Carbon Pulse

Solar Radiation Modification might provide an auxiliary tool to help reduce climate risk, limit suffering, lessen ecosystem degradation and improve the chances of sustainable development, but SRM is far from perfect, write scientists Claudia Wieners, Ben Hofbauer, Iris de Vries, Matthias Honegger, Daniele Visioni, Herman Russchenberg, and Tyler Felgenhauer in an open letter already supported by around 50 global scientists.

Scientists are calling for increased research and governance into solar geoengineering as the controversial practice may be deployed to help curb warming amid accelerating climate change, cautioning against the current free-for-all that has resulted in the first privately-funded "carbon cooling" credits.

European carbon prices stabilised at around €100 on Tuesday morning after a strong auction offset early weakness, though the market continued to seek a definitive direction as more analysts issued cautious reports predicting price weakness.

A major Asian investor organisation on Tuesday launched an initiative to support regional investors in developing risk management processes and investment policies to help ending deforestation.

The EU's upcoming second ETS covering buildings and road transport may not be enough to deliver emissions cuts by individuals and small businesses, according to an analysis published this week.

Switzerland has authorised another emissions trade transaction under Article 6.2 of the Paris Agreement, striking a deal with Thailand for the first time as it continues to leverage bilateral agreements between nation states to meet its climate targets.

Stakeholders in African forest carbon expressed scepticism about the prospects for significant progress on channelling sufficient funding to the sector during an upcoming summit to be held in Gabon, with the role of carbon credits also expected to be a significant point of discussion.

The wave of bullish sentiment that has driven EUA prices to record highs in the past week does not reflect market fundamentals and is unlikely to prevent a pullback because macroeconomic factors are likely to exert an influence for much of the current year, according to bank analysts.

A European oil firm has signed a letter of intent with the forestry commission of Ghana to secure as many as 1.2 million credits from nature-based carbon projects in the country as part of a jurisdictional REDD+ deal, local media sources reported.

Norway's government has invested NOK 36.3 million ($3.5 mln) in a direct air capture pilot project, the first funding provided by the country for the technology, according to a release Tuesday.

The Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) deals made with Indonesia and Vietnam represent significant initial breakthroughs in transitioning these key Asian economies from coal reliance, but their longer-term impact will largely depend on how the agreements will be operationalised by both governments to bring about an earlier coal-phase out date, according to analysts.

Commodities firm Gunvor Group will boost its trading in EU Allowances and look to extend activities to other carbon markets globally after secured new borrowing.

The Australian federal market watchdog has launched its first court case against a company over greenwashing allegations.

The Australian carbon market’s largest project aggregator has told a Senate committee its landholders are “genuinely concerned” that their projects would be undermined if their land data were released into the public domain, given the high level of scrutiny currently surrounding the scheme.

A daily summary of our news plus bite-sized updates from around the world.

European authorities on Monday carried out raids in 11 Bulgarian cities in an ongoing investigation into suspected fraud through under-reporting of EU ETS emissions by power and heating plants.

RGGI Allowance (RGA) prices inched lower over the past week as market participants suggested mild weather and a lack of catalysts were killing volatility ahead of the power sector carbon market's Q1 auction.

Few traders have a firm grasp of where Washington state’s first WCI-modelled carbon market sale will settle on Tuesday, as ambiguity regarding entities’ ability and willingness to bid in the sale juxtaposes against potential support from the small volume on offer and potential future linkage to the California-Quebec programme.

A dozen EU pro-nuclear nations met on the sidelines of talks on bloc-wide power market reform on Monday, deepening the divide over atomic power that has increasingly snagged negotiations to speed the bloc's clean energy transition in recent weeks. 

Standardised nature-based offset prices ticked higher over the past week while over-the-counter project-specific prices held steady, narrowing the gap between the two for the first time since claims of widespread over-crediting in the REDD+ avoided deforestation sector five weeks ago.