Carbon Pulse

EUAs dropped 3.4% to below €52 on Thursday, with carbon weighed down by weaker energy markets and a perceived tailing off of investor buying.

The 27-nation EU’s capitals are on track to ratify by the end of the month a bill that would allow for carbon pricing-generated revenues to pay back the €800 billion COVID-19 recovery fund, with only two countries left to ratify the decision.

Switzerland will soon announce its third bilateral deal under the Paris Agreement’s Article 6 to purchase carbon offsets from Senegal and is undertaking formal and informal discussions with a host of other countries on future arrangements, an official from the European country’s credit procurement agency said Thursday.

California Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) values crossed the $190 mark this week as some pointed to higher fuel demand and state regulator ARB’s revisions to the crude average carbon intensity under the transportation sector programme.

Online payment processing company Stripe on Wednesday selected six more early-stage CO2 removal (CDR) projects as part of its climate programme, with some of these nascent technologies costing over $2,000 per tonne.

The Fujian provincial government has issued over 1.7 million forestry-based offsets to boost supply in the local pilot ETS as well as in China’s fledgling voluntary carbon market.

California regulator ARB invalidated offsets from a Wisconsin-based livestock project on Wednesday that the agency found to be in violation of state environmental regulations, marking the fourth project to see credits voided.

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US biofuel credit (RIN) values bounced off a two-week low on Wednesday after a media outlet reported that a Delta Air Lines subsidiary has stopped purchases as it seeks federal relief from its Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) obligations.

Emerging CO2 removal technologies, such as direct air capture, will require more early finance to bring down the costs of resulting carbon credits, though some potential buyers are not convinced they should immediately reallocate funds earmarked for in-house corporate reductions, a panel heard Wednesday.

Canadian oil major Suncor on Wednesday released its plan to cut emissions over this decade en route to a 2050 net zero goal, with half of the CO2 abatement slated to involve new Alberta projects that will generate carbon offsets.

California regulator ARB’s compliance offset issuance sunk to more than 378,000 new credits this week, continuing a trend of sluggish approvals by the state agency.

EUAs rose to a one-week high near €55 on Wednesday but reversed course in sympathy with gas, before taking a post-settlement tumble to close well below €53, as trading data showed waning interest by investment funds.

A Dutch court on Wednesday ordered oil major Shell to cut its net carbon emissions by 45% compared to 2019 levels by 2030, in what observers are calling a landmark ruling for the global oil industry.

A climate tech company announced the creation of the largest US-based forest carbon project by acreage on Wednesday, with large corporates and voluntary emissions reduction (VER) procurement firms among the first buyers.

Commodity traders Hartree Partners and sustainability firm Systemiq on Wednesday launched a joint venture designed to help clients buy carbon credits from high-quality nature-based offset projects.

Romania will exit coal in 2032, according to leaked government documents, as higher carbon prices squeeze coal power profitability and prompt other countries in Central and Eastern Europe to consider earlier phaseouts.

Japan will invest around $10 billion in efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in South East Asia and help governments in the region design decarbonisation strategies, media reported Wednesday, citing government officials.

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Russia is rolling out new domestic voluntary carbon offset rules and is considering extending its embryonic emissions trading scheme nationally in order to have its climate efforts recognised internationally, a high-level official said Tuesday, which should thereby spare the country from "unfriendly" protectionist actions such as EU border measures.