Investments in supply-chain decarbonization are set to become easier to justify and execute as two major carbon credit registries expand their remits to include environmental attribute credits (EACs).
The credits, sometimes known as insets, allow companies to claim the emissions savings associated with everything from purchases of low-carbon cement to investments that help suppliers electrify fossil-fuel machinery.
Isometric, a carbon credit registry and standard-setter that’s gained attention for streamlining the issuance of credits, announced this week that it will create a standard that suppliers of low-carbon steel and cement can use to issue EACs. Verra, the largest credit issuer by volume, said last month that it’s targeting the third quarter of this year for the release of a standard for what it calls Scope 3 Units.
Book and claim
The rival schemes address a common problem: Companies often hold back on supply-chain decarbonization because they cannot directly access the right solutions.
A company may want to use sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) for business travel, for example. Because it’s not possible to match individual passengers with SAF-powered flights, airlines use SAF wherever practical and sell the associated emissions savings, in the form of EACs, to buyers who are free to travel on any flight. The Sustainable Aviation Buyers Alliance, which operates such a “book-and-claim” scheme, has aggregated around $200 million in SAF purchases since launching in 2021.
The appeal of EACs has led to a proliferation of schemes and standards. The Center for Green Market Activation, one of the nonprofits that oversees the SAF alliance, runs related projects in road transport, cement and other areas. The Advanced and Indirect Mitigation (AIM) Platform, another project backed by the center, released overarching guidelines earlier this month that can be used in multiple sectors.
The registries’ solutions
Isometric’s approach is to offer a “one-stop shop” buyers can use to manage portfolios that include EACs alongside conventional credits for carbon removal, super-pollutants and other climate solutions, said Eamon Jubbawy, the company’s founder and CEO. The registry will release a book-and-claim module next month that will enable issuance, tracking and retirement of EACs for low-carbon products, including materials and fuels. Its first EACs, likely for cement, will be issued later this year, added Jubbawy.
Verra has been piloting
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