ICVCM Begins Assessing Over 100 Carbon Credit Methodologies in 36 Categories

The Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market has announced it will assess more than 100 active carbon credit methodologies grouped into 36 categories, targeting the first assessment decisions by end of March 2024. Programs representing a 98% share of the voluntary carbon market by retirement volume have already applied for CCP assessment.

The 36 categories will follow one of three assessment tracks. Categories covering 47% of credits in the market — including renewable energy, efficient cookstoves, improved forest management, and REDD+ — raise complex issues and will be assessed by Multi-Stakeholder Working Groups with internal and external experts. Categories covering 8% of credits, including methane capture from mines and landfills, ozone-depleting substance destruction, and sulphur hexafluoride reduction, will undergo internal assessment. Categories covering 1% of credits, including new natural gas power and waste heat recovery, are considered unlikely to meet CCP criteria and will be assessed last.

A notable development is that Verra, the world's largest carbon crediting program, included its new REDD+ methodology for assessment but excluded its older REDD+ methodologies, which account for 27% of credits in the market. Verra has announced a transition pathway for projects to move to the newer methodology. The ICVCM will assess programs and categories in parallel; programs meeting the criteria will be able to apply the CCP label to credits from categories that are also approved under the framework's two-tick approach.

Governments and regulators are increasingly looking to the CCPs as an international standard. The UK government has stated its intention to endorse the CCPs and reflect them in policy and regulation. The Monetary Authority of Singapore is exploring alignment of its transition credits with the CCPs, and the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission has published draft guidance on carbon credit derivatives that accords with the CCPs. An inaugural open market webinar for the Integrity Council's Market Consultation Group is scheduled for 8 February, covering how assessment decisions will be communicated.

Key figure — 98% market share — portion of voluntary carbon market retirements covered by programs that have applied for CCP assessment