Who is building Europe's CRCF market.
No project can certify itself. A CRCF unit exists because four groups each did their part. This is who they are, in that order. Checked 5 October 2026
Who writes the rules.
The CRCF is a regulation. The Commission drafts the methodology for each activity as a delegated act, and Parliament and Council can object within two months.
European Commission, DG CLIMA (Unit C.3)
Unit C.3 owns the CRCF.
Carbon Removal Expert Group (CREG)
Commission advisory group that co-develops methodologies.
Who certifies a project.
Only a scheme the Commission has recognised may certify under the CRCF. Nine have applied, all are still in assessment. Some hold the ICVCM label, a separate and voluntary quality mark that says nothing about CRCF recognition.
| Scheme | Applied | CRCF recognition | ICVCM |
|---|---|---|---|
| Isometric | Jun 2026 | In assessment | CCP-Eligible |
| Puro.earth | Jun 2026 | In assessment | CCP-Eligible |
| Rainbow Standard | Jul 2026 | In assessment | CCP-Eligible |
| Oncra Certifications | Jul 2026 | In assessment | Submitted |
| Planet First Registry | Jul 2026 | In assessment | not assessed |
| SURE-CRCF | Aug 2026 | In assessment | not assessed |
| Carbon Standards International AG | Aug 2026 | In assessment | Submitted |
| ClimatePal EU | Aug 2026 | In assessment | not assessed |
| Bneutral | Oct 2026 | In assessment | not assessed |
Who checks the project.
A certification body runs the audit. It has to be accredited to EN ISO/IEC 17065 for the CRCF scope and be legally and financially independent of the project it checks. Accreditation is only starting, so none of these is a confirmed CRCF body. They are the ones positioned for it.
Who buys the unit.
Units are issued only after the removal has happened and a re-certification audit confirms it, into a registry anyone can read. From there a buyer retires them.
EU Carbon Removal Buyers' Club
Voluntary EU market platform, two tracks. Platform and join survey live; initial permanent-removal purchases targeted by Dec 2026.
Frontier
Advance market commitment, EU exposure via BECCS offtakes. Template and price setter.
What decides whether you may claim it.
Buying a unit and being allowed to count it are two different questions. These bodies answer the second one.
| Body | What it governs |
|---|---|
| SBTi | V2.0 final since 11 Jun 2026, keeps CRCF units eligible for neutralisation. |
| GHG Protocol | The accounting rules behind most corporate inventories. Its Land Sector and Removals Guidance applies from 2027. |
| VCMI | Sets how a company may talk about the credits it buys. |
| EFRAG, ESRS | Writes the ESRS, the reporting standards under the CSRD. |
| ICVCM, Core Carbon Principles | Global integrity benchmark often referenced against CRCF. |
| ISO | ISO/TC 265 develops carbon-management standards. |
| CEN-CENELEC | CEN/TC 474 develops carbon-management standards. |
Who speaks for the supply side.
Associations shape the rules on behalf of their members. That makes them interest groups, not neutral sources. Where their members are in our directory, we link them.
DVNE
8First national CDR association in the EU, Germany.
Brussels association for engineered removals. Sits in the Commission's expert group.
French national CDR association, joint membership with DVNE and NEP.
Biochar Europe
7Drove biochar's inclusion as a permanent removal.
Represents the biomass sector, relevant for BioCCS feedstock rules.
International Soil Carbon Industry Alliance, coordinates the soil carbon industry's response to CRCF, Verra VM42 and SBTi.
Founded 2025, works on Nordic and EU demand. Its secretary general co-authored the proposal for Commission-backed buyer guidance.
Who looks at it critically.
Read these before you buy. They are independent of the schemes and of the developers.
Who sits in the room where the CRCF is written.
The Commission's expert group advises on every delegated act. Its membership is public, and it is worth reading closely.
Two things stand out. Companies are rare: Stockholm Exergi and Indigo Agriculture Europe, plus Austria's environment agency as an observer. And the associations closest to the removal supply side, among them DVNE, the Nordic Carbon Removal Association and ISCIA, are not members, while Biochar Europe and the Negative Emissions Platform are.
The map as one picture.
A snapshot from June 2026 for presentations and printouts. The page above is the version we keep current.
