From pipeline to policy: designing India's Article 6 approval framework for climate finance and domestic decarbonisation

Article 6 of the Paris Agreement offers India an opportunity to receive payments from other countries for mitigation outcomes at home, and to channel that revenue towards the vast investment that the low-carbon transition requires. Yet while the country can use international carbon markets to help finance its own decarbonisation, it will need to establish the right framework for approving sales of its Article 6 projects. Without this, there is a risk that India will undermine efforts to hit its near-term climate targets and achieve its 2070 net zero goal. This report explores how the country can establish such a framework. The author argues that India should decide whether to authorise sales of carbon credits under Article 6 based on calibrated questions about what to sell, when to sell it and at what price.