India has 6 per cent of carbon credit market, China has 73 per cent

Mumbai: India is the second largest seller of carbon credits in the world with six per cent share in 2007 while China tops the list with a whopping 73 per cent share, a World Bank report said.

Carbon credits or `certified emission reductions (CER)', issued by the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) executive board for emission reductions and verified under the rules of the Kyoto Protocol, are traded on the global climate exchanges.

"India and Brazil, at 6 per cent market share each, transacted the highest volumes after China in 2007," according to World Bank's `State and trends of the carbon market 2008' report.

China remained the world leader in CER supply for the third consecutive year, with a 73 per cent market share in terms of volumes last year against 54 per cent in 2006.

The report cited the attractiveness of China for buyers of carbon credits, due mainly to "the large size, economies of scale in origination, and its favourable investment climate."

China consolidated its position as the pre-eminent carbon credit supplier, by quadrupling its number of projects in the pipeline from January 2007 to March 2008, even as the high price expectations for CERs in India and Brazil have hindered market growth in the two countries, the report said.