Zakkour, Paul

  • Primary Program Policy Options to Decarbonize the Energy Mix
  • Research Interests Climate change, Paris Agreement

Biography

Paul Zakkour was a director of the consultancy Carbon Counts and a visiting researcher at KAPSARC. Paul has more than 17 years’ experience in the field of climate change policy, regulation and economics. Among other work, Paul advised on the design of European CCS regulations in 2007/08 and on the UNFCCC’s CCS rules under the clean development mechanism in 2010/11. Paul holds a Ph.D. in Environmental Technology from Imperial College, London.

Publications

See all Paul’s publications
  • Discussion papers
  • Commentary
  • Think20 (T20)
Carbon Markets and Saudi Arabia: A Review of Options and Analysis of Carbon Crediting Potential

Carbon Markets and Saudi Arabia: A Review of Options and Analysis of Carbon Crediting Potential

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has been taking steps towards carbon market development to stimulate domestic and international climate action. In 2022, the government announced a domestic greenhouse gas (GHG) crediting mechanism – the Greenhouse Gas Crediting and Offsetting Mechanism (GCOM) – which will be the first government-led carbon crediting mechanism to be set up in the Gulf region. In parallel, Saudi Arabia’s largest sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund (PIF), has established the Regional Voluntary Carbon Market Company (RVCMC) that is providing a marketplace for internationally traded carbon credits. 

9th March 2025
Supply-side Climate Policy for Crude Oil Producers

Supply-side Climate Policy for Crude Oil Producers

This paper considers the potential for supply-side climate policy to increase climate action, with a focus on crude oil producers and exporting countries. To date, supply-side policies have not been widely used in efforts to tackle climate change, and the emerging dialogue on the topic tends to focus solely on measures that can curtail and ultimately end fossil fuel production. These strategies, in combination with comprehensive and sustained demand-side climate policy actions, pose a threat to the value of fossil fuel resource endowments held by countries and companies alike.

21st September 2020
A Mechanism for CCS in the Post-Paris Era

A Mechanism for CCS in the Post-Paris Era

The Paris Agreement committed ratifying Parties to hold the increase in the global average temperature to much less than 2°C above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the increase to 1.5°C. The Agreement also committed Parties to achieving net-zero emissions in the second half of this century. Technologies involving carbon capture and storage (CCS) are seen as a critical part of a portfolio of low-carbon technologies capable of delivering deep cuts in anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions, in line with the Paris Agreement goals. This paper proposes a new, transformative, incentive mechanism for CCS, forged by a ‘club’ of Parties to the Paris Agreement with a common interest: the pursuit of cleaner fossil fuels. A new CCS-specific technology mechanism is suggested as a means by which to unify the club’s actions, built upon a new tradable asset class specific to CCS: a carbon storage unit (CSU). A CSU would represent a verified tonne of carbon securely stored or sequestered in a geological reservoir i.e., a verified record of carbon stock addition to the geosphere, but with no intrinsic emission reduction or removal value. The authors argue that their proposed storage crediting scheme can complement and supplement carbon pricing, unlock new layers of climate finance for CCS, and overcome barriers historically faced by the technology.

7th April 2019
Carbon Sequestration Units (CSUs): A New Tool to Mitigate Carbon Emissions

Carbon Sequestration Units (CSUs): A New Tool to Mitigate Carbon Emissions

The United Kingdom’s decision to aim for net zero emissions by 2050 and to enshrine it in law raises the bar for global policymakers as the world seeks to limit the impact of climate change. A recent European Commission paper outlined policy pathways toward carbon neutrality by 2050, but European governments are still at loggerheads as to whether to adopt the target. Climate experts highlight the urgency of cutting carbon emissions to net zero by 2050 if global warming is to be restricted to 1.5 C above pre-industrial levels.

13th January 2020

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