California is ahead of its diesel-related GHG reduction targets but falling further behind on gasoline, according to a consultancy analysis.

Healthy competition - Singapore has launched a new public-private partnership—the Council for a Competitive Climate Transition (C3T)—led by the National Climate Change Secretariat and the Singapore Business Federation to help businesses strengthen climate resilience and competitiveness, it announced. The council will bring together government, industry and other stakeholders to coordinate climate action, support emissions reduction, manage physical climate risks, and develop practical solutions such as climate disclosure, green procurement and sustainable financing. It also aims to help businesses capture opportunities from the low-carbon transition and prepare for increasing climate impacts, aligning efforts with Singapore’s National Adaptation Plan and its designation of 2026 as the Year of Climate Adaptation.

Fossil fight finds footing - Young climate activists challenging three executive orders by Donald Trump aimed at expanding oil, gas, and coal development have cited a recent 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals ruling to support their case, arguing it demonstrates courts can grant partial relief even without resolving broader issues like GHG emissions, E&E News reported. In a supplemental brief, the plaintiffs – represented by Our Children’s Trust – contended that the court has authority to hear their claims and issue incremental remedies, stating that a favourable decision need not solve climate change or fully prevent harm, but that even a small incremental step to reduce risk would be sufficient.

The Australian government has signed off on two new savanna fire management (SFM) methods that can now generate Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs), it announced Friday.

Watts the bill - A California Assembly Utilities and Energy Committee advanced legislation (AB 2383) that would require the state's utility regulator to create a separate electricity rate classification for large energy users, a move that could reshape how data centres and other major power consumers pay for grid infrastructure. The bill, introduced by Assembly Member Rick Zbur (D), would require the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to establish a distinct rate schedule for facilities with peak loads of 20 MW or more by Jan. 1, 2028. The bill would require those facilities to enter into contracts with electrical corporations covering transmission, generation, or distribution services, and would bar cost-shifting to other ratepayers.  The legislation passed ahead of an Apr. 24 deadline for policy committees to report fiscal bills to appropriations.

Seaweed Beats Oil - A San Diego-based Algenesis Labs said its plant-derived polyurethane line cut GHG emissions by up to 65% compared to petroleum-based equivalents. The preliminary results could inform sustainability sourcing decisions for brands across footwear, apparel, and automotive sectors, the material science company said in a press release. Algenesis said a cradle-to-gate product carbon footprint study, conducted with independent sustainability firm TrueNorth Collective, found its Soleic polyols delivered a 65% emissions reduction against petroleum alternatives, while its thermoplastic polyurethane grades posted reductions of 50–55%. The company added that its LV02 polyol grade is made from 100% bio-based carbon, verified through third-party ASTM testing without relying on mass-balance accounting. Algenesis, which was founded by scientists from the University of California, San Diego, partnered with Yale-based P2 Science, a green chemistry company, in Nov. 2025 to scale a bio-based chemical supply chain using algae-derived feedstocks.

California Carbon Allowances (CCAs) sank to a new year-to-date (YtD) low before recovering slightly, as traders said the market was drifting sideways pending major regulatory updates seen key to next month’s WCI Q2 auction.

Crude awakening - US Energy Secretary Chris Wright warned that California's dependence on foreign oil imports poses a national security risk, citing the state's role as a staging ground for US military operations across the Pacific Ocean. Speaking to Fox Business on Wednesday, Wright said California imports 75% of its oil from countries including Iraq and Brazil, despite holding substantial domestic resources, describing the state's high energy costs as a political choice by state leadership. Regular gasoline averaged $5.93 per gallon in California on Wednesday, the highest in the country, according to the American Automobile Association (AAA). Wright said the Trump administration remained open to working with California leaders to revive domestic oil and gas production. Governor Gavin Newsom's (D) office rejected the approach in a statement to Fox Business.

Not backing down - A coalition of environmental groups and Alaskan tribes filed a petition on Wednesday in the DC Circuit challenging the US EPA's endangerment finding repeal. The EPA said the rollback would reduce regulatory burdens and have limited economic and public health impacts, but petitioners are seeking judicial review of the decision to eliminate the standards underpinning federal vehicle climate policy.

