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International Carbon Markets | Paris Agreement | Ireland
Meta Description: Article 6 Paris Agreement explained by Michael English (IMPT.io CTO). How Article 6.2 and 6.4 carbon trading mechanisms affect Ireland, Irish businesses, and EU voluntary carbon markets.
Target Keywords: Article 6 Paris Agreement Ireland, Article 6.2 corresponding adjustment, international carbon trading EU Ireland, Paris Agreement carbon markets, Article 6.4 mechanism Ireland, Michael English Article 6 carbon
The Paris Agreement's Article 6 establishes the rules for international carbon market mechanisms — the framework governing how carbon credits can flow between countries as part of their climate commitments. After years of contentious negotiations at UNFCCC COP meetings, Article 6 implementation is finally advancing, with significant implications for Irish carbon market participants and international carbon credit buyers.
Under the Paris Agreement (2015), 196 parties submitted Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) — national climate targets representing their "fair share" of global emissions reduction. Countries that achieve emission reductions greater than their NDC could, in principle, transfer the surplus reduction to other countries to use toward their own NDC.
But this transfer creates a fundamental accounting problem: if Country A reduces emissions by 10 MtCO₂e and transfers 5 MtCO₂e of that reduction to Country B, Country A can only count 5 MtCO₂e toward its own NDC. Both countries cannot claim the same 5 MtCO₂e — that would be double counting at the international level.
Article 6 establishes the rules to prevent this, through mechanisms called "corresponding adjustments."
Article 6.2 provides a framework for bilateral agreements between countries to trade Internationally Transferred Mitigation Outcomes (ITMOs) — carbon units representing verified emission reductions authorised for international transfer.
Article 6.2 is implemented through bilateral agreements between countries. As of 2024:
Ireland's position: Ireland has not yet concluded bilateral Article 6.2 agreements. Given Ireland's significant difficulty meeting its 2030 targets (particularly in agriculture), Article 6.2 ITMOs could become an important compliance tool if Ireland misses its Effort Sharing Regulation targets.
The corresponding adjustment requirement has created a significant commercial challenge for voluntary carbon markets: credits from Paris Agreement member countries cannot be sold for voluntary corporate net-zero claims unless the host country formally authorises Article 6.2 transfer.
Without authorisation, the host country counts the emission reduction toward its own NDC — and so does the corporate buyer. This is the very double counting that Article 6 was designed to prevent.
Market impact:
For buyers of voluntary carbon credits, this means that long-term credit quality will increasingly depend on whether the credit has Article 6.2 authorisation — a formal government document that the host country has made the corresponding adjustment.
Article 6.4 establishes a new international carbon crediting mechanism supervised by the UNFCCC's Article 6.4 Supervisory Body (SB). This replaces the Kyoto Protocol's Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) with a more robust, Paris-era equivalent.
Broader participation: Both developed and developing countries can host Article 6.4 projects and host country agencies; credits can be used both for NDC compliance (if not transferred) and international purposes (if transferred).
Standardised methodologies: The SB develops and approves standardised methodologies for different project types — renewable energy, avoided deforestation, industrial energy efficiency, etc. This replaces the CDM's project-specific methodology approval system.
Removal activities: Article 6.4 explicitly includes carbon removal projects (afforestation, direct air capture, soil carbon) — an expansion from CDM's predominantly avoidance/reduction focus.
Mandatory corresponding adjustments: All Article 6.4 credits used internationally require host country corresponding adjustments, ensuring integrity.
Share of Proceeds: A portion of Article 6.4 credit revenue goes to the Adaptation Fund (to support developing countries' climate adaptation) and to general mitigation ambition.
The Article 6.4 SB was established at COP26 (Glasgow, 2021) and has been developing:
The SB has moved slowly, with methodologies for carbon removal activities particularly contentious. Several methodology types were approved in principle at COP28 (Dubai, 2023) but implementation details continue to be negotiated.
First Article 6.4 credits: Expected to be issued in 2025 once the registry is operational and initial projects are validated.
