Carbon credit project development and registration in India

VPA India helps owners of emission-reduction and carbon-removal projects in India earn carbon credits, from feasibility to issuance and sale, under UNFCCC Article 6.4, Verra, Gold Standard, GCC, ACR, ART-TREES, Isometric, Puro.earth and the offset mechanism of India's Carbon Credit Trading Scheme (CCTS). Independent auditors validate and verify, and each programme registers projects and issues credits; we prepare the documents and guide you through each step. Our work is founder-led by a former DOE/VVB lead auditor (SGS SA).

Talk to us: WhatsApp +91 8905541120 · Call +91 8905541120 · inquiries@decarbonisation.expert · Send an enquiry (form)

Who it is for

Owners and developers of emission-reduction or removal projects in India – in industry, renewable energy, waste and biogas, and forestry and farming – farmer groups, and public bodies.

Project types

Renewable energy – wind and solar power.
Industry – energy efficiency, fuel switching, cogeneration, waste heat recovery, HFC-23 and N₂O abatement, and green urea and ammonia.
Waste and biofuels – biogas from manure, solid waste management, recycling and biodiesel.
Clean cooking – efficient cookstoves.
Forests, trees and farming – afforestation, agroforestry, REDD+ and natural farming.
Carbon removal – biochar.

The project cycle, step by step

Feasibility. We check eligibility, additionality, likely reductions or removals and risks, and advise whether to proceed.
Standard and methodology. We recommend the option that fits your project and its buyers.
Project design document. We write the PDD: boundary, baseline, additionality, monitoring plan and safeguards.
Validation. An independent validation and verification body (VVB) checks the design; we help you answer its findings.
Registration. The programme registers the project; we prepare the documents it needs.
Monitoring. You run the project and keep records; we prepare each monitoring report.
Verification. A VVB confirms the reductions or removals; we support you through its review.
Issuance. The programme issues credits to your registry account; we prepare the request with you.
Sale. Our trading and brokerage work supports buyer introductions, the purchase agreement and the transfer.

Standards and registries

A 6.4 ER – UNFCCC Article 6.4, the Paris Agreement Crediting Mechanism (PACM): host-country approval, validation and verification by a designated operational entity (DOE), and registration by the UN Supervisory Body.
VCU – Verra, Verified Carbon Standard (VCS): pipeline listing, public comment, VVB validation, registration, VVB verification and issuance in the Verra Registry.
VER – Gold Standard: preliminary review, validation and design certification, then verification and performance certification before issuance.
ACC – Global Carbon Council (GCC): verification by a GCC-approved verifier; its Steering Committee decides registration and each issuance.
ERT – ACR: listing, public comment, validation and verification by an accredited VVB, ACR review, registration and issuance.
ERR – ART-TREES: national governments and large subnational jurisdictions only; validation and verification by an ART-approved VVB, then ART Board approval.
Isometric Certificate – Isometric: VVB validation, then verification of each GHG statement before issuance; nothing is issued in advance.
CORC – Puro.earth: facility and output audits by independent auditors, then issuance in the Puro Registry.
CCU – carbon credit certificate, India's CCTS offset mechanism: validation by an accredited carbon verification agency, registration, verification by a different agency, and issuance on the National Steering Committee's recommendation.

Article 6.4 methodologies so far cover landfill gas, nitrous oxide from nitric acid production, grid-connected renewable power and household cooking. Registered CDM activities could move to Article 6.4 if the host country approved the move by 30 June 2026, an extended deadline. The first A 6.4 ERs, for a cookstove activity that moved from the CDM, have been approved for issuance.

What we need from you

Location (district and state) and size.
What the project does, and its start or planned start date.
Who owns it and the rights to its reductions or removals.
Any registration under another carbon programme or scheme.
Documents: project report, permits, land records, energy or production data.

Send them with form 1 (technology and industrial projects) or form 2 (nature-based projects).

Track record

Since 2008 we have worked on carbon-credit projects in India and abroad under the CDM, Article 6.4, Verra, Gold Standard, ACR, GCC, ART-TREES, the FCPF, Puro.earth and Isometric; our projects page lists them.

