ACCU Market Monthly Update - December 2025

Method-specific ACCU price movements and volumes traded

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ACCU price

• Spot prices traded within a narrow band in December, the market opening the month at $36.00 before dropping to the monthly low reported on the 4th at $35.50, and the monthly high printed on the 24th at $36.60.
• This compares to a far more varied spread in the month of November, where the market softened from above $38.00 down to below the $36.00-mark at its lowest, at month’s end.
• Near-dated contracts reported early in the month reflected limited contango, with January 2026 parcels exchanged at a small premium to spot. Human-Induced Regeneration (HIR) parcels, as in recent months, traded level with Generic and No AD parcels.  
• December delivered a quiet month for premium methodology-specific parcels, with no reported trades.  
• Safeguard Mechanism Credit (SMC) market activity was limited in December, but one parcel reportedly traded in 10k, level with the then-spot Generic price.

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ACCU volumes traded

• Overall traded volumes decreased sharply in December, with the month’s 1.67 million total the lowest figure since July of 2024 (1.2 million), down significantly on both December 2024’s total (3.8 million) and the month prior (November 2025, 3.05 million).
• Activity was front-loaded toward the first half of the month, as compliance buyers advanced procurement ahead of year-end closures.  
• No AD ACCUs again accounted for the majority of turnover, with limited but notable interest in methodology-specific parcels.  
• The Safeguard Mechanism Credit (SMC) market remained active at the margin, with prices more closely tracking Generic ACCUs.

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ACCU price forecast

To help market participants better model their commercial position, the CORE Markets team has developed a unique method-specific ACCU price forecast.

We believe demand preferences will vary among buyer groups, the costs of developing new ACCUs will vary by methodology and that this will be reflected in the market for the foreseeable future.

The CORE Markets ACCU price forecast is created by our environmental markets advisory team with data from our carbon analytics platform.  

The model is continuously tested and refined with the help of an expert industry working group.

In addition to the base model, the CORE Markets team can provide a full suite of scenario analysis forecasts on a bespoke basis.

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Available exclusively to Carbon Intelligence Package subscribers. Learn more

Key insights from the latest forecast are available here.

ACCU demand

ACCU demand trends are considered in detail in our monthly analysis as available to Carbon Intelligence Package subscribers.

This includes:

• ACCU retirements
• SMC market activity
• Method-specific ACCU demand forecast
• Compliance hedging strategies

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Learn more about the Carbon Intelligence Package

ACCU supply

ACCU issuances

• Issuance data for November, the most recent reporting period available, showed continued strength, with 2.85 million ACCUs issued across 120 projects, up from October levels.
• Landfill gas projects remained a key contributor, while Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) issuance again featured prominently.
• Notably, Santos and Beach Energy’s Moomba CCS project received a further ~300,000 ACCUs, following its record issuance in October.  
• Total ACCU issuance for 2025 reached ~19.8 million units, placing the year toward the upper end of the Clean Energy Regulator’s guidance range.

Carbon Abatement Contracts

For commentary on Carbon Abatement Contracts and the projected volumes of ACCUs in the Cost Containment Mechanism, explore our Carbon Intelligence Package - a digital subscription for deep market insights, cutting edge financial and physical data, advanced analytical tools and access to market experts.

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ACCU supply forecast

ACCU supply trends are considered in detail in our monthly analysis as available to Carbon Intelligence Package subscribers.

This includes:

• ACCU by-method supply forecast  
• Spotlight on the ACCU methodology pipeline

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Learn more about the Carbon Intelligence Package

Stay up-to-date with the ACCU market

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