IPCC begins 2027 methodology report on carbon removal and CCUS

The IPCC commenced work on its 2027 Methodology Report on Carbon Dioxide Removal Technologies and CCUS, holding its first Lead Author Meeting from 14–16 April 2026 in Rome with over 150 experts. The harmonised accounting methodologies will shape carbon markets, ESG disclosures and verification standards relevant to Indian companies and policymakers.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) commenced its 2027 Methodology Report on Carbon Dioxide Removal Technologies and Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage (CDRT-CCUS), holding the first Lead Author Meeting (LAM1) from 14–16 April 2026 in Rome with over 150 experts under the IPCC Task Force on National Greenhouse Gas Inventories. The report will give governments updated scientific tools and standardised approaches for estimating emissions and removals across direct air capture, carbon capture and storage, soil carbon sequestration, biomass-based removal, coastal interventions and durable CO₂-derived materials.

The methodologies, used by countries under the UNFCCC and Paris Agreement, ensure comparability of climate data across jurisdictions and will underpin national greenhouse gas inventories. They directly affect governments setting climate targets, carbon-removal project developers, carbon-market participants and companies making removal claims. Indian policymakers, CDR and CCUS project developers, and corporates relying on carbon-removal credits for net-zero strategies will need to align with the new science-based methodologies, as standardised accounting raises the bar for environmental integrity and consistent reporting of removals.

Stakeholders should track the IPCC's structured process, which includes multiple Lead Author Meetings, iterative drafting and two formal review stages by experts and then jointly by governments and experts, with final approval expected in 2027. Companies and policymakers should anticipate more stringent, science-based validation of carbon-removal claims and invest in transparency, verification and alignment with internationally recognised standards. Indian carbon-market participants and ESG reporting teams should monitor the report's evolving scope across CDR and CCUS pathways to prepare inventory and disclosure systems for the finalised methodologies.

Key figure — First Lead Author Meeting: 14–16 April 2026 in Rome, over 150 experts