Use of Carbon Offsets evaluates how a company compensates for the greenhouse-gas emissions that remain after all feasible in-house reductions - by purchasing or generating high-integrity carbon credits. It covers:

• the governance and criteria the company applies to decide when offsets are acceptable (e.g., only for residual emissions on a net-zero pathway);
• the type of credits used - removals (afforestation, direct air capture, soil carbon, BECCS) versus reduction/avoidance (renewable energy, methane capture, REDD+) - and their certification under recognised standards (ICVCM-aligned programs, Verra VCS, Gold Standard, ART TREES, CDM, Article 6 mechanisms);
• quality safeguards: additionality, permanence, leakage control, robust baselines, conservative quantification, independent verification and avoidance of double counting;
• transparency of project details, vintages, retirement/serial numbers, price paid and alignment with frameworks such as SBTi’s Net-Zero Standard, VCMI Claims Code and EU ESRS E1;
• integration of offsets into climate-target accounting (Scopes 1–3), internal carbon-pricing, and public claims (carbon neutral, net-zero, climate positive), ensuring consistency with regulatory guidance and anti-greenwashing rules.