Article 6.8 establishes a framework for non-market approaches to international climate cooperation — including technology transfer, capacity building, and direct finance that supports emission reductions without generating tradeable credits.
This is less commercially significant but relevant for Irish development assistance and technical cooperation activities.
The EU has a complex relationship with Article 6 mechanisms:
EU ETS and Article 6: The EU ETS does not currently accept Article 6.4 credits for compliance — EU ETS compliance requires EU Allowances (EUAs) only. However, discussions about post-2030 ETS architecture include possible Article 6.4 integration.
Effort Sharing Regulation and Article 6: Ireland and other EU member states that miss their Effort Sharing Regulation targets (covering agriculture, transport, buildings) must either purchase Effort Sharing Units (ESUs) from other EU member states or use Article 6 mechanisms. If Ireland cannot procure sufficient ESUs intra-EU, Article 6.2 ITMOs become a compliance necessity.
EU's international carbon market policy: The EU has been a constructive but demanding participant in Article 6 negotiations, insisting on high environmental integrity (corresponding adjustments, non-backsliding) over market accessibility.
CBAM and Article 6: Countries exporting to the EU under CBAM can use Article 6.4 credits to demonstrate that the embedded carbon in their products has been offset — but only if those credits meet CBAM's carbon price equivalence requirements.
If your organisation is purchasing voluntary carbon credits and claiming they contribute to your net-zero strategy, the integrity of those claims increasingly depends on Article 6 accounting:
Premium-quality credits (highest integrity, most defensible claims):
Acceptable credits (for transition period claims):
Credits to avoid (for net-zero claims):
Here's the strategic opportunity for Ireland that is often overlooked:
Ireland, like all developed countries, has a challenging NDC target. But if Ireland were to develop high-integrity carbon reduction or removal projects (peatland restoration, soil carbon, blue carbon) at scale, with ambitious monitoring and MRV:
This "double dividend" — domestic emissions reduction + carbon credit export revenue — represents a genuine economic and environmental opportunity for Ireland's rural economy. The preconditions are:
Enterprise Ireland and the Department of Environment are beginning to explore this, but progress has been slow relative to the commercial opportunity.
Article 6 rules are still evolving at each UNFCCC COP meeting. Key unresolved issues:
Removal activity rules: How are long-term storage permanence risk and reversal events handled for removal credits? If a reforested area burns down, who bears the corresponding adjustment reversal?
Transition from CDM: Approximately 300 CDM projects have applied for transition to Article 6.4. The criteria for transition are contentious.
Confidentiality vs transparency: Some countries want to keep Article 6.2 bilateral agreement details confidential; civil society and transparency advocates want full public disclosure.
Share of Proceeds rate: The percentage of Article 6.4 credit value going to the Adaptation Fund and mitigation ambition is still being determined.
Following developments at COP30 (Belém, Brazil, November 2025) will be essential for anyone active in international carbon markets.
Article 6 of the Paris Agreement is the most complex and consequential development in international carbon markets since the Kyoto Protocol. Its implementation — particularly the corresponding adjustment requirement — is restructuring the entire voluntary carbon market, distinguishing credits that can be used for credible net-zero claims from those that cannot.
For Irish organisations and the Irish government, Article 6 creates both obligations (ensuring purchased credits have proper corresponding adjustments) and opportunities (positioning Ireland as a supplier of Article 6-authorised high-quality removal credits from peatland restoration and blue carbon projects).
The organisations that understand Article 6 mechanics and act on them now — sourcing Article 6-authorised credits, developing export-ready Irish projects, building relationships with host country authorisation processes — will be ahead of the regulatory curve as corresponding adjustment requirements become standard market practice.
Michael English is Co-Founder & CTO of IMPT.io, which is developing Article 6-compliant carbon credit infrastructure for EU and international markets. Based in Clonmel, Co. Tipperary, Ireland.
Keywords: Article 6 Paris Agreement Ireland, ITMO corresponding adjustment Ireland, international carbon trading EU, Article 6.2 bilateral carbon Ireland, Article 6.4 mechanism Ireland EU, carbon credits Paris Agreement, Michael English Article 6 carbon Ireland