Latest news with #carbonmarkets
Yahoo
17 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
JPMorgan Just Sparked a $210M Green Finance Revolution--Here's What It Means for Carbon Markets
JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM) has just structured something that could change how carbon markets get fundedstarting with a $210 million loan for Chestnut Carbon. In a deal that applies traditional project finance to a carbon-credit developer for the first time in the U.S., Chestnut will use the funds to deliver long-term nature-based carbon removal credits to Microsoft under a 25-year contract. The forestry projects in Arkansas and Texas have already seen over 17 million trees planted since 2022. JPMorgan, joined by a group of smaller lenders, is betting that this modelnon-recourse and cash-flow-backedcould make carbon projects more bankable and draw in long-missing institutional investors. Warning! GuruFocus has detected 8 Warning Sign with JPM. The carbon credit market has long been stuck in a chicken-and-egg trap: investors want scale, but developers need capital to get there. Chestnut's CFO Greg Adams believes this debt-based structure may finally break that cycle. Instead of relying on equity or philanthropyas most projects still dothis structure could reduce the cost of capital and make room for infrastructure funds and mainstream financiers. JPMorgan's Vijnan Batchu echoed that view, saying giving developers runway at a better financing cost is key to delivering meaningful impact. The hope is that this model doesn't stay a one-off. While it's still early, the move may hint at a broader shift. Nancy Pfund of DBL Partners, an investor in Chestnut, noted that while this one loan doesn't solve the market's broader capital gap, it could be a turning point. If more deals like this follow, the voluntary carbon marketoften dismissed as too small to mattermight start to look like a serious asset class. And if Chestnut's partnership with Microsoft proves scalable, carbon removal could finally gain the financial muscle it needs to grow. This article first appeared on GuruFocus.
E&E News
21 hours ago
- Politics
- E&E News
Agriculture climate law hits a wall at USDA
A climate change law once hailed as a bipartisan triumph may be fading out before it's even in place. Congress enacted the Growing Climate Solutions Act in 2022 with the aim of helping farmers navigate the nation's unfolding carbon markets and cut greenhouse gas emissions on their operations. The idea was to create a network of government-certified providers to verify greenhouse gas reductions from climate-smart farm practices. Three years later, the Department of Agriculture shows few signs of implementing the law, which former President Joe Biden signed as part of a consolidated spending bill for fiscal 2023. Advertisement Outside groups that once pushed for its passage are no longer talking about the legislation publicly. An advisory council the Biden administration appointed a few weeks before leaving office has yet to receive any instructions from the new administration and hasn't met, despite a deadline to do so that passed in April.
Forbes
a day ago
- Business
- Forbes
The UK Just Created A Regulated Market For Carbon Removals
Big Ben with bridge over Thames and flag of England against blue sky in London, England, UK We're used to thinking of carbon markets as a punishment mechanism—a tax in disguise for those who pollute. But what happens when the same system starts to reward the people actively cleaning up the atmosphere? After months of consultation, the UK government has laid out a clear path: greenhouse gas removals—including engineered solutions like direct air capture (DAC) and enhanced weathering—will become part of the country's carbon market by the end of this decade. If you're in the weeds of carbon policy, this is a watershed moment. If you're not, here's why it matters: it means corporations will soon be able to buy carbon removal credits in a regulated market—and carbon removal companies will, for the first time, have a predictable, price-driven demand signal for cleaning up the atmosphere. Until now, carbon removals—like DAC, biochar, or enhanced weathering—have mostly lived in the voluntary market, propped up by early-adopter buyers like Microsoft, Stripe, and Shopify through initiatives like Frontier. But voluntary demand is tiny. Currently the global voluntary carbon market is worth just $2 billion. By contrast, the global compliance carbon market—driven by schemes like the European Union's Emissions Trading System, California's Cap-and-Trade, and now the UK Emissions Trading system (ETS)—was valued at over $800 billion. Right now, the UK ETS covers around 111 million tonnes of carbon emissions annually across the power, industrial, and aviation sectors. The average price of a UK allowance in July 2025 is around $48 per tonne. Even if just 1% of UK ETS obligations are fulfilled through removals, that's a potential $43 million market annually for removals. And here's the key: this isn't a hypothetical. The UK has committed to legislating integration by 2028, with removals entering the market by the end of 2029. That timeline is long enough to allow for standard setting and infrastructure development, but near enough to start attracting real investment now. For a sector that's often lived off philanthropic capital and early adopter corporate buyers, this is oxygen. What does this mean in practice? A few things. First, only removals that take place on UK soil will be eligible—this ensures that the benefits of investment (jobs, infrastructure, MRV capabilities) stay local. Second, removal credits will be awarded after the carbon has been verified to be sequestered, not in advance. That's important. It signals a clear move away from the 'pay-now-promise-later' dynamic that has plagued