Standing standoff - The US and the EPA argued in a new Vermont federal court filing that a recent California district court decision dismissing a separate federal case for lack of standing is not applicable to their challenge against Vermont’s Climate Superfund Act, contending that, unlike in California, they have sufficiently alleged injury to federal sovereign interests, including interference with the Clean Air Act, foreign policy, and interstate commerce. The filing maintained that the Vermont law is actively being implemented, with cost recovery demands mandated by 2028, making any injury 'certainly impending' and rejected the California court’s suggestion that preempted state laws do not violate federal law, arguing instead that such laws are unconstitutional under the Supremacy Clause. It further asserted that SCOTUS precedent supports federal standing to bring preemption claims and urges the court to proceed to the merits, emphasising that the Vermont statute imposes liabilities that conflict with federal regulatory frameworks and exceed state authority.

Super progress for superfund - Maine lawmakers are advancing legislation that would require the state’s Department of Environmental Protection to assess the costs of climate impacts over the past 30 years, marking a scaled-back approach from earlier proposals to establish a climate superfund programme targeting fossil fuel companies, E&E News reported. The measure is positioned as a preliminary step toward potential future cost-recovery efforts, as seen in laws adopted by Vermont and New York in 2024, but stops short of imposing liability. Democratic legislators said the study would lay the groundwork for a similar programme. Both existing laws have been challenged by the Trump administration and Republican-led states.

A tranche of more than 85,000 forestry carbon credits using a dynamic baseline approach has been supplied to a major bank, reflecting growing use of evolving quantification methods, it was announced on Thursday.

Carbon pricing and broader decarbonisation strategies can support economic growth and competitiveness if embedded within wider structural reforms, according to a new report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

Governor Mikie Sherrill (D) signed legislation removing the state’s de facto moratorium on new nuclear power on Wednesday.

Half of major US pension funds are failing to set proxy voting guidelines that act on critical climate issues, or are using anti-ESG language outright, according to a new analysis by an environmental non-profit.

If EU policymakers are serious about preserving Europe’s low-carbon aluminium production, maintaining a competitive recycling base, and delivering on the EU’s circular economy and strategic autonomy objectives, they must address CBAM’s aluminium scrap loophole.

Mandatory sustainability disclosures in Canada would improve risk pricing and market efficiency but impose uneven compliance costs across firms, according to a new briefing note, as regulators weigh whether to revive a paused rulemaking process.

Waste worth– Ara Partners, a private equity firm focused on industrial decarbonisation, said on Thursday it will invest up to $500 mln in Sedron Technologies, a waste upcycling company, to scale its treatment systems across North America. Sedron develops technology that converts biosolids and manure into clean water, fertilisers, and carbon-negative energy, using significantly less energy than conventional processes, the companies said. The funding will support expansion of municipal and agricultural projects, including addressing contaminants such as PFAS. The companies said the investment will accelerate deployment and manufacturing capacity as demand grows for lower-cost, scalable waste management solutions.

Measuring miles – North American offset provider Karbon-X and the Canadian Banff Half Marathon said on Thursday that they have completed an emissions assessment for the 2025 race, quantifying its climate impact and retiring credits to balance emissions. The companies said the assessment, conducted with advisory firm BrightSpot Climate, measured over 1,600 tCO2e across sources including participant travel, energy use, and race operations, with verified credits retired against the total. They added that event-level emissions accounting, particularly including travel-related impacts, remains relatively uncommon across the endurance sports sector. Organisers also pointed to expanded transport measures and a target to cut event-related emissions 50% by 2030 under the UNFCCC Sports for Climate Action network.

Slash steel emissions - India aims to reduce emissions from steel mills by about a quarter over the next decade, to reach 2 tonnes of CO2 per tonne of finished steel by 2035-36, according to a draft cabinet note detailing the proposed "National Steel Policy 2025" seen by Reuters. India has been facing the effects of the EU's carbon border fee on imports of industrial goods including steel since January, with Indian steelmakers emitting about 32% higher CO2 per tonne of finished steel than the global average. The sector accounts for 10-12% of the country's total emissions. The policy proposes promoting gas-based steelmaking, increasing the use of ​steel scrap, and offering incentives for continuous emission reduction. India aims to expand crude ⁠steel capacity to 400 Mt by 2035-36, up from current output of about 168 Mt.

