Hidden in plain sight: Flawed renewable energy projects in the voluntary carbon market

The report highlights a surplus of approximately 829 million carbon credits in the voluntary carbon market (VCM), with renewable energy (RE) projects accounting for 35% of all project types. It argues that large-scale, grid-connected RE projects are generally non-additional because they are economically feasible without carbon credit revenues. The document traces this issue back to lax methodologies from the Kyoto Protocol's Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), specifically methodology ACM0002, which has been adopted by VCM standards like Verra and Gold Standard. The report also notes human rights concerns, including forced displacements linked to large hydroelectric dams. Furthermore, it observes a trend of anonymous retirement for 89.9% of RE credits, suggesting buyers are aware of their low quality but purchase them due to low cost. The report warns that the transition of CDM projects to the Paris Agreement's Article 6 mechanism risks flooding new markets with low-quality credits.

• Renewable energy projects represent the largest share of the surplus of approximately 829 million carbon credits in the voluntary carbon market from the four top registries, accounting for 35% of all project types.
• Large-scale, grid-connected renewable energy projects are typically unable to demonstrate additionality because they are economically feasible and carbon credit revenues are insignificant compared to electricity sales.
• The CDM's flawed methodologies, particularly ACM0002 (Grid-Connected Electricity Generation from Renewable Sources), have led to a saturation of non-additional credits in the VCM; this methodology accounts for 91% of the 284.4 million RE credit surplus from VCS and GS registries.
• There is a significant disparity in disclosure between project types, with 89.9% of renewable energy credits retired anonymously compared to 25.8% for forestry and land use credits, indicating buyer awareness of low credit quality.
• Renewable energy projects, especially large hydroelectric dams, have been linked to human rights abuses, including the displacement of communities and destruction of the environment.
• The transition of CDM projects to the Paris Agreement's Article 6 mechanism threatens to introduce low-quality credits into the new system; 75% of the 1,424 project activities that applied for transition use large-scale ACM0002 and small-scale AMS-I.D grid-connected RE methodologies.

APA

Wyburd, I. (2024). Hidden in plain sight: Flawed renewable energy projects in the voluntary carbon market. Carbon Market Watch. https://carbonmarketwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/2024-06_Short-Report_-Renewable-Energy-Projects-in-the-VCM-1.pdf

Chicago

Wyburd, Inigo. Hidden in plain sight: Flawed renewable energy projects in the voluntary carbon market. Carbon Market Watch, 2024. https://carbonmarketwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/2024-06_Short-Report_-Renewable-Energy-Projects-in-the-VCM-1.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Wyburd |first1=Inigo |title=Hidden in plain sight: Flawed renewable energy projects in the voluntary carbon market |publisher=Carbon Market Watch |date=June 2024 |url=https://carbonmarketwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/2024-06_Short-Report_-Renewable-Energy-Projects-in-the-VCM-1.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{wyburd2024hidden, author = {Wyburd, Inigo}, title = {{Hidden in plain sight: Flawed renewable energy projects in the voluntary carbon market}}, institution = {Carbon Market Watch}, year = {2024}, month = jun, url = {https://carbonmarketwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/2024-06_Short-Report_-Renewable-Energy-Projects-in-the-VCM-1.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }