Goldman Sachs continues offset spending spree

It may be in the midst of cutting 10 per cent of its workforce and halting bonuses for senior executives, but that has not stopped investment bank Goldman Sachs continuing its push into the carbon credit market with the announcement of its second acquisition in as many weeks.

Following hot on the heels of its purchase of an equity stake in US-based offset specialist Blue Source, the company announced last week that it has agreed to buy the majority of the carbon offset portfolio belonging to emission reduction project manager E+Co.

Under the terms of the deal, the bank will buy up both UN-backed and voluntary market offset credits issued by E+Co's small-scale clean energy projects in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

E+Co carbon finance manager Erik Wurster said the deal was "a testament to the importance and potential of the global carbon markets", adding that the bank's interest in the sector provided evidence of "the growing demand for high-quality carbon assets that promote sustainable development and poverty reduction in some of the world's poorest nations".

The two recent deals from Goldman Sachs are the latest in a series of moves underlining the growing interest from the banking sector in the global carbon offset market.

Goldman invested in California-based carbon offset registry APX late last year, while Morgan Stanley took a stake in offset specialist MGM International back in 2006. Credit Suisse also bought its way into the sector with a €44m (£37m) investment in emission reduction project manager EcoSecurities and JPMorgan underlined its commitment to offsets earlier this year with the purchase of UK outfit Climate Care.

Established offset providers have also played a part in recent market consolidation, after The CarbonNeutral Company last week snapped up US rival GreenLife for an undisclosed sum.