Frequently asked questions

How long does registration take?

It depends on the programme's workload, whether the methodology is new, how complete your data are, public comment periods, any host-country approval, and how quickly audit findings are closed. Verification and issuance follow each monitoring period. Our feasibility study sets out the expected timing.

Can small or grouped projects take part?

Yes, in most programmes. Verra grouped projects combine many activity instances in one project; Gold Standard programmes of activities add activities over time, including microscale ones; India's CCTS allows bundled registration and grouped projects whose make-up stays fixed. Our farm page explains our aggregated tree-planting project.

How are carbon credits sold?

Owners sell credits to companies, traders and portfolio buyers – after issuance or forward under a purchase agreement – and transfer them between registry accounts. CCUs are tradable on power exchanges under the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission's 2026 regulations, on a monthly trading day set by the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE). Our buy page shows what buyers check.

What is India's CCTS offset mechanism?

Non-obligated entities, such as renewable energy producers, can register approved mitigation projects to earn carbon credit certificates (CCUs). BEE is the Administrator; Grid Controller of India (Grid-India) keeps the registry. Approved methodologies cover grid-connected renewable power, hydrogen from electrolysis or biogas, industrial energy efficiency and fuel switching, landfill gas, manure methane, and afforestation and reforestation, including degraded mangroves. Registration is open to Indian firms for new projects (the procedure's start date is 1 January 2025), and a project cannot be registered in another carbon market at the same time. Companies with emission-intensity targets: see our CCTS compliance page.

Carbon Credits & Offsets
Farm carbon credits
Nature and biodiversity credits
Assessment forms – forms 1 and 2 for project owners
Projects
Buy carbon credits
CCTS compliance (for obligated entities)

Sources

UNFCCC, CMA.3 rules, modalities and procedures for the Article 6.4 mechanism, advance unedited version (unfccc.int), read 08-Nov-2026.
Verra, Develop a Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) Project (verra.org), read 08-Nov-2026.
Gold Standard, Certification Process Step-by-Step Guide, version 3.0, February 2026 (globalgoals.goldstandard.org).
Global Carbon Council, Project Registration & Issuance (globalcarboncouncil.com), read 08-Nov-2026.
ACR, Life Cycle of ACR Carbon Credits (acrcarbon.org), read 08-Nov-2026.
Architecture for REDD+ Transactions (ART), home page (artredd.org), read 08-Nov-2026.
ART, Registry Operating Procedures, March 2025 (artredd.org).
Isometric, Isometric Standard, version 2.2 (registry.isometric.com), read 08-Nov-2026.
Puro.earth, Certification (puro.earth), read 08-Nov-2026.
Bureau of Energy Efficiency, Detailed Procedure for Offset Mechanism under CCTS, version 1.0, effective 27-Mar-2025 (beeindia.gov.in).
UNFCCC, "Clean cooking projects gain access to UN carbon market", 09-Oct-2026 (unfccc.int).
UNFCCC, Decision 20/CMA.7 on the Article 6.4 mechanism (FCCC/PA/CMA/2025/19/Add.3), 30-Mar-2026 (unfccc.int).
UNFCCC, "UN carbon market approves first-ever issuance of credits under the Paris Agreement", 26-Feb-2026 (unfccc.int).
Verra, VCS Frequently Asked Questions (verra.org), read 08-Nov-2026.
Gold Standard, Programme of Activity Requirements and Procedures, version 3.0, 2024 (globalgoals.goldstandard.org).
Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (Terms and Conditions for Purchase and Sale of Carbon Credit Certificates) Regulations, 2026, as summarised by Climate Change Laws of the World, read 08-Nov-2026.
Energetica India, "BEE sets monthly trading schedule for carbon credit certificates", 02-Nov-2026.
Press Information Bureau (Ministry of Power), "Carbon Credit Trading Scheme", 05-Feb-2026 (pib.gov.in).
Bureau of Energy Efficiency, Approved Methodologies under Offset Mechanism (beeindia.gov.in), read 08-Nov-2026.