Date: 15 December 2008
Source: AHK
Link: http://china.ahk.de/en/cdm/news/single-view/article/1040/1084/

Carbon Capital Markets, a carbon trader, has sold offsets to Crédit Agricole S.A, a banking group in France, to enable the group to offset CO2 emissions from its offices and personnel in the Ile de France region. 

Crédit Agricole S.A. has made an ongoing commitment to sustainable development- it has pledged to reduce its energy consumption by 15% by 2020, and is offsetting emissions generated by operations in its 500,000 m2 office space and 18,000 employees. This includes emissions generated by heating, air-conditioning and electronic devices (such as computers and printers).
 
Carbon Capital Markets will deliver Certified Emission Reductions (CERs) to Crédit Agricole S.A, for them to retire.  The CERs will be sourced from a United Nations approved CDM renewable energy and forest preservation project in Amazonas, Brazil.

Michel Clavé, who is in charge of sustainable development at Crédit Agricole S.A., said, “Calculating our carbon footprint has shown us the significance of the environmental impact of our operations. Our priority is therefore to reduce our energy consumption. However, since we will continue generating CO2 emissions, we felt it important to offset these emissions to account for our environmental impact. Crédit Agricole S.A. will compliment its efforts to offset its emissions by planting a forest in France.  This will show its commitment to the region and its determination to offset its emissions through biodiversity projects from which the local population will also benefit."

Crédit Agricole S.A. has financed around 25% of French wind farms and has launched a €100 million renewable energy fund. It also advises companies on how to address climate change issues.