ANALYSIS: Global South carbon markets need an explosion of Southern demand
Heightened demand from carbon credit buyers located in the Global South will be key to retaining climate finance in-country and pursuing sustainable development in emerging economies via the voluntary market (VCM), instead of relying on foreign investors from the North, according to speakers at the Mexico Carbon Forum in Guanajuato this week.
Read MoreANALYSIS: Long way to go before SBTi decides on voluntary carbon credit use under net zero standard
Following the publication of technical documents by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), which included both scenarios for including carbon credits under its revised net-zero corporate standard as well as a paper describing their use as risky and ineffective, voluntary market stakeholders have reacted with confusion at the developments and expressed frustration at the long wait until a final decision.
Read MoreANALYSIS: The Nature Restoration Law – what’s next for EU companies?
EU member states could include the private sector in their plans to achieve national targets under the Nature Restoration Law (NRL) as public funding will likely prove insufficient, and the newly approved legislation is likely to contribute to scaling the biodiversity credit market, according to experts.
Read MoreANALYSIS: New buyers poised to enter novel carbon removals market despite cost challenges
Buyers from new sectors are preparing to ramp up investment in novel carbon removals that would alter the current profile of corporates purchasing engineered-based units, long dominated by large technology firms, despite credit costs still well into the hundreds of dollars per tonne.
Read MoreANALYSIS: Voluntary carbon investors shift credit buying behaviour, but demand rebound still a way away
Voluntary carbon market (VCM) participants expect a substantial demand return, but this could still be years away, with stakeholders at an industry event this week highlighting that investors in the market are now looking more closely at project origination and becoming increasingly selective about the activities they finance.
Read MoreANALYSIS: Investment in nature-based, engineered carbon removals should not be zero sum, say stakeholders
Voluntary carbon market (VCM) buyers and developers largely remain committed to investing in both nature-based and engineered carbon removals (CDR), according to a range of experts speaking at the Carbon Unbound conference in New York this week.
Read MoreANALYSIS: More nature-related shareholder proposals trigger corporate resistance
Investor interest in nature has ramped up in this year’s voting season, boosted by some of the first calls for standard-aligned biodiversity disclosures, with financiers hailing a surge in awareness despite more corporate resistance.
Read MoreANALYSIS: Voluntary carbon actors eye narrative change but demand still lacking
Voluntary carbon attendees at an industry event held in Florence this week struck an optimistic note in light of imminent market developments that are expected to boost demand, but multiple sources highlighted a lack of tangible impact so far, with buyers still said to be holding back on offset investment due to reputational risk.
Read MoreANALYSIS: Experts cautious on proposed EU methodologies to certify carbon removals
Experts expressed mixed views on the European Commission’s proposed methodologies to certify different types of carbon removal activities under the EU’s Carbon Removals Certification Framework (CRCF), with some observers welcoming bold elements of the proposals and others criticising them on structural or methodological grounds.
Read MoreANALYSIS: Voluntary carbon stakeholders react to SBTi pivot on offset use for corporate targets
A major announcement from the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) that now opens the door for offset use as part of validated corporate net zero targets has made waves in the voluntary carbon sector, with proponents of the decision lauding its demand implications for the market, and critics arguing that the move undermines the organisation’s role in the broader fight against climate change.
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