lower-integrity offset markets. Perhaps most importantly, only removals that can demonstrate carbon will be stored for at least 200 years will qualify. That threshold effectively draws a line in the sand: no reforestation credits that could reverse in a few decades. The UK is saying, if you want an allowance, your removal better last two centuries. That's a powerful signal to companies focused on permanence—those relying on mineralization, geologic storage, or stable biochar. The government has also indicated it is 'minded to differentiate' between these new removal credits and existing allowances—potentially creating a dual-credit system. In other words, a tonne of avoided emissions and a tonne of removed carbon might be priced and treated differently. That opens up the potential for two carbon markets to exist side-by-side: one punishing emitters, the other incentivizing removers. It's a nuanced idea, but if done well, it could provide flexibility while preserving environmental integrity. There will be auctions to facilitate a route to market—helping removal operators sell their credits into a structured and transparent system, rather than relying solely on opaque bilateral deals. The government will also maintain the existing 'gross cap'—that is, the total amount of allowances won't increase to accommodate removals. This ensures that carbon removals don't create space for additional emissions. It's not a license to pollute—it's a tool to neutralize emissions that can't be cut. Some of this might sound arcane, but it reflects a growing maturity in how we think about removals. Climate science is clear: reaching net zero means both cutting emissions and removing what we can't avoid. The UK is the first country to bake that second half of the equation into its compliance market architecture. This decision is also a direct boost to the UK's emerging carbon removal ecosystem. Take UNDO, a recent XPRIZE winner, which spreads finely crushed basalt on farmlands to accelerate natural weathering processes—permanently storing carbon in soils. Or Mission Zero Technologies, a direct air capture startup developing modular electrochemical systems that capture CO₂ from ambient air and store it underground. Both are UK-based, and both could now see a real, regulated path to monetizing their impact—not through donations or hype cycles, but through policy-anchored carbon demand. And this matters beyond the UK. Globally, the carbon removal sector must grow from removing tens of thousands of tonnes of CO₂ per year to billions by 2050. That means turning niche science projects into bankable infrastructure. It means shifting from tech demonstrations to projects that institutional investors, insurers, and utilities can underwrite. None of that happens without real markets—and until now, those have been missing. The UK's move is not perfect, and it won't be fast. But it's a milestone: the first major economy to say, explicitly, that carbon removal belongs in the same market as pollution—and that removing carbon deserves the same financial seriousness as cutting it.
Zawya
04-07-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Carbon Markets Africa Summit reveals packed programme featuring continent's entire carbon markets value chain
The upcoming Carbon Markets Africa Summit (CMAS) programme features the continent's entire carbon markets value chain in what is a compelling combination of successful early carbon market movers, climate-finance-ready projects, regulatory bodies as well as global institutional development organisations and investors. The event is taking place in Johannesburg from 22 to 23 October, with pre-conference sessions on 21 October. CMAS is dedicated to unlocking Africa's carbon market potential, incorporating integrity, investment and impact. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) are official supporters of the event. Shifting global landscape Day 1's opening session will focus on the continent's pivotal opportunity to define its own carbon trajectory, attract meaningful investment and align carbon market growth with the priorities of climate resilience, equity and sustainable development. Speakers already confirmed include: - Iain Banner, Chairman, South Africa - Fenella Aouane, Global Green Growth Institute, Luxembourg - Maxwell Gomera, UNDP - Javier Manzanares, Allen Manza, Panama - Caroline Tixier, EU Delegation to South Africa - Angela Churie Kallhauge, Impact, Environmental Defence Fund, USA Aligning strategy with global agendas The session on the "Road to COP30: Aligning Africa's Carbon Strategy with Global Agendas" will look compare Africa's carbon strategy with global frameworks such as Article 6. High-level representatives from the GMEX Group, AfDBm Verra and ACMI will be part of this panel discussion. Carbon market frameworks As African countries move from climate ambition to implementation, regulatory clarity is becoming the cornerstone of carbon market development. A session titled 'Turning Policy into Action,' will explore how national frameworks are evolving post-COP29, what integration of Article 6 looks like on the ground and how public-private collaboration can drive effective execution. Strong representation from across the continent and value chain bodes for an enlightening discussion, including the UNDP, Government of Nigeria, the South African Department of Fisheries, Forestry and the Environment, Zambia's Ministry of Green Economy and Environment and Uganda Climate Change Department. The challenges with regards to integrity that carbon markets have faced will be tackled head-on during CMAS. Promethium's Principal Climate Change Advisor Olivia Tuchten will lead the panel discussion around standards, verification and market oversight with experts from Verra, Gold Standard and Anthesis. Financing Africa's carbon pipeline Day 2 of the