Fortis Escrow offers settlement services for corporate transactions involving emission rights. Fortis Escrow applies its extensive and proven expertise in escrow- and settlement services to facilitate the acquisition and divestment of emission rights.

Whichever type of trade in emission rights you want to secure, whether you are a seller, a buyer, a broker or part of a conglomerate of buyers, Fortis Escrow‘s settlement services help to ensure an efficient and risk free exchange of emission rights versus payments.

As a trusted third party, Fortis Escrow has both the holding accounts at the major emission right registries and the banking infrastructure to allow a secure and efficient exchange of carbon credits for cash.

In addition to offering clearing services for trade in secondary carbon credits, we also offer focal point services in which we facilitate the safe transfer and forwarding of carbon credits to purchasers.

A project to reduce greenhouse gas emissions is approved by the UN Executive Board. Upon such reduction achieved, the project owner receives from the UN under the Kyoto protocol a certain amount of carbon credits (CERs). The project owner sells the CERs to third parties.The settlement process is outlined below. 

1. Buyer and Seller enter into an Emission Reduction Purchase Agreement (ERPA). Fortis Escrow is appointed as Focal Point and settlement agent.
2. After a tranche of carbon credits (CERs) is generated and issued, the buyers pay the agreed purchase price into the escrow account. Fortis Escrow confirms to each party that the purchased amount is received.
3. Once all necessary actions have been completed and upon instruction of the focal point, the CERs are forwarded directly from the UN pending account to the carbon credits escrow account.
4. Now that the CERs are in escrow, the settlement process can be completed and the purchase price in escrow is transferred to the seller.
5. Fortis Escrow forwards the CERs to the buyers and all parties receive confirmation of the settlements executed.

Under the Joint Implementation programme a project owner reduces greenhouse gas emissions and realises carbon credits (ERUs). The project owner sells the generated ERUs to third parties. The ERUs are issued on the basis of a verification report and transferred by the host country directly into a specified account (carbon credits escrow account). In secondary transactions seller and buyer enter into a purchase agreement regarding already existing carbon credits. The settlement process is shown below.

 

1. Buyer and Seller enter into an Emission Reduction Purchase Agreement of carbon credits from either a secondary transaction or a Joint Implementation project.
2. Buyer pays the agreed purchase price into escrow account and Fortis Escrow confirms to all parties the amount received.
3. Seller transfers carbon credits to the carbon credits account of Fortis Escrow. In a JI project the host country transfers the ERUs to the carbon credits account of Fortis Escrow. Fortis Escrow confirms to all parties the receipt of carbon credits.
4. Fortis Escrow releases the purchase price to the seller.
5. Fortis Escrow transfers the carbon credits to the buyer. Upon the transaction being completed, Fortis Escrow confirms this to all parties.