The European Commission is “very close” to finalising new flexibilities for implementing the EU’s Methane Regulation, a senior official has said, amid calls from the gas industry to suspend the forthcoming methane emission reporting rules, due to take effect in Jan. 2027.

European carbon prices rose steadily on Thursday in a thinly-traded market, even as the carbon market showed little reaction to initial reports that emissions covered by the EU ETS had fallen by around 1.5% in 2025, while energy markets rose amid signs that the Strait of Hormuz remained largely closed to traffic, before plunging late in the session as Israel said it would open talks with Lebanon.

The small-scale afforestation, reforestation, and revegetation (ARR) sector is already well established in Spain, but it needs domestic and EU regulators to add it into carbon compliance systems to attract demand and funnel investment into rural areas, a developer told Carbon Pulse.

The World Bank's investment guarantee agency has signed a new deal backing renewable energy and battery storage projects across Africa, the Middle East, and Central Asia – and pushed its total issuance beyond $100 billion, it announced Thursday.

The European Union should give countries that export goods covered by its Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) the option to use lower, opt-in, country-level emissions values, as this could cut administrative costs and reduce carbon leakage, a Brussels-based think tank said this week.

Sorry but no - Eversource Energy has informed Connecticut's Department of Energy and Environmental Protection that it is opting out of three publicly-bid contracts for 54 MW of solar power, the Connecticut Mirror reported. Eversource said the latest round of clean energy purchases were overpriced and cited a lack of a "comprehensive" energy strategy in the state as reasons for the withdrawal. Solar provided 38 GWh of power generation in Connecticut in February, with renewables overall making up less than 3% of monthly generation, Carbon Pulse's North American Compliance Markets Portal showed.

Product-level emissions - The Greenhouse Gas Protocol has announced its members of the  joint working group focused on developing an updated product-level GHG accounting standard with ISO. The two organisations are stewarding the development of a harmonised, science-aligned global system for accounting and reporting GHG emissions, of which the updated product-level standard is a core priority. The updated standard will maintain continuity with existing ISO and GHG Protocol frameworks, while moving towards a unified global methodology, in line with the changing needs of companies, investors, and regulators, and responding to growing demand for granular value chain emissions data. It will also support rollout of mechanisms such as carbon border fees that require detailed product-level emissions accounting. A ISO-GHG Protocol Product Webinar will be held on Apr. 24 at 15:00 CET. Register here.    

Eyes on the EVs - The UK's accelerating electric vehicle (EV) uptake calls for rapid growth of public charging, which presents an opportunity to use disused real estate rather than green space, according to a new report by Knight Frank. Nearly 200 acres of potential forecourt-suitable land was identified in Birmingham and Bristol alone, highlighting the larger nationwide opportunity. In a case where almost all new cars are electric, some 213,000 public chargers would be required, which would demand 2,100 acres of land. For real estate owners, charging infrastructure can generate revenue from underused sites like car parks, increase occupier attraction, align with ESG goals, and boost portfolio resilience. Business models can be either self or third-party funded, and considerations include power grid readiness, planning and permitting regimes, and customer analysis. New developments to watch include vehicle-to-grid charging, EV charging innovations, and autonomous vehicles.

Irish blockades - Protestors have blocked an oil refinery in Ireland and demonstrated in Dublin over the government's response to rising fuel prices driven by the Iran war. Traffic has been blocked by trucks and tractors for a third straight day in the capital, while hauliers and farmers blockaded fuel depots and disrupted traffic in other Irish cities, calling on policymakers to provide a more appealing support package. Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin has condemned the blockade of the Whitegate refinery in Cork, and the govt has said the law will be applied. Blockades have also led to shortages at local filling stations across Ireland. The European Commissions is working on measures to help lower energy prices across the EU while avoiding inflationary increase and fiscal deficits, with potential tools such as windfall taxes and price caps. Ireland approved a €250 mln package to alleviate the impact of rising energy costs last month, which will be backdated to January and remain in place until the end of June. (Bloomberg)

Ghana has signed off on clean cookstove project to generate carbon credits as part of its Article 6 deal with Switzerland, the project developer announced on Thursday.

