Methodology
C100 Scoring — integrity, not theater.
The C100 begins from a Carbon Company Universe of 300–500 public companies and scores down to a top 100. A company retiring millions of low-quality offsets while emissions rise is penalized, not rewarded.
Carbon Relevance Score
C100 Score = 0.25 · Carbon Activity + 0.15 · Credit Quality + 0.20 · ESG Compliance + 0.15 · Transition Execution + 0.10 · Financial Strength + 0.10 · Sentiment Integrity + 0.05 · Innovation Premium
Carbon market activity
Credits produced, consumed, retired, held, financed, or enabled.
Credit quality exposure
Registry, vintage, methodology, removals vs avoidance, permanence, additionality, CCP alignment.
ESG & climate compliance
SBTi, CDP, emissions reporting, net-zero target quality, board oversight, ISSB/TCFD.
Transition execution
Actual emissions reduction, intensity improvement, capex alignment, renewable adoption.
Financial & market strength
Market cap, liquidity, revenue quality, profitability, public float.
Sentiment & controversy
News, litigation, greenwashing risk, NGO flags, regulatory scrutiny.
Innovation premium
AI, MRV, tokenization, climate-tech infrastructure, new methodologies.
Foundation layers
ICVCM Core Carbon Principles
Used as the global benchmark for high-integrity carbon credits.
VCMI Claims Code
Governs credible corporate use of credits in net-zero pathways.
Oxford Principles (revised)
Bias against offsetting strategies misaligned with net zero.
IFRS S2 + ISSB/TCFD
Disclosure backbone independent of any one jurisdiction.
SBTi & CDP
Target validation and corporate climate scoring.
CFTC voluntary carbon derivative guidance
Informs how exposure and surrender are framed — utility, not investment product.
Data sources
Berkeley Voluntary Registry Offsets Database, Verra, Gold Standard, ACR, ART TREES, Climate Action Reserve, Puro.earth, and Isometric — plus corporate filings and ESG datasets. The index is rebalanced quarterly with weekly score updates.
Risk & Integrity Signal
Risk is a separate axis from the CIP Score. It surfaces in the C100 / C500 rows as a Low / Medium / High / Severe tag, and folds into the score through the Sentiment Integrity dimension (10%). Higher risk pulls the score down — it is never additive.
Active controversies & litigation · 40%
Open investigations, lawsuits, and enforcement actions tied to climate, emissions, or credit claims.
Greenwashing flags & NGO actions · 30%
Documented misleading climate claims, retracted marketing, NGO complaints (Carbon Market Watch, ClimateCounsel, etc.).
Regulatory scrutiny · 20%
SEC / EU CSRD / FCA inquiries, methane rule citations, registry suspensions.
Disclosure & transparency gaps · 10%
Missing Scope 3, no TCFD / ISSB filing, inconsistent retirement reporting.
Risk bands (0–100, percentile rank within cohort): Low ≤ 25 Medium 26 – 50 High 51 – 75 Severe > 75 Score contribution (inverted): SentimentIntegrity = 0.10 · ( 100 − norm(R) )
Override: companies with an active investigation have their Risk component locked at the higher of the model output or a manual override until the matter resolves — a strong score cannot mask an open enforcement action. See /scoring-methodology §4 for the private-company math.
Private Carbon Company Methodology
The Private Relevance Score ranks private and non-public companies in the carbon-credit sector — CDR suppliers, project developers, marketplaces, MRV/data providers, rating agencies, and procurement platforms. It is composed of six weighted components:
Supply Exposure
Volume and diversity of carbon credit supply the company sources, originates, or enables.
Buyer Demand
Strength of corporate / institutional buyer book and contracted offtake.
MRV / Data
Quality of monitoring, reporting, and verification — registry linkage, data infrastructure, and integrity checks.
Market Infrastructure
Role in carbon-market plumbing: registries, ratings, marketplaces, indices, APIs, settlement.
Public Visibility
Brand reach, media presence, and influence on market narratives.
Integrity Risk
Inverse signal — controversies, greenwashing flags, NGO actions, regulatory scrutiny. Higher is worse.
Score bands: 85–100 Leader · 70–84 Strong Candidate · 55–69 Watchlist · 40–54 Emerging · <40 Low Priority.
Aviation & Maritime Methodology
The Transport Relevance Score identifies publicly traded aviation and maritime companies for inclusion in the broader Public Carbon Universe. Five weighted components:
Regulatory Pressure
CORSIA, EU ETS, FuelEU Maritime, national climate disclosure regimes.
Emissions Materiality
Absolute and intensity emissions exposure relative to revenue and fleet.
Offset Credit Demand
Likely structural demand for offsets or compliance instruments.
Market Liquidity
Float, average daily volume, listing depth.
Carbon Disclosure
Quality of TCFD/ISSB/CDP reporting, scope 3 disclosure, SBTi alignment.
Aviation and maritime companies are candidates for the Public Carbon Universe — not automatic C100 constituents. They are major transition-risk sectors with material emissions, compliance obligations, SAF / alternative-fuel pathways, and potential carbon-credit demand.
New Sector Expansion Methodology
The Sector Relevance Score identifies public companies in four carbon-heavy expansion sectors — Energy, Oil & Gas, Semiconductors, and Data Centers — for inclusion in the broader Public Carbon Universe. These are expansion candidates, not automatic C100 constituents.
Regulatory Pressure · 20%
EU ETS, CSRD, SEC climate rules, methane regs, IRA, jurisdictional carbon-credit rules.
Emissions Materiality · 25%
Absolute and intensity emissions exposure relative to revenue, fleet, capacity, or fab output.
Offset Credit Demand · 15%
Structural demand for offsets, REC matching, or compliance instruments.
Transition Execution · 20%
Decarbonization levers, capex alignment, intensity progress, credible retirements.
Carbon Disclosure · 10%
Quality of TCFD / ISSB / CDP reporting, Scope 3 disclosure, SBTi alignment.
Market Liquidity · 10%
Float, average daily volume, listing depth — public-market accessibility.
Score bands: 85–100 Priority Sector Candidate · 70–84 Strong Sector Candidate · 55–69 Sector Watchlist · <55 Monitor Only. Greenwashing Risk Priority is tracked separately and does not affect the Sector Relevance Score.