Article 6.2 of the Paris Agreement establishes a decentralized framework under which Parties may engage in cooperative approaches that involve the international transfer of mitigation outcomes (ITMOs) toward achieving their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). In effect, it permits country-to-country trading of emission reductions: a host country generates a verified mitigation outcome, and a buyer country applies it against its own NDC target.
The provision is short in the treaty text itself but is operationalized through detailed guidance adopted at COP26 in Glasgow (2021) as part of the Article 6 Rulebook, with further refinements at COP27 (Sharm el-Sheikh, 2022) and COP28 (Dubai, 2023). Key features include:
- Corresponding adjustments: to prevent double counting, the host country must add the transferred emissions back to its own inventory while the buyer subtracts them.
- Authorization: each ITMO must be authorized by the participating governments before transfer.
- Reporting: Parties submit initial reports and annual information on cooperative approaches, reviewed by an Article 6 technical expert team.
- Share of proceeds and Overall Mitigation in Global Emissions (OMGE): encouraged but not mandatory under 6.2, unlike the centralized 6.4 mechanism.
Article 6.2 is distinct from Article 6.4, which creates a centralized UN-supervised crediting mechanism (the successor to the Kyoto Protocol's Clean Development Mechanism), and from Article 6.8, which covers non-market approaches. Because 6.2 is bilateral and lightly governed, it has moved faster in practice: Switzerland, Japan, Sweden, Singapore, and South Korea are among the early buyers, with host countries including Ghana, Thailand, Peru, and Vanuatu.
Critics warn that 6.2's flexibility risks weak environmental integrity, inconsistent baselines, and limited transparency, particularly where authorization decisions are not public. Supporters argue it channels climate finance to developing countries and can lower the global cost of meeting the Paris temperature goals.
Example
In November 2023, Switzerland and Thailand completed what was described as the first authorized ITMO transfer under Article 6.2, covering emission reductions from Bangkok's electric bus fleet operated by Energy Absolute.
Frequently asked questions
Article 6.2 is a decentralized bilateral framework where countries directly authorize and transfer ITMOs, while Article 6.4 is a centralized crediting mechanism supervised by a UN body that issues standardized credits.
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