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Spanish renewable energy company Acciona has partnered with Climate Blockchain Initiatives (CBI) to drive the global expansion of CBI’s blockchain-based purchase-and-sale platform for carbon rights.
Developed by CBI, ClimateTrade is a platform that helps companies and consumers offset their carbon footprint.
The platform connects generators of carbon offsets with entities that need to purchase them to comply with their carbon footprint reduction targets or with requirements arising from local environmental legislation. It can also be used by companies that wish to offer their clients the possibility of offsetting emissions created through the purchase of a product or service.
“By committing to the ClimateTrade project, we align ourselves with a triple strategic objective for ACCIONA: the fight against climate change, innovative digitization as a lever for bringing about the energy transition, and social responsibility towards the communities where we develop our projects”, explains Mikel Ortiz de Latierro, Director of Prevention, Sustainability, Environment and Quality of ACCIONA’s Energy Division.
As to what sets ClimateTrade apart from other carbon offset transaction systems, Acciona said that the use of blockchain technology considerably speeds up and simplifies the process without compromising security. The process of selling Certified Emission Reduction (CER) certificates under the Kyoto Protocol, for instance, could be completed within 48 hours, instead of the usual two-month timeframe.
Under the partnership, ACCIONA will provide the platform with Certified Emission Reduction (CER) certificates from renewable projects in developing countries, such as Mexico, Chile or Costa Rica, which will be tradable under the United Nations’ Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). It will also provide information on the corporate social responsibility initiatives associated with the renewable projects that are linked to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
“Working hand in hand with the leading world utility in sustainability on large-scale projects that have a high social content and comply with a number of SDGs means taking the platform to the next level,” ClimateTrade CEO Francisco Benedito said. “Thanks to ACCIONA, trust in our company has increased and this enables us to carry out a higher number of large-scale transactions with corporate clients, as well as giving us the security of being able to undertake new energy-related and carbon offset projects based on ACCIONA’s expertise in the fields of construction, energy and technology”.
