A new Australian carbon credit company, Aetium, has come under fire from climate campaigners who claim its scheme to generate credits for solar panels and electric vehicles is potentially misleading. The not-for-profit group Climate Integrity has lodged a complaint with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), alleging that Aetium fails to meet the “additionality” standard required by global carbon offset principles.
Additionality is a core concept ensuring that emissions reductions would not have occurred without the financial incentive of carbon credits. Experts argue that Aetium’s scheme rewards actions like installing solar panels or buying EVs that would have happened anyway, thus generating “junk” credits. Aetium’s managing director, Christopher Ride, defended the scheme, stating that it aims to challenge the current system by rewarding existing emission-cutting actions.
Since February last year, over 4,000 projects have been registered with Aetium, including more than 150 by the Cassowary Coast regional council in Queensland and over 30 EVs owned by Europcar. Aetium says it has not yet generated revenue from the scheme, but plans to charge registration fees from 1 March and take a 7% share of issued credits.
Climate Integrity’s executive director, Claire Snyder, said Aetium’s definition of additionality is “out of step with virtually all established carbon credit schemes”. Professor Andrew Macintosh of Australian National University, a former head of the federal government’s emissions reduction assurance committee, described Aetium as “one of the most divergent from accepted practice”.
The ACCC has confirmed receipt of the complaint. Aetium said it was not aware of any formal complaint.
