Ombudsman says International Finance Corporation’s emissions rules are too weak

Published 18:12 on October 30, 2024  /  Last updated at 18:12 on October 30, 2024  / /  Africa, Americas, Asia Pacific, EMEA, International

The World Bank Group’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) is failing to enforce its own greenhouse gas emission requirements with clients, which already fall short of what is needed to meet the Paris Agreement’s 1.5C temperature goal, the finance institution’s ombudsman warned.

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UK puts billions towards carbon capture, nuclear, clean energy, and prepares for CBAM

Published 16:05 on October 30, 2024  /  Last updated at 16:05 on October 30, 2024  / /  Carbon Taxes, CBAM, EMEA, UK ETS

The UK government will put billions of pounds into carbon capture, utilisation, and storage (CCUS), nuclear power, hydrogen, renewables, zero-emission vehicles, and sustainable agriculture over the next fiscal year, and plans to introduce a carbon border tax on imports from 2027, Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced on Wednesday.

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Voluntary carbon registries can foster healthy competition once Article 6.2 registry starts up -UN expert

Published 14:12 on October 30, 2024  /  Last updated at 00:06 on October 31, 2024  / /  Africa, Americas, Asia Pacific, Climate Talks, EMEA, International, Japan, Paris Article 6, US, Voluntary

Independent carbon credit registries will continue to play a role, and foster healthy competition, even after a centralised UN registry is created under Article 6.2 of the Paris Agreement, according to a member of the UN group mandated to determine the international carbon market rules. 

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New surety bonds product aims to protect and boost investments in low-carbon projects

Published 07:00 on October 30, 2024  /  Last updated at 11:19 on October 29, 2024  / /  EMEA

A French issuer of trade credits has introduced a product that issues surety bonds and guarantees for low-carbon technologies and renewable energy projects, and holds the premiums as investments in certified green bonds, it announced on Wednesday.

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Asset manager launches carbon removal fund to help institutional investors tap in

Published 17:12 on October 29, 2024  /  Last updated at 17:12 on October 29, 2024  / /  EMEA, Nature-based, Voluntary

A London-based asset manager is launching a carbon removal fund to give institutional investors access to solutions that can deliver investment returns and help them reach net zero emissions, it announced on Tuesday.

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Analysts cast doubt on Scottish CCS project’s claimed emission cuts

Published 17:33 on October 28, 2024  /  Last updated at 17:33 on October 28, 2024  / /  EMEA, UK ETS

The lifetime emissions of a project to add carbon capture technology to a gas-fired power plant in Scotland could be three to five times higher than reported by the developer, according to estimates by a climate think tank.

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UAE pilot project makes cleaner steel from renewable hydrogen

Published 14:57 on October 28, 2024  /  Last updated at 14:57 on October 28, 2024  / /  EMEA, Middle East

The United Arab Emirates’ state-owned renewable energy developer and a steel company have completed a pilot project demonstrating the potential for using green hydrogen to produce cleaner steel, they announced on Monday.

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NDCs fall “miles short” of emission cuts to meet Paris goals, UNFCCC warns

Published 09:00 on October 28, 2024  /  Last updated at 20:23 on October 27, 2024  / /  Africa, Americas, Asia Pacific, Climate Talks, EMEA, International

Existing national contributions to the Paris Agreement are unsurprisingly inadequate, at most leading to a mere 2.6% decline in global greenhouse gas emissions over the 2020s, according to a UN report released on Monday.

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1.5C climate goal slipping out of reach, UN warns ahead of COP29 summit

Published 15:00 on October 24, 2024  /  Last updated at 15:45 on October 24, 2024  / /  Africa, Americas, Asia Pacific, Climate Talks, EMEA, International

The goal of limiting global warming to 1.5C is slipping quickly out of reach, although it is still “technically possible” – and relatively inexpensive – for the world to roughly halve emissions within this decade, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) warned on Thursday.

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Draft COP29 negotiating text sets out three options for global climate finance

Published 16:45 on October 23, 2024  /  Last updated at 16:45 on October 23, 2024  / /  Africa, Americas, Asia Pacific, Climate Talks, EMEA, International

The latest version of the new global climate finance goal due to be agreed at COP29 sets out three options for structuring the headline target, including the transfer of trillions of dollars per year from wealthy to poor countries, or a wider annual investment sum from public and private sources.

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