The EU's push to lead the global artificial intelligence race could come at a cost to its climate ambitions, as surging energy demand from data centres threatens to derail decarbonisation efforts, according to a new policy brief.

Partner promotion – Evaline Tsai has been promoted to partner at early-stage venture capital firm Gigascale Capital, it was announced on Thursday. The US-based investor said Tsai brings technical depth and company-building experience spanning the path from lab to scaled deployment. Her background includes founding Cambridge Cancer Genomics, serving as Samsara’s first product manager for AI and machine learning with four patents, and investing in companies including Commonwealth Fusion Systems and Boston Metal while at Fine Structure Ventures. Gigascale backs companies rebuilding the physical economy with technologies designed to be cheaper, more productive, and less polluting at scale.

Corporate climate action accelerated sharply in 2025, with a 40% rise in companies adopting science-based emissions reduction targets, according to a new report released by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).

Methane emissions from offshore oil loading in the UK North Sea may be significantly underreported, according to new measurement-based research.

The UK has put its Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) legislation up for a second consultation, setting out its proposed requirements for administering the new CO2 tax on imports.

Pay it locally - Carbon credits and carbon pricing could help Indian steelmakers offset costs and remain competitive in Europe, ANI reported, citing Tata Steel’s managing director. He added that carbon tax paid locally could help companies take credit for enabling claims under the EU’s CBAM and encourage them to take greener routes. The company plans to add 6-7 Mt of capacity in India through expansions at existing sites, driven by strong domestic demand growing 8-10% annually.

South Korea's latest CO2 allowance auction again went oversubscribed as emitters began to price in the structural tightening of allowance allocation, with analysts expecting KAU-25 prices to remain higher in the next few months.

Six weeks into the Iran conflict, European governments are still scrambling to contain the economic fallout from surging oil and gas prices, and while a fragile two-week ceasefire offers limited respite, researchers have called for a more coordinated EU response to deal with the ongoing crisis.

A carbon removal registry has unveiled a new module aimed at accelerating the growth of mobile biochar production, a fast-emerging approach to capturing and storing CO2 at smaller, distributed sites.

Profit rise - Shell is expected to report significantly higher profits from its trading desks in the first quarter driven by the Iran crisis, as well as higher profits from its renewable energy division. Earnings from renewables are expected to rise to between $200 mln and $700 mln in 1Q, from about $100 mln in 4Q 2025, the oil major said in an update Wednesday. Meanwhile, trading results at its chemicals and products unit, including its main oil trading desk, are expected to rise higher owing to disruptions through the Strait of Hormuz that drove oil prices to highs of $119/barrel at end March. Investors were also warned to expect lower gas production for 1Q 2026 compared to the final quarter of last year, due to attacks in Qatar, including a strike on Shell's assets at the Ras Laffan LNG complex. Shell expects its gas production to fall by about 5% to between 880,000 and 920,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day, compared with 948,000 in 4Q 2025. (the Guardian)

Malaysia’s federal government and the state of Sarawak have agreed to form a special joint committee to coordinate carbon policy implementation, in a move to better align regulations and pricing.

Amid wider energy supply disruptions, South Korea's newly announced targets for the power sector have met with closer examination, as the strategy may fail to reduce the country's dependence on fossil fuels.

SAF trading - Malta-based commodity trading house Alkagesta has joined the International Air Transport Association (IATA) as a strategic partner, to grow its footprint in aviation fuel supply and logistics, it said in an announcement. The move follows the launch of its jet fuel trading desk and expanding access to European infrastructure, including NATO Central Europe Pipeline System routes. The company said it has secured supply tenders for airports in Germany and Belgium, with deliveries set to begin in spring 2026. Initial volumes of around 200,000 barrels will include sustainable aviation fuel blends aligned with EU requirements.

A growing number of companies are adopting a new climate milestone known as “operational net zero”, as pressure mounts to deliver credible emissions cuts ahead of 2030 targets, according to a white paper released this week by a climate advisory and investment firm.

