August 2026 VCM Updates: Section A

This article is an automatically translated version of the original Japanese article. Please refer to the Japanese version for the most accurate information.

This is a newsletter from Deloitte Tohmatsu Sustainacraft, Inc. This article is Section A (Market Trends) of the VCM Updates (Voluntary Carbon Market updates).

SBTi V2.0 Webinar Announcement

In June 2026, the SBTi released V2.0, the revised version of the "Corporate Net Zero Standard." In response, we will be hosting a webinar as follows.

Webinar Overview (Link)
Title: Changes in the use of Nature-based Solutions (NbS) Credits under the New SBTi Standard (v2.0) and OER: Key Points for Companies to Grasp Now
Date & Time: Thursday, September 17, 2026, 14:00-15:30
Location: Online (Zoom Webinar)
Participation Fee: Free

Webinar Content
One of the core elements of this revision is the replacement of "Beyond Value Chain Mitigation (BVCM)," which was previously only a recommendation, with a phased system called "Ongoing Emissions Responsibility (OER)."

In this webinar, we will explain the positioning of Nature-based Solutions (NbS) Carbon Credits under the new standard, focusing on the following three points:

• Explanation of SBTi CNZS v2.0 (including Ongoing Emissions Responsibility (OER))
• Supply outlook for Nature-based Solutions (NbS) Credits
• Case studies and service introduction

Registration
Please register via the link below:
Seminar Registration Page

«Structure of VCM Updates»

A. Market Trends of Voluntary Carbon Credits ← Subject of this article

1. Analysis of Credit Issuance, Retirement, and Investment Trends
2. Project Pipeline Analysis
3. Detailed Analysis Section

B. Trends in Major International Regulations

Introduction

Credit Issuance Performance
The total volume of Credit Issuance in July 2026 reached 22.25 million units, recording a significant increase of 66.75% year-on-year. On the other hand, the total Retirement volume remained at 5.62 million units, a decrease of 49.86% year-on-year. Regarding labeled Credits, the supply of high-quality and regulatory-compliant Credits is accelerating, with 2.80 million units of Core Carbon Principles (CCP) labeled Credits and 0.43 million units of Article 6 labeled Credits being issued. Additionally, 0.93 million units of CORSIA-eligible Credits were confirmed.

Project Pipeline Trends
Active movement was observed in the new Project Registration pipeline this month for both Nature-based Solutions (NbS) and Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR). In particular, there was a noticeable entry into the pipeline of new agricultural and forestry projects in Asia and Africa. Specific trends regarding these project attributes and methodologies will be analyzed in detail in the following Section A-2.

Investment Trends
In the investment trends for July 2026, notable movements included CDR technologies, particularly Biochar, transitioning from the demonstration stage to industrial implementation and commercial scale. There was also progress in "institutionalization," where Nature-based Solutions (NbS) assets are being incorporated as long-term investment targets for institutional investors. Furthermore, Japanese companies were observed moving beyond being just the demand side (Buyers) to becoming the supply side (Project Developers) in the carbon market. Details are provided in Section A-3.

A. Market Trends of Voluntary Carbon Credits

A-1: Analysis of Credit Issuance, Retirement, and Investment Trends

Target Registries: VCS (Verra), GS (Gold Standard), CAR (Climate Action Reserve), ACR (American Carbon Registry), ART-TREES, Puro (Puro.earth), Isometric

Target Period: July 2026

Notes: Please note that companies performing Retirements are not required to register with their real names in the registries, and therefore accuracy cannot be guaranteed. Additionally, there are delays in data reflection in the registries, so please be aware that project numbers and status changes for this target period may occur in the future.

• Issuance Performance: 22.25 million (up 66.75% YoY)
  • By registry, VCS (7.89 million) and GS (6.80 million) account for approximately 66% of the total, followed by ACR (3.17 million) and CAR (2.67 million).
  • By project type, Energy (9.37 million) is the largest, followed by REDD+ (5.19 million) and Nature Restoration (3.87 million).
• Retirement Performance: 5.62 million (down 49.86% YoY)
  • By registry, Retirements from GS (2.30 million) and VCS (2.14 million) are central, with 0.79 million units of Retirement confirmed from ACR.
  • In the Nature-based Solutions (NbS) sector, grassland management projects in South Africa and China occupy the top spots for Retirements.

The Credit labels displayed below are all based on information provided by each certification body (registry). Therefore, please note the following:

・Even if a methodology itself is CORSIA eligible or CCP approved, it will not be counted as a labeled Credit in the table below unless the label information is included in the registry's data.

・Only the VCS and GS registries provide information on Article 6 labels.