packed CMAS programme features investor roundtables in a more intimate setting, aimed at 'Connecting Climate Capital with Scalable Carbon Solutions,' during which a select group of carbon market investors and financiers can present their funds, strategies and investment opportunities to both potential capital partners and carbon project developers. Keynote on investment Day 2's keynote session on 'Financing Africa's Carbon Pipeline: Derisking, Scaling and Innovating" will address both sides of the investment equation with participants from Shell Nature Based Solutions, Standard Bank, MIGA, AfDB and South Pole. Jonathan First, Senior Advisor at Climate Policy Initiative will also unpack the question of how to mobilise private capital for Africa's carbon markets with several financiers from TransEnergy Global, FSD Africa, the JSE and JP Morgan. Pre-conference day The CARBON 101 masterclass will provide investors, policymakers and developers with the necessary insights into the burgeoning business of carbon markets. The expert facilitators in this relatively new field will cover everything from international frameworks, African policy landscapes, credit integrity and investment fundamentals. 'Trust plays a key role' As part of CMAS 2025's mission to catalyse high-integrity, African-led carbon markets, Dominic Wilhelm, Executive Director of the Global Trust Project, will also lead a high-impact dialogue working session. 'While the current value of carbon markets as of 2023 is about $950 billion, within the next 10 years, it's going to be worth $16 trillion,' says Wilhelm. 'However, the full value chain of carbon markets is very fragmented, and it's not transparent. Therefore, the full value chain needs to rapidly come together in a high-level dialogue, in which trust plays a key role to solve some of these challenges.' VUKA Group Carbon Markets Africa Summit is organised by VUKA Group, which has more than 20 years' experience in serving the business community across Africa. Event dates and location: Dates: 21 October: Pre-summit day 22–23 October: Summit Location: Johannesburg, South Africa Distributed by APO Group on behalf of VUKA Group. Additional Information: Download the Carbon Markets Africa Summit Programme Brochure here: Contact details for Carbon Markets Africa Summit: Tailor-made partnerships: Natalie Kruger Cell: +66 (0) 65 614 8605 Email: Project Lead: Emmanuelle Nicholls Cell: +27 83 447 8410 Email: Event website:
Zawya
20-06-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Insight: Blockchain can jumpstart regional trade of new energy commodities
As MENA countries ramp up development of renewable energy systems (RES), the Zero Emissions Traders Alliance (ZETA) remains focused on new energy markets. We're committed to markets, which are the living heart of all energy systems. They are needed for new energy systems to take hold and grow Gulf countries have great potential to unlock the power of markets if they unite in regional markets for carbon and for new energy. So we're looking at technical solutions to jumpstart regional trade. Blockchain, specifically, might offer solutions that work in the unique conditions of the Gulf and broader MENA region. Approaching the problem cautiously, we're homing in on pathways that might work. Markets indispensable, technology changeable Markets permit the price discovery required in all commodity sectors. But low carbon commodities are quite different from fossil commodities. They must encompass trade of two things: the new commodities themselves, and the 'green' attributes of those commodities. The latter are conveyed in certificates of various kinds; 'green certificates' that should trade separately from the physical commodities. Our concern is to enable the growth of highly liquid international markets for these instruments, attracting investors and traders across the Gulf countries and the wider MENA region. As we consider the kinds of trading and arbitrage that can occur in new energy commodities, and how to enable risk management to speed up the production of new energy, we're studying technologies that can play a role. Certainly many will look to blockchain solutions to ensure fair, low-cost trading and product integrity. But based upon our experience, we approach blockchain with caution. Its early applications are much too slow to serve energy trading. Yet innovations such as 'stablecoin' may prove important. Let's put the problem in context. An environment of uncertainty An advisor who's been helpful to our thinking is Michael Merz, who spearheaded the software development of EFETnet (now known as Equias) providing peer-to-peer matching of transactions for European electricity and gas; later for carbon and other commodities. Most European OTC trades today are transacted on this widely used software. Michael has wrestled with how to deploy blockchain in energy markets for more than a decade, launching 'Enerchain' which was the only live blockchain project in European energy trading. His lessons learned are informing ZETA members on how the technology might be effectively deployed in the Gulf region. Michael points out that the basic challenge is to facilitate trading of green certificates in a region with little history of it and no trusted international organisation like the EU to make rules. There is a lack of unified regulations, and there's no single authority governing carbon trading, green certificates or anything else. Instead in MENA, like in many regions, countries pursue separate national policies. Within the UAE itself, the seven Emirates are very autonomous in their policies and decision-making. RES certificates from Abu Dhabi are not tradable in Dubai for example. There are certainly strong bonds of trust and good will among MENA countries. But there is also much uncertainty in a decentralised situation