According to data from Sylvera, the availability of carbon credits for the first phase of the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA) is being constrained by delays in authorization from host countries. This bottleneck is not due to a shortage of credits, as the current supply for CORSIA Phase 1 is reported to be more than 17 times the confirmed demand.
Approximately $2 billion in CORSIA-compliant carbon credits are currently pending approval from the respective host nations. This administrative hurdle is preventing these credits from being utilized by airlines to meet their offsetting obligations under the scheme.
For freight forwarders and air cargo operators, this situation implies that while the underlying supply of carbon credits is robust, the bureaucratic delays in their formal authorization could potentially create artificial scarcity or price volatility in the short term, as fewer credits are officially available for purchase. This could complicate compliance efforts for carriers subject to CORSIA, possibly leading to higher costs if authorized credits become harder to secure. Forwarders should monitor the progress of these authorizations as they directly impact the operational costs of their air cargo partners.