Top List of Issued Projects

Below are the top 10 projects for which Credits were issued in July 2026, as well as a list of projects issued with labels (Article 6, CCP, CORSIA, Removal).

The 3.355 million tons issued this month by the Katingan Peatland Restoration and Conservation Project (VCS-1477) in Indonesia, which ranked first in issuance volume, represents the first Credits issued under Indonesia's newly established carbon market regulations for the forestry sector (which require registration and approval by the Ministry of Forestry, alignment with national climate accounting, and API integration between Verra and the Indonesian national registry) (Source).

Issuance Performance by Label (Article 6)

This month, a total of 0.43 million units of Article 6 labeled Credits were issued for Improved Cookstove and water purifier projects in Laos.

Furthermore, at the end of July 2026, the Rwandan government announced that it has completed the accounting for Corresponding Adjustments required for international transfer under Article 6 for approximately 5.69 million tons of Credits from the DelAgua Clean Cooking Grouped Project (Source). Since the Credits in question have already been issued and granted Article 6 labels, they do not appear in this month's issuance performance; however, it is noteworthy that the confirmation of the Corresponding Adjustment has opened the path for these Credits to be actually used for international transfer (such as for other countries' NDC achievement or CORSIA purposes).

Issuance Performance by Label (CCP)

A total of 19 projects and 2.8 million units of CCP-labeled Credits were issued, including Improved Forest Management (IFM) projects in the U.S. and Mexico, Landfill Gas (LFG) projects in Chile, Brazil, Turkey, and China, as well as Cookstoves projects in Ghana, Kenya, and Timor-Leste. As Credits that meet the quality standards of IC-VCM, they are expected to contribute to improving market integrity.

Issuance Performance by Label (CORSIA)

As CORSIA-eligible Credits for the aviation industry's Offset scheme, gas leakage reduction projects in Bangladesh and Cookstove projects in Laos were confirmed. Securing eligible Credits for the first phase is steadily progressing. Note that because CORSIA labels and Article 6 labels are granted based on independent criteria, there are cases where both may not be present simultaneously (e.g., VCS-2930).

Issuance Performance by Label (Removal)

The only project for which a "Removal" label was confirmed this month was the TCT Meridian Northwest IFM (ACR-874), an Improved Forest Management (IFM) project in the U.S., with 58,054 units. This project was also granted a CCP label.

<List of Retired Projects (Nature-based Solutions)>

In terms of Nature-based Solutions (NbS) Retirements, a large-scale Retirement of 400,000 units was made from a grassland management project in South Africa (VCS-2710).

Regarding retiring companies, Standard Bank of South Africa retired over 400,000 units of NbS Credits, taking the top spot in July. Additionally, major financial, consulting, and telecommunications companies such as Wells Fargo, Deloitte, Aviva, and Deutsche Telekom continue to utilize Credits to achieve their climate goals.

Target Projects: Covers investments in Nature-based Solutions (NbS) and CDR.

Target Period: July 2026

Notes: For "Credits" and "Group investment," only announced figures are recorded; therefore, there may be blank spaces.

The table below summarizes 13 major investment and financing deals confirmed by our company. In the Nature-based Solutions (NbS) sector, movements toward "institutionalization"—where NbS assets are integrated into long-term investment schemes for institutional investors—were prominent, such as the $142 million investment in Australia's Tasmania Natural Asset Trust. In the CDR sector, there were successive cases of technologies, primarily Biochar, transitioning from the demonstration stage to industrial implementation and commercial scale, including Rio Tinto × Superchar (fuel substitution with Biochar pellets) and Carbonfuture × Frontier Infrastructure Holdings (the largest-ever ethanol BECCS contract). Furthermore, Japanese companies were also seen moving to the supply side, as evidenced by Nippon Paper's in-house development of an ACCU generation project through afforestation in Australia. For more details, please see "A-3: Detailed Analysis Section."

A-2: Project Pipeline Analysis

Target Registries: VCS (Verra), GS (Gold Standard), CAR (Climate Action Reserve), ACR (American Carbon Registry), ART-TREES, Puro (Puro.earth), Isometric

Target Projects: Pipeline related to Nature-based Solutions (NbS) and CDR

Target Period: July 2026

Notes: Please note that there is a slight time lag in data reflection in the registries, so project numbers and status changes for this target period may occur in the future.

Terminology: Annual ER refers to the annual Emission Reductions and Sequestration (tCO₂e).

This section covers new pipeline projects from last month concerning Nature-based Solutions (NbS) and CDR.

Please note that the Listing Date in our database is either obtained directly from the registry or is based on an estimate. Therefore, please be aware that the comprehensiveness and accuracy of the data are not guaranteed.

The new pipeline for Nature-based Solutions (NbS) projects in July 2026 is...