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Vietnam is treating compliance with emission-reduction criteria as a prerequisite for businesses rather than an optional choice. To meet requirements and participate in carbon markets, enterprises are urged to adopt a long-term strategy that treats emission reductions not only as administrative compliance, but also as a way to manage carbon credits and allowances. Carbon markets and carbon exchanges are positioned as tools to support emission reductions, not solely as profit-seeking venues.
Businesses are advised to focus on three main areas.
First, build carbon-market capacity and internal capability. Enterprises should understand carbon products, distinguish between emission allowances and carbon credits, and be familiar with related rights and regulations. Companies are also encouraged to develop specialized human resources for carbon work, including carbon-literate staff and carbon accounting teams. Because carbon credits are traded on exchanges, firms need to manage and optimize economic benefits not only for quota-allocated entities and credit-generating projects, but also for high-emitting firms that may face compliance needs. The article notes that only about 110 enterprises are currently under quota, but this is expected to expand, increasing the urgency for proactive engagement.
Second, understand tax and financial rules linked to carbon markets. The article highlights that corporate income tax rules may provide exemptions on income from emission-reduction transactions and on initial credit transfers issued to enterprises.
Third, plan for the lowest possible compliance costs over the long term. Where emission-reduction potential is limited, investing in modern, optimized technology may be the preferred route. If technology-based reductions are not feasible or investment costs are too high, enterprises can consider alternative measures such as purchasing allowances or offsetting with credits. The domestic carbon market is described as a tool to support these decisions.
An effectively operating carbon-credit system is described as supporting Vietnam’s Net Zero by 2050 goal by mobilizing financial resources and improving enterprise competitiveness. The article says the process can also create opportunities for innovation, strengthen market positioning, and attract international investment.
At the same time, it notes that with almost one-third of global emissions covered by carbon-pricing mechanisms, the market requires higher transparency and project quality. As Vietnam prepares to pilot a carbon market, helping enterprises understand and adapt to technical standards is presented as critical. Australia is cited as supporting Vietnam through financial, technical, and knowledge-sharing channels, including a history of over AUD 3 billion in assistance over the past five decades and a commitment to climate and energy cooperation as a strategic pillar.
The article lists several initiatives:
Vietnam has selected 110 enterprises to pilot cap-and-trade (from 2,166 facilities listed for greenhouse-gas inventories). Of these, 51 out of 61 enterprises come from the cement sector. Pilot participants are mainly entities with trading rights and quota compliance obligations.
From a business perspective, the article states that demand to participate is very high: roughly nine out of ten “green-transition” enterprises reportedly want to participate. It also notes that before the market existed, Vietnamese green-transition frontrunners were largely driven by market requirements, with many members of the Ho Chi Minh City Green Enterprise Association exporting products to international markets, including 165 countries.
The major challenge described is not technology or finance, but awareness of opportunities and risks, including financial and legal concerns. The article also points to unclear ownership rights to credits as a reason enterprises have been hesitant to invest in credit creation. It adds that creating a carbon-credit commodity requires 1.5–2 years due to complex technical processes, MRV systems, and legal procedures, which demands substantial resources. Many enterprises still lack a dedicated carbon-management unit, limiting practical deployment despite willingness.
In Vietnam’s Net Zero approach, the article emphasizes that carbon removal credits are a core element. Unlike avoidance credits, removal credits are described as capturing or eliminating CO2 from the atmosphere and storing it long-term in forests, soils, oceans, or materials such as biochar. The article states that in some sectors with absolute difficulty reducing emissions, only removal credits may be able to balance residual emissions to achieve Net Zero.
To support global recognition, it says Vietnam needs to strengthen the legal framework around removal credits, integrate credits into national strategies and the national greenhouse-gas inventory (NDC), and clearly distinguish between emission-reduction credits and removal credits. It also calls for core quality criteria such as additionality, permanence, and non-leakage. Standardizing MRV is described as another key pillar, including standardized MRV guidance, a database of emission factors, baselines, and common sector practices to ensure credits can be compared, verified, and traded internationally.
The article further highlights the importance of clarifying ownership and benefit-sharing mechanisms, especially for projects involving agriculture, forestry, and communities, to create long-term incentives and avoid disputes.
The success of the carbon market is described as depending heavily on enterprise implementation capabilities. Enterprises are advised to align with international standards (including ISO 14064 and the GHG Protocol). Without standardized data, credits cannot be validated or verified.
Carbon credits are described as not being fixed-income assets: their price can fluctuate with the market and they also involve operational costs such as MRV and verification. The article says professional financial modeling (including NPV and IRR) is needed to assess investment effectiveness. It also stresses that businesses must enhance their ability to work with verifiers and global credit exchanges to ensure transparency.
The article notes that many countries and major brands are pursuing Net Zero across supply chains. It cites the EU CBAM (Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism), which will impose strict carbon emission requirements or require green production starting in 2026 based on activity data from 2026.
Vietnamese verification entities report that many Vietnamese firms want to conduct product inventories for international supply chains but face data gaps in historical emission factors and activity data. In sectors such as cement and steel, feedstock data may lack a robust international database. The article advises upstream Vietnamese exporters to have product-emission and factory-emission data before entering global supply chains and, where data is incomplete, to use year-appropriate baselines supported by credible international emission-factor data.
As the carbon market develops, the article expects it to attract more investors, including potential cross-border carbon-dioxide removal. It notes that industry players, including in oil and gas, are exploring storage opportunities in depleted reservoirs and offshore structures for CO2 storage.
It cites the US 45Q tax credit as an example of how storage can generate profits per tonne of CO2 stored, stating that the credit supports storage costs ranging from $80 to over $100 per ton of CO2 stored. The article suggests this approach could be more attractive than some other decarbonization methods and indicates that cross-border CO2 storage could become more feasible as the market matures.
The article includes an energy-sector perspective that CO2 capture and storage is a necessary trend. Over the past five years, the sector has studied CO2 capture and storage with Japanese partners, focusing on depleted oil and gas fields and offshore structures for underground storage. It says this leverages existing infrastructure and geological knowledge, potentially reducing investment costs compared with new builds.
It states that studies are being refined to identify potential CO2-storage sites, with a plan to complete design work by late 2026 and move toward pilot deployment within five to ten years for commercial-scale storage. It also cites global examples where CO2 storage has progressed and attracted investment, including the United States, Japan, Australia, and Southeast Asian countries such as Indonesia and Malaysia.
Regarding quantification, the article says a project with a Japanese partner aims to deploy storage of about 4 million tons of CO2 per year within five years, requiring a trial well system of around five wells. It reiterates that stable, investment-friendly government policy is essential and that policy recommendations are being presented to ensure profitability from CO2 storage.
The article concludes that building trust and capacity for enterprises participating in the carbon market is essential. It also argues that trading carbon credits to offset emissions will become increasingly important, and that Vietnamese companies with the capacity to create and trade credits should focus on developing such projects to realize economic benefits.
It further states that Vietnam’s energy sector is positioned to lead in emission-reduction and CO2 storage initiatives by leveraging existing capabilities to reduce costs and create value for enterprise growth.
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