Carbon markets and credits
A carbon credit represents one tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent avoided or removed, issued by a registry after a project has been validated and its results verified. Credits differ widely in quality, and the difference turns on additionality, permanence and the methodology behind them. The Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market sets quality thresholds for credits, the Voluntary Carbon Markets Integrity Initiative sets rules for how companies claim them, and Article 6 of the Paris Agreement governs how countries trade mitigation outcomes. The GCC is building its own market infrastructure, including the UAE National Register for Carbon Credits, trading through ADGM and the Saudi voluntary carbon market. This collection starts with what a credit is and the main project types, moves through additionality, integrity, registries and project registration, then covers buying, retiring and pricing credits, and ends with Article 6, carbon credits in the GCC and the newer market for biodiversity credits.
14 articles, in reading order
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What Are Carbon Credits? A Complete Guide
What carbon credits are, how one credit equals one tonne of CO₂e, how they are generated, verified and retired, and the difference between voluntary and compliance markets.
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Avoidance vs Removal Carbon Credits: The Distinction That Matters
The difference between avoidance/reduction and removal carbon credits, why removals command a premium, and how the two fit a credible net-zero strategy.
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Carbon Credit Project Types: Nature-Based to Engineered Removals
The main carbon credit project types, nature-based solutions, renewable energy, methane capture, cookstoves and engineered removals, and how their credit quality differs.
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Additionality Explained: What to Know Before Starting a Carbon Project
What additionality means, how it is tested (financial, regulatory, common-practice, barrier), and the baseline, permanence and leakage concepts every carbon project must address.
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Carbon Credit Quality & Integrity: ICVCM and VCMI Explained
How the market judges carbon credit quality, the ICVCM Core Carbon Principles and CCP label, the VCMI Claims Code, and how to avoid junk credits and greenwashing.
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Top Carbon Credit Registries Compared
A comparison of the main carbon credit registries, Verra, Gold Standard, ACR, Climate Action Reserve and Puro.earth, what each specialises in, and how to choose.
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How to Register a Carbon Project: The Full Lifecycle
A step-by-step guide to registering a carbon-credit project, from methodology and PDD to validation, registration, verification and issuance, and how long each stage takes.
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How to Buy, Claim and Retire Carbon Credits
A practical guide to buying carbon credits: sourcing quality credits, retiring them on a registry, avoiding double-counting, and making credible claims under the VCMI Claims Code.
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ISO 14068-1: The Carbon Neutrality Standard Replacing PAS 2060
What ISO 14068-1:2023 requires for credible carbon-neutrality and net-zero claims, how it differs from the retired PAS 2060, and what it means for GCC organisations.
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Carbon Credit Pricing and Economics
What drives carbon credit prices, why the same tonne can cost a dollar or hundreds, the economics of developing a project, and where the value flows in the market.
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Article 6 of the Paris Agreement: The Global Carbon Markets Explained
What Article 6 of the Paris Agreement is, how Article 6.2 and 6.4 work, what COP29 agreed, and how corresponding adjustments prevent double-counting of international credits.
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ITMOs Explained: Internationally Transferred Mitigation Outcomes
What ITMOs are under Article 6.2 of the Paris Agreement, how they are authorised and transferred, the role of corresponding adjustments, and why the GCC is an active player.
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Carbon Credits in the GCC: Registers, Exchanges and Article 6
How carbon markets are developing across the GCC, the UAE's National Carbon Register, ADGM trading, Saudi Arabia's RVCMC exchange, and the region's Article 6 ambitions.
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Biodiversity Credits, and How They Differ From Carbon Credits
The carbon analogy breaks immediately, because biodiversity is not fungible. What a credit tries to represent, how to judge a scheme, and an honest read on maturity.
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