where countries' plans and policies often diverge. Can blockchain help? At a roundtable discussion last winter we covered the possibilities and pitfalls of blockchain. What emerged is the idea that blockchain can serve a very basic and important audit function. If there is not an authority trusted by everyone in the region, then trust must be created artificially. This is where blockchain can make sense, as a kind of artificial trust anchor in an environment where trustworthy actors have different priorities and policies creating uncertainty. Traders' audit trail On the technical level, blockchain offers a high degree of protection against various forms of market manipulation including double booking and related concerns. It could usefully serve as a shared transaction log providing an audit trail in the creation of green certificates. For example, an asset owner might register his project and receive green certificates. The platform where he registers his certificates will write a transaction log record into a database. This database would be blockchain shared by all the registries. So different registries might operate in different ways across the vast region, but the audit trail function is standardised, such that an auditor can see what's happened and if double booking has occurred. This basic blockchain service can be leveraged into the actual trading of green certificates. While separate registries may have a shared audit trail, they may also offer a trading platform. Or third parties may offer a trading function independent of the registries. When a trade takes place, some certificates are transferred. The trading platform (whether independent or connected to one of the registries) sends a message to the registry where these certificates are stored. Then a booking takes place which one-to-one reflects the transaction. This booking is again stored in the blockchain, which now serves as audit trail for the initial creation of certificates and for transfers between market participants. A further step would occur when certificates are cancelled, deleted, transferred or retired by the registry. A retirement, for example the use of certificates to offset their owner's emissions, could also be stored in the blockchain. Michael suggests creating one regional registry for more market liquidity. The blockchain could be part of this registry; it doesn't need to be an external audit trail. It would be there to ensure the integrity of the data, and the integrity of the bookings, so that the overall number of certificates remains in one-to-one relation to the actual assets. Of course, we can be somewhat indifferent here because it depends on regulatory requirements, on what is possible and what makes sense in the region. Which blockchain? What's needed is a neutral, decentralised system that enables widespread participation without need of a central regulator. It should be absolutely transparent, without any corporate or other organisation sitting in the center. Such a decentralised platform should feature fast, high volume, low cost transactions. It should be censorship resistant, such that no single authority controls it. Indeed, it should be resistant to political or market manipulation by any industry player. What can provide this? One important entity working on solutions is the Kaspa Industrial Initiative (Kii), which advocates for a decentralised, 'permissionless' system with no central issuing authority. Kii suggests that such a system be governed by something called a 'DAO', a Decentralised Autonomous Organisation. Kii is a non-profit, global project with a decentralised team helping its partners to think about how new energy trading can work in the new environment of digital assets ('kaspa' is an ancient Aramean word meaning silver). Kii anticipates trillions of capital inflow into digital assets in the near future and believes much of this can flow into the energy and utilities sectors in a shift to decentralised green finance. It's looking at global interoperability for new trading platforms made highly secure and verifiable with blockchain. Kii, like ZETA, wants to start in the Gulf region, with its reach to enormous markets in Asia and Africa. But new trading platforms should be interoperable according to standards that ZETA wants to create, because our commitment is to creating the best possible standards for trading. To enable this, Kii is developing a 'stablecoin' called Gigawatt-coin (GWC), a zero-emission energy stablecoin. It will be a new financial instrument, a digital currency instrument separate from the US dollar or traditional currencies but backed by a basket of assets. These would be a combination of currencies, but also carbon credits and potentially even tokenised energy assets. Potentially, this GWC could be used by the energy industry globally without being subject to any form of political manipulation. The whole idea is to bridge digital finance and energy markets using the GWC as a settlement instrument. It should be noted that GWC is not a digital commodity with no issuer; it will require that a separate organisation be established to issue it. This will allow the value of the GWC to remain stable over very long periods of time in terms of years. Such is the kind of system that we're currently working on. ZETA will work with Kii and other partners to design a pilot project in the GCC region. And as always, our commitment will be to a regional approach, encompassing carbon markets and new energy commodities for the future. (The author is CEO of UAE-based Zero Emissions Traders Alliance (ZETA). Any opinions expressed in this article are the author's own) Subscribe to our Projects' PULSE newsletter that brings you trustworthy news, updates and insights on project activities, developments, and partnerships across sectors in the Middle East and Africa.
