India

Implementation period: 2024-2025 Funding amount: US$200,000 Window: Just-in-Time (JIT) support

India is poised to operationalize one of the world’s most ambitious national carbon markets through its Carbon Credit Trading Scheme (CCTS). Building on the legal foundation established by the Energy Conservation (Amendment) Act, 2022, and recent regulatory milestones, focus will now shift toward effective implementation, translating policy into practice. Key priorities include finalizing Measurement, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) and registry systems, launching the compliance mechanism for obligated entities, and piloting the voluntary offset market. With strong inter-agency coordination and continued technical support, India’s carbon market is expected to drive cost-effective emissions reductions, enhance climate ambition, and position the country as a leader in market-based climate action.

Objectives & Activities 

The PMI Program in India aims to support the country in implementing the CCTS by providing technical assistance on the:  

• Integration of market-based instruments to inform the design of the CCTS: Assess lessons from existing mechanisms such as the Perform Achieve and Trade (PAT) Scheme and the Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) mechanism to inform the development of the CCTS framework
• Development of robust MRV systems: Support the design and operationalization of MRV frameworks and a national carbon registry to ensure transparency and environmental integrity in carbon credit issuance and trading
• Institutional capacity building and stakeholder engagement: Enhance coordination among key stakeholders, including the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and the Bureau of Energy Efficiency, to support effective CCTS implementation and alignment with Article 6 of the Paris Agreement
• Design of the voluntary offset mechanism: Contribute to the ongoing development of a voluntary carbon market within the CCTS, enabling non-obligated entities to generate and trade high-integrity carbon credits
• Digital infrastructure and interoperability: Align national data systems with international platforms such as the Climate Action Data Trust to support transparency, tracking, and reporting in line with global best practices

Additional Resources

• Energy Conservation (Amendment) Act, 2022
• CCTS Compliance Mechanism Regulations – BEE, July 2024
• CCTS Offset Mechanism Regulation- BEE, March 2025
• Methodologies and Tools under Offset Mechanism
• Approved Sectors in Offset Mechanism under CCTS by Central Government
• Climate Action Data Trust (CADT)