental NGO Milieudefensie, will leave the organisation to join Tata Steel Netherlands as sustainability director from June 1. Milieudefensie said the switch to a company it has long targeted over pollution is incompatible with his role, and removed him from his post with immediate effect. Donald Pols had led the NGO since 2015 and became a prominent figure in climate litigation against major emitters. At Tata Steel, he will oversee sustainability strategy and communications, aiming to drive industrial decarbonisation from within. The NGO expressed disappointment, while Pols described the move as a logical next step in advancing climate action. Tata Steel is in line for a €2 bln climate subsidy from the Dutch government, although the deal is controversial and the new government has yet to implement it. (Duurzaam-ondernemen.nl)

Norway steps on the gas - Norway voted on Tuesday to reopen three North Sea gas fields - Albuskjell, Vest Ekofisk and Tommeliten Gamma - to strengthen Europe’s gas supply in the wake of wars in Ukraine and the Middle East. The fields are estimated to still contain 90-120 million barrels of oil equivalent. They are due to resume production from 2028-48, following an estimated NOK 19 bln ($2 bln) investment led by ConocoPhillips, reported the Norwegian Energy Ministry. Gas will be exported to Germany, while condensates will be sent to the UK. Norway also announced on Tuesday that it is offering up 70 new blocks for oil and gas exploration in the North Sea, Norwegian Sea, and Barents sea. The deadline for applications is Sep. 1, with licenses due to be awarded in early 2027. Norway has become Europe's most important gas supplier since the war in Ukraine and its significance has only grown as the Middle East conflict has disrupted LNG supplies from that region. (De Telegraaf, Reuters, and the Norwegian Ministry of Energy)

An Anglo-American consortium plans to build the first commercially viable fusion plant in the UK, it was announced Wednesday, following the government’s announcement in March that it would invest $2.5 billion over five years to simulate an ecosystem of companies to develop the transformative energy.

Shipping’s green shift - PuriFire Energy, a UK-based cleantech firm, signed a deal with X‑Press Feeders, a container shipping group, to boost the adoption of green bio‑methanol in shipping. The agreement includes plans to co‑develop larger port‑based production facilities across the UK and Europe, supporting a distributed fuel supply system aligned with X‑Press Feeders’ vessel operations and regional needs. The partnership underpins growing momentum for green methanol as a maritime transition fuel amid tightening EU emissions rules.

The leaked European Commission benchmark values that will determine EU ETS free carbon allocations to industry across 2026-30 will tighten volumes by 13% compared to 2021 levels, but see a 3% rise from the prior draft values, analysts have calculated.

The quality of issued credits in the voluntary carbon market (VCM) has continued to weaken in the second quarter of 2026, with both issuance and retirement integrity declining sharply, according to indices provided by a rating agency.

The surge in gas prices driven by the Iran war has improved the business case for industrial companies seeking to decarbonise their heat processes through electrification, with demand particularly acute in smaller-margin sectors like retail, say experts.

The EU Emissions Trading System’s Market Stability Reserve (MSR) should be turned into an active “buffer” – fuelled by international carbon credits and domestic removal units – that can be mobilised to boost liquidity and temper price spikes in the bloc's carbon market, according to former top climate official Jos Delbeke.

Cities risk missing out on the benefits of nature-based solutions (NBS) due to a lack of practical tools to guide investment decisions, but a new study proposes an integrated framework combining spatial analysis and economic evaluation to help prioritise projects and allocate scarce public funds more efficiently.