Frequently asked questions

CO2e, or carbon dioxide equivalent, is a common unit that expresses any greenhouse gas as the amount of CO2 that would cause the same warming, usually over 100 years. It is calculated by multiplying the tonnes of a gas by its global warming potential (GWP) from the IPCC.

Scope 3 emissions are the indirect emissions in a company's value chain that are not from its own fuel use or bought energy. They include purchased goods, transport, business travel, employee commuting and the use and disposal of sold products, sorted into 15 categories by the GHG Protocol Scope 3 Standard (2011).

Net zero usually means cutting emissions as deeply as possible and balancing only the small leftover amount with removals, while carbon neutral often allows balancing a larger share with credits over a set period. The exact rules depend on the standard used, such as the SBTi Corporate Net-Zero Standard or ISO 14068.

A carbon offset is the use of a carbon credit from a project outside your own operations to compensate for your own emissions. It does not remove your emissions; it pays for a reduction or removal somewhere else, so its value depends on whether that credit is additional, permanent and not double counted.

Additionality means the emission cut or removal would not have happened without the income from carbon credits. If a project was already profitable or legally required, its credits are not additional and do not represent a real extra benefit for the climate.

CCTS is India's Carbon Credit Trading Scheme, notified on 28 June 2023 under the Energy Conservation Act, 2001, and CBAM is the European Union's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism under Regulation (EU) 2023/956. CCTS creates India's domestic carbon market, while CBAM prices the carbon in certain goods imported into the EU.

No, a green credit is not the same as a carbon credit. The Green Credit Rules, 2023 state that the Green Credit programme is independent of carbon credits under the CCTS, although the same activity may also earn a carbon credit under that scheme.

A Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) in India represents 1 megawatt-hour of renewable electricity fed into the grid, under the CERC REC Regulations, 2022, and it is not a carbon credit. A REC supports a claim about using renewable electricity, mostly for Scope 2 reporting, while a carbon credit represents 1 tonne of CO2e reduced or removed.