SBTi Corporate Net-Zero Standard V2
SBTi CNZS V2 makes commodity EACs part of the Scope 3 implementation toolkit
The final Corporate Net-Zero Standard V2 recognizes market instruments - including commodity certificates and book-and-claim chain-of-custody models - as tools companies can use to support target implementation, subject to clear integrity guardrails.
What changed
- Commodity certificates are explicitly recognized as market instruments for target implementation.
- Book-and-claim and mass balance are referenced as chain-of-custody models.
- Secure tracking, retirement, and double-counting controls are central requirements.
- Scope 3 buyers can use EACs to send demand signals for low-carbon industrial production where direct procurement is constrained.
Why this matters for Scope 3 buyers
Industrial emissions do not stay neatly with producers.
Steel, cement, chemicals, fertilizer, copper, fuels, plastics, and freight form the upstream industrial backbone of the economy. Their emissions eventually accrue into the Scope 3 Category 1 inventories of thousands of downstream companies.
But most buyers do not directly control the mills, plants, mines, kilns, logistics networks, or production assets where those emissions occur.
That is the Scope 3 implementation gap.
SBTi CNZS V2 now gives companies a clearer framework for acting beyond direct supplier engagement, while preserving the need for discipline, relevance, transparency, and credible claims.
What the final standard says
The final standard's treatment of market instruments is directly relevant to industrial commodity EACs.
In describing how companies can support target implementation beyond direct activity-level action, SBTi references "energy and commodity certificates based on different chain-of-custody models (e.g., mass balance, book-and-claim)."
When discussing system-level impact, SBTi gives the example of a program showing that "demand for low-carbon commodity certificates contributes to increased supply of low-carbon commodities."
This is the core market logic behind commodity EACs: buyers can help finance and accelerate lower-carbon production even when physical traceability or direct procurement is not enough. See the SBTi standards alignment table view for criterion-level S3 mapping.
EACs are not offsets. They are market infrastructure.
Commodity EACs should not be treated as generic carbon offsets.
A high-integrity commodity EAC represents the environmental attributes of actual lower-carbon production. When properly issued, transferred, retired, and documented, it can help buyers support Scope 3 target implementation and system decarbonization.
Verified production
Attributes should be tied to real production, clear functional units, defined boundaries, and credible emissions data.
Controlled ownership
Certificates need unique identifiers, controlled transfer, retirement, and safeguards against double issuance, double sale, and double claiming.
Disciplined claims
Claims should reflect the buyer's activity, applicable accounting approach, volume match, and whether the action supports inventory treatment or system contribution.
Where commodity EACs fit under CNZS V2
The standard introduces an implementation hierarchy that prioritizes direct activity-level action first, then activity-pool action, and then sector-level action where structural constraints limit what a company can do directly.
Step 1
Activity-level action
Direct actions within the company's operations or value chain, such as supplier engagement, direct procurement, fuel switching, efficiency improvements, or use of product-specific emissions data.
S3 relevance: S3 can document verified low-carbon commodity procurement where a buyer has a direct physical or supplier relationship.
Step 2
Activity-pool action
Actions within shared systems such as supply sheds, logistics networks, electricity grids, gas grids, or commodity systems.
S3 relevance: This is a major fit for commodity EACs where emissions are embedded in shared industrial systems and direct unit-level traceability is constrained.
Step 3
Sector-level action
Actions that support the transition of the relevant sector when activity-level or activity-pool action is structurally constrained.
S3 relevance: S3 can help document sector-relevant EACs with clear geography, system boundaries, production vintage, and claims limitations.
The guardrails matter
CNZS V2 does not create a free-for-all. Commodity EACs need to meet a disciplined integrity framework.
For a requirement-by-requirement mapping to S3 registry controls, open the SBTi-filtered alignment table .
How S3 Markets helps
S3 Markets provides the infrastructure layer for industrial commodity EACs.
We help producers, buyers, and market partners operationalize the lifecycle of low-carbon commodity attributes - from verified production through issuance, transfer, retirement, and claims documentation.
For buyers
- Identify priority Scope 3 commodities and activity pools.
- Match EACs to relevant Scope 3 categories and activity volumes.
- Retire certificates with auditable records.
- Support internal review by sustainability, procurement, legal, and assurance teams.
- Document claims with clear guardrails and double-counting controls.
For producers
- Monetize verified lower-carbon production attributes.
- Issue serialized commodity EACs tied to production and verification data.
- Preserve claim integrity across physical offtake and attribute transfer.
- Create demand signals for low-carbon industrial capacity.
- Provide buyers with auditable evidence packages.
Priority commodities
S3 Markets is focused on hard-to-abate industrial inputs where Scope 3 exposure is material and direct procurement is often constrained.
Fertilizer and ammonia
Embedded in agricultural supply chains and food & beverage Scope 3 Category 1 inventories.
Cement and concrete
Material to construction, real estate, infrastructure, and capital goods emissions.
Steel
Embedded in buildings, equipment, vehicles, capital goods, manufacturing, and data center infrastructure.
Copper and metals
Critical to electrification, electronics, grid infrastructure, buildings, and industrial equipment.
Freight and logistics
Relevant across Scope 3 transport categories and complex logistics networks.
Fuels and chemicals
High-emitting inputs that often sit several tiers upstream from the reporting company.
What climate teams should do now
Companies do not need to wait for perfect supply chain traceability to start preparing. The practical next step is to map where commodity EACs may support credible Scope 3 implementation.
- Identify material Scope 3 Category 1 commodities.
- Determine where direct supplier engagement is insufficient.
- Estimate relevant activity volumes.
- Assess whether activity-pool or sector-level action may be appropriate.
- Define the claim type and internal evidence requirements.
- Use a secure registry to issue, transfer, and retire certificates.
- Document the guardrails before making claims.
Ready to evaluate commodity EACs under SBTi CNZS V2?
S3 Markets can help your team map priority commodities, assess EAC readiness, and understand what evidence is needed for credible Scope 3 action.
Important note
S3 Markets is not affiliated with or endorsed by SBTi. This page is intended to help buyers and producers understand how industrial commodity EACs may fit within emerging Scope 3 implementation frameworks. Companies remain responsible for determining the appropriate accounting, assurance, and claims treatment for their own reporting.