Monday, 24 February 2025.
The Brazilian COP30 portal has been launched, and Europe is re-discussing an important part of its environmental rules this week. Carbon Credits at the G20 in South Africa, China and Brazil, and India is the world's first Validation & Verification Body for Article 6.4 of the Paris Agreement. Hydrogen is making progress in São Paulo and in geological science. Two new and very special NDCs. Make sure to read them! And many new tips on resources and events around the world. 🔔 This is a summary of the topics that you can check out in detail in your reading this week at CarbonCreditMarkets.com
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CLIMATE GOVERNANCE
ESG in Brazil: the importance of Economics in analyzing corporate performance - RI Magazine No. 288
According to Prof. Oscar Malvessi, “in this article we highlight the results of the 2023 study with 129 companies that make up the Corporate Governance Index (IGC). It was found that 65 companies, or 50% of the sample, mentioned ESG as an executive compensation metric. Only 16 companies, or 12% of them, detail specific indicators for the use of ESG.” He adds that “the focus of ESG is disconnected from the economic-financial reality of companies. The concept of economic sustainability must be integrated with the other dimensions of ESG, becoming EESG (including the word "Economic"). It is understood that EESG, when well implemented, should function in a complementary way, integrating environmental, social, governance and economic issues, aiming at creating value and increasing the wealth of the company and stakeholders in the long term. Read the full article here.
February 26: Is Europe re-discussing its environmental rules?
It seems so, despite some resistance. A new omnibus law is scheduled to be discussed on February 26 that would simplify three of the bloc's main environmental rules that affect business:
the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), which requires companies to report their impact on the environment and their exposure to climate risk;
the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD), which requires them to investigate and address human rights and environmental abuses in their global supply chains; and
- the EU Taxonomy, which defines what is considered a sustainable investment.
These discussions are part of a “first series of Omnibus packages and proposals designed to make EU policies and laws work better and faster to strengthen the EU's competitiveness.” Let's follow closely.
$1 Billion for Climate Resilience in Africa: A New Era of Investment
The World Economic Forum and the Global Centre on Adaptation have launched a new platform to increase private sector investment in climate resilience in Africa. The initiative has already secured a $1 billion commitment, aimed at strengthening climate adaptation in sectors such as agriculture, water and infrastructure. The platform aims to attract $5 billion in private investment over the next year, addressing the continent’s significant financing gap and promoting commercial solutions for climate change management. Read more here.
GHG Protocol: Main Achievements in 2024
The GHG Protocol (Greenhouse Gas Protocol) is a set of international standards for measuring and managing greenhouse gas emissions. Widely recognized in the corporate sector, it offers tools to identify opportunities for reducing emissions, improve operational efficiency, comply with environmental regulations and ensure credibility and transparency in sustainability commitments. In a recent article, it highlighted its main activities for 2024, highlighting a partnership with IFRS on accounting rules, high intensity technical support for stakeholders, as well as several e-learning courses. Want to know more?
CARBON CREDITS
G20 Launches Agenda to Strengthen Carbon Markets with $1 Billion Commitment
The G20 Sustainable Finance Working Group (G20 SFWG) has begun its activities under the presidency of South Africa. During the inaugural meeting, three main priorities for 2025 were discussed and broadly supported by members. These included “unlocking the financing potential of carbon markets”, with the following approach:
Strengthening Market Infrastructure: transparency, integrity, clear standards and guidelines
Encouraging High Integrity Projects: projects that contribute to reducing carbon emissions, avoiding greenwashing
Facilitating Access to Finance: financing mechanisms for carbon projects that are inclusive, especially in developing countries and for smaller projects
Stay tuned throughout 2025 to closely follow the work of the G20 SFWG and the progress made on these priorities. Here is the document "2025 G20 SFWG Note on Agenda Priorities”.
China Moves Forward with 2 New Carbon Credit Methodologies
The Ministry of Ecology and Environment has unveiled two new carbon credit methodologies for China’s Certified Emissions Reduction program, bringing to six the number of methodologies under the voluntary mechanism that allows participants to earn tradable carbon credits. Under China’s carbon trading mechanism, the world’s largest, companies are allowed to buy CCER credits to offset 5 percent of the emissions they need to buy permits for. According to the ministry, 189 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emission permits were traded on the country’s carbon trading market last year for 18.1 billion yuan ($2.5 billion). Read about those developments and here about the first methodologies.
Brazil, Managers Take Caution with Certain Investment Funds and Carbon Credits
CVM Resolution 214, which comes into effect on March 3, authorizes Multimarket and Carbon Credit Funds. The new regulation allows for greater diversification and legal certainty, but investment houses are carefully evaluating the impacts and opportunities before fully committing to the new products. In other words, managers prefer to take a cautious approach, testing post-regulation operations before composing portfolios with assets from different segments. We'll see.
Company from India becomes the first Designated Operational Entity (DOE) under Article 6.4
Formally recognized by the UNFCCC, Carbon Check (India) Pvt Ltd is the first company to be able to validate and verify emissions reduction projects under Article 6.4 of the Paris Agreement. This makes Carbon Check a globally recognized Validation & Verification Body (VVB), also known as a Designated Operational Entity (DOE) for carbon market mechanisms. The company works on emissions reduction projects in both regulated and voluntary markets, and is very active in several voluntary standards. Click here to view the accreditation on the UNFCCC portal and here for the company's post on LinkedIn.
