{
  "id": 3853392,
  "title": "Carbon market initiative to open door to private capital for climate action",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/27/carbon-market-initiative-to-open-door-to-private-capital-for-climate",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-08-27T23:45:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Free Malaysia Today",
    "slug": "free-malaysia-today",
    "url": "https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2026/08/28/carbon-market-initiative-to-open-door-to-private-capital-for-climate-action"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Climate change has transformed from an environmental concern into a significant economic issue, with Malaysia facing mounting losses due to extreme weather events. In 2024, floods alone inflicted an estimated RM933.4 million in damage to homes, infrastructure, and businesses. To address this growing challenge, the Malaysian government has launched a carbon market initiative under the National Carbon Market Policy (NCMP). This policy aims to create a transparent and high-integrity carbon market, incorporating mechanisms for generating, verifying, and trading carbon credits. Each credit represents one tonne of CO₂e prevented or removed from the atmosphere.\n\nEnvironmental economist Norlida Hanim Salleh explains that while GHG emissions are essential for maintaining Earth's temperature, excessive concentrations trap heat, leading to global warming and extreme weather patterns, including more frequent floods. The NCMP seeks to harness climate finance by attracting private capital into low-carbon projects. However, Khairul Amri Kamarudin, dean of Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin Faculty of Applied Social Sciences, cautions against using the carbon market as a loophole for continued pollution. He emphasizes that emissions reduction should be prioritized, with carbon credits used for emissions that are difficult to avoid, such as improving energy efficiency, adopting renewable energy, and implementing clean technologies and low-carbon production processes.\n\nThe Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability estimates that Malaysia could reduce up to 56 million tonnes of CO₂e by 2030, with 70% achievable through cost-effective measures like energy efficiency. The remaining 30% involves harder-to-reduce emissions that necessitate more expensive mitigation technologies. The NCMP could play a crucial role in financing these projects while encouraging investments in solar energy, waste management, forest restoration, and low-carbon technologies. For the carbon market to be effective, it must deliver tangible emissions reductions, not simply increase credit transactions. NCMP is part of Malaysia's strategy to meet its National Determined Contribution (NDC 3.0) target of reducing emissions by 15-30 million tonnes of CO₂e by 2035 and achieving net-zero GHG emissions by 2050. The policy also lays the groundwork for future carbon-pricing instruments like an emissions trading scheme (ETS) and carbon tax, as well as Malaysia's participation in international carbon markets under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. The National Climate Change Bill, currently under finalization, aims to strengthen legal frameworks, emissions reporting, verification, and the national carbon registry to ensure transparency and prevent double-counting of credits.",
  "summary": "National Carbon Market Policy can serve as a financing mechanism by attracting private investment into low-carbon projects and environmental conservation.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Free Malaysia Today",
        "title": "Carbon market initiative to open door to private capital for climate action",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/27/carbon-market-initiative-to-open-door-to-private-capital-for-climate-3853882",
        "published": "2026-08-27T23:45:00.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}