Carbon Pulse

Australia could be a global giant in green steel manufacturing as it is now a behemoth in iron ore production, provided the government incentivises investment and business commits to a great focus on emissions, according to a paper released Tuesday.

Global management consultancy Roland Berger on Tuesday announced it will work with a Swiss foundation to develop blockchain technology for a Voluntary Recycling Credit (VRC) that will be presented at COP28 in Dubai.

A South Korean project developer has teamed up with a government-backed research institute to promote a microbial technology that can alleviate tree droughts and help generate carbon credits.

The Australian government has committed A$25 million ($15.8 mln) to fund conservation work on privately held land, as the minister for environment on Tuesday laid out details on the consultation process for its environmental law reforms.

As the shipping sector faces an increased need to account for its carbon emissions, from inclusion in the EU ETS to new carbon indexation rules, ship owners are looking for innovative ways to cut CO2, with some returning to the traditional method of sail power to reduce fuel consumption.

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

Investment in climate tech is down 40% on the year as economic uncertainty and geopolitical tensions dent investor confidence, according to research published Tuesday, though the report found that this is more a reflection of overall market conditions than a move away from climate tech.

Environment ministers from the 27 EU member states on Monday agreed on a negotiating mandate for the year-end COP28 UN climate talks with an updated nationally determined contribution (NDC), while settling on a collective position on a directive to revise up CO2 targets for heavy-duty vehicles. 

As EU ministers try to reach a united position on the bloc's divisive electricity market design reforms this week, provisions for the bloc's heavy industry are increasingly featuring in the talks alongside efforts to shield citizens from higher costs and make prices less dependent on fossil fuels. 

RGGI Allowances (RGAs) held steady once again over the week amid a continued dearth of volatility, with market participants reporting uncertainty from numerous directions, though they expressed a split over whether a pre-Q4 auction lull was hindering further gains.

The Brazilian Amazon is seeing greater numbers of wildfires this year despite lower deforestation rates, threatening progress to conserve the biome, researchers said in a letter published Monday.

Holding global temperature increases to below 1.5C would save hundreds of trillions of dollars in benefits, while nearly 1 quadrillion in climate damages would result if Paris Agreement targets are not met, according to analysis published Monday.

Record-setting wildfires in Canada this year have released significant volumes of CO2 into the atmosphere, but experts gave Carbon Pulse different opinions as to whether the country should alter its existing emissions reporting practices to account for this.

The prices of most standardised voluntary carbon credit contracts fell over the past week, with several slumping to lows last seen in June, as the market continues to wait for integrity initiatives to complete ongoing work, while exchange-based spot activity picked up as market sources cited seasonal corporate buying as part of 2023 emissions buying programmes.

A German biotechnology company has announced plans to help smallholder farmers shift to a regenerative rice cultivation method in India and the Philippines, thereby reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

A leading offshore wind developer has launched a competition calling for innovations in the realm of floating offshore wind that support biodiversity enhancement and help ensure that wind farms co-exist peacefully alongside other sea users.

European carbon prices slumped on Monday morning, tracking a weaker energy complex where traders unwound some of last week's substantial gains amid forecasts for slightly milder temperatures and some profit-taking.

Trillions of dollars in economic value are at risk in water-dependent sectors, according to environmental not-for-profit WWF, which has shined a spotlight on freshwater resource challenges in a new report.

The Voluntary Carbon Markets Integrity Initiative (VCMI) will publish additional guidance on Nov. 28 to supplement its 'Claims Code of Practice', a set of recommendations to help corporates with their use of voluntary carbon credits, following stakeholder engagement and further research since the initial release of its initial guidelines in June.

The number of operational coal plants financed by China has increased over the past two years, despite the country’s promise to cease the building of new coal plants, a report has found.