ENERGY TRANSITION
São Paulo, Brazil. IPT Produces Low-Carbon Hydrogen in Resumption of Innovative Project
According to an article by IPEN, the Institute of Technological Research (IPT) produced the first two kilograms of low-carbon hydrogen, marking a significant advance in the project to re-operate the EMTU/SP electrolysis plant, in resumption of the “Brazilian Hydrogen Bus” project. The EMTU plant is located in the city of São Bernardo do Campo (SP) and the teams at the IPT Energy Unit laboratories have been working on its recovery since 2024. The facilities had been idle since the late 2000s. The partnership with EMTU allows the IPT team to learn on-site and gain training, with the goal of evaluating the efficiency of hydrogen-powered buses in a real operating cycle. Replacing 18 diesel buses at USP with hydrogen models could result in a reduction of almost 3,000 tons of CO2 emitted per year.
São Paulo, Brazil. USP Innovates with Renewable Hydrogen from Ethanol.
The University of São Paulo (USP) is conducting tests on the world's first experimental plant dedicated to producing renewable hydrogen from ethanol. The project, led by the Center for Research and Innovation in Greenhouse Gases (RCGI), aims to demonstrate the viability of ethanol as a sustainable source of hydrogen. With the capacity to produce 100 kilos of hydrogen per day, the pilot plant will supply buses and light vehicles, promoting the decarbonization of industry and transportation. The initiative has the collaboration of large companies and institutions, such as Shell Brasil, Raízen and EMTU, and represents a milestone in the transition to a low-carbon economy. Read more here, on the website of the Secretariat of Agriculture and Supply of the State of São Paulo.
About Certain Regions of the Earth that are Suitable for the Occurrence of Natural Hydrogen
The article "Rift-inversion orogens are potential hot spots for natural H2 generation" published in Science Advances explores the natural generation of hydrogen (H2) in certain regions. Using numerical geodynamic models, the authors study the serpentinization of exhumed mantle materials during geological processes. And they suggest regions where the capacity for natural H2 generation may be up to 20 times greater, for example in the Balkans and the Pyrenees in Europe. Read the article in Science Advances here as well as another publication of ours on this interesting topic.
NEWS AND TRAINING
Montenegro and Japan: Two more NDCs in the last week. And very interesting ones, by the way. We highlight them.
Montenegro points out - correctly - that since the accounting rules for international carbon markets under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement have not yet been defined, the country has not yet made any national decisions on this matter. On the other hand, it intends to participate in the European Union's emissions trading scheme from 2025.
Japan, which has been leading international discussions on Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, plans to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 60% by 2035 and 73% by 2040. To this end, it will implement the Joint Crediting Mechanism (JCM) in collaboration with other countries, using decarbonization technologies and measures. The goal is to achieve cumulative reductions of 100 million t-CO2 by 2030 and 200 million t-CO2 by 2040, contributing to its NDC.
Brazil COP30: COP30 host country portal launched
See the UNFCCC announcement from last 18 February which includes a link to the new portal.
Green Skills Gap: TNFD Launches New Training Tools
The Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) aims to empower professionals and businesses to identify, assess, report and act on environmental issues, integrating these considerations into financial and business decisions. In collaboration with the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership, they have launched a platform with two tools: the Learning Lab for self-directed learning and the Trainer Portal for training providers. In January, an inaugural training programme involved more than 40 experts from 27 organisations and 16 countries. Read more here.
IFRS Foundation publishes two new educational materials to support the implementation of the ISSB Standards
These are the materials and their respective links:
a webcast on proportionality mechanisms in IFRS S1 and IFRS S2, which explores how companies should use the mechanisms to apply specific requirements in the ISSB Standards
a guide “Applying IFRS S1 when reporting only climate-related disclosures in accordance with IFRS S2” designed to help companies understand how to report climate-related information, where applicable, under ISSB Standards
New Video: How to Calculate Emissions
In a new video, Allison Leach, an associate on the GHG Protocol’s Corporate Standard team, provides an overview of how to calculate greenhouse gas emissions. Watch the new video—in English—and for more answers to frequently asked questions about the Corporate Standard, check out the Corporate Standard’s own FAQ. Watch the under-1-minute video here.
Mato Grosso, Brazil: Artificial intelligence now instantly answers questions about land regularization services
The Mato Grosso Land Institute (Intermat) has launched a new virtual service tool called Maitê. This artificial intelligence instantly answers questions about services provided by the agency, such as urban and rural land regularization, and provides guidance on ongoing processes. The tool aims to facilitate access to services, regardless of the citizen's location. The new feature is the first of five innovations planned for the coming months, with the aim of improving the accessibility, speed and efficiency of the services offered. Read more.
EVENTS
India-Japan Environmental Business Promotion Seminar
📆 4th March 2025
📌 The Leela Palace New Delhi, New Delhi, India
Gold Standard Masterclass Series
📆 19 March – 2 April 2025
📌 Online, interactive 3-hour workshops
AMCHAM Brasil COP30 Business Forum
📆 28 March 2025
📌Online
Integrated Reporting and Integrated Thinking Conference
📆 3 April 2025
📌 Online or in-person Keidanren Kaikan, Tokyo, Japan
Peru Carbon Forum 2025 🇵🇪 🌱
📆 28 y 29 de mayo 2025
📌Centro de Convenciones ESAN, Lima, Perú
UNFCC 1st Climate Week of 2025
📆 before June
📌to be determined
IFRS Foundation Conference
📆 23-24 June 2025
📌 Online or in-person, Leonardo Royal Hotel London Tower Bridge, London, United Kingdom
Mexico Carbon Forum 2025
📆 10 y 11 de septiembre de 2025
📌 Expo Tampico, Tamaulipas, Mexico
FRS Sustainability Symposium
📆 30 October 2025
📌 London, United Kingdom
UNFCC 2nd Climate Week of 2025
📆 ahead of COP30
📌to be determined
COP30, 30ª Conferência das Nações Unidas sobre Mudança do Clima
📆 10 to 21 November 2025
📌 Belém, State of Pará, Brasil
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