No pipeline, no problem - The UK government is inviting applications from carbon capture, usage, and storage (CCUS) projects seeking to connect to the East Coast Cluster (ECC) Teesside network by 2032 via non-pipeline transportation. The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) will assess applications through the non-pipeline transport (NPT) Pathfinder selection process to identify projects that could connect to the network and utilise remaining capacity at the Endurance offshore carbon storage site. Applicants are asked to complete an expression of interest form by 23:59 on May 12, from whence they'll be able to access the online submission portal. Further forms on project plans, initial cost assessment, finances, economic benefits, and supply chain must then be completed by 23:59 on June 12. More info here. The NPT Pathfinder Selection Process will run alongside the ECC Teesside Selection Process launched on Feb. 5. Earlier this week, the UK's Climate Change Committee (CCC) urged the govt to expand emissions coverage under the UK ETS to include CO2 transported by road, rail, and smaller ships, arguing doing so would support the rollout of CCS in regions lacking pipeline networks without loosening the scheme’s cap.

A large bank has struck a carbon removal deal with a US-based developer in an agreement that also aims to reduce wildfire risk, it was announced Thursday.

An electrolyser manufacturer has received £40 million from the UK's Great British Energy and an additional £46.5 mln government grant to fund the expansion of its hydrogen facility in northern England.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has announced it will work with two partner groups to kickstart reforestation and clean cooking carbon projects and generate credits at refugee camps in Uganda and Rwanda.

Australia's climate minister on Thursday rebuffed calls to delay its review into the Safeguard Mechanism in response to the ongoing energy crisis.

The Australian government has launched a consultation on changes to its national emissions reporting framework while providing an update to its reviews into coal and fugitive methane emissions.

China's top research organisation has launched a new large model for carbon emissions accounting, as the country seeks to amplify its influence in global climate governance.

A shipping giant on Thursday announced a partnership with an oil and gas major to pilot a book-and-claim system that allows emissions reductions from low-carbon marine fuel to be converted into tradable certificates for cargo owners.

Charge! – EV chargers will roll out faster under new rules coming into force May 7, the New Zealand government announced on Thursday, following amendments to the National Environmental Standards for Electricity Transmission Activities. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop said the changes set a national standard for EV charger installation, be they private or public. This follows the government’s approval of NZ$52.7 mln ($30.8 mln) of zero-interest loans to double the number of public EV chargers, announced last month. Kiwis have been switching to EVs in greater numbers in recent weeks, amid a global fuel crisis sparked by the US and Israel’s war in Iran, with RNZ reporting this week that full-battery EV registrations jumped four-fold in March.

Resilient ag – The Laotian government, with support from France, has launched two programmes to strengthen climate-resilient agriculture and landscapes, the Global Green Growth Institute said on Wednesday. The two projects – funded with a grant of €6 mln from the French development agency (AFD) – target irrigation and water management, and improving the government’s capacity to develop investment strategies and policies to support long-term climate-resilient agriculture.

The Australian government on Thursday announced the first four projects under its Investor Front Door pilot, all aimed at helping the shift out of fossil fuels and shore up energy security, it said. 

The recently appointed leader of Australia’s National party has used a press conference to sledge the country’s carbon market, claiming it is locking up productive land.

Jumping steps – Alberta has waived the environmental impact assessment for a 1.4 GW, gas-powered data centre in the province, The Energy Mix reported Tuesday. Officials said they viewed the project as a gas-fired power plant, which is exempt from assessments – but added that the waiver does not mean approval. The C$10-bln ($7.2-bln) facility would be the largest of its kind in Canada. A global data centre boom is driving up electricity consumption, with one infrastructure investor warning last month that new renewable capacity is being absorbed by the sites as soon as they come online, keeping fossil fuels in the system for longer than expected and increasing the need for carbon removals.

Confidence in achieving Paraguay's emissions-reduction goals stated in its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), partially on the back of the country’s jurisdictional REDD+ programme, is enabling the government to authorise all generated credits freely for international transactions.

Design cash – The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) has approved A$1.6 mln ($1.1 mln) for a project to develop a framework to standardise and derisk the engineering and design of large-scale green hydrogen production facilities. InterContinental Energy Australia’s project is aiming to produce a high-fidelity Digital Twin Optimisation Framework, which can reduce upfront capital risk for front end engineering design and final investment decision work, ARENA said.

Private holdings of New Zealand allowances rose in the first quarter ahead of the upcoming compliance deadline, according to government data released Thursday.