Introduction

The concept of carbon neutral energy has emerged in the context of global decarbonisation efforts. In the past few months, governments and energy companies have taken various actions aimed at reducing the energy industry's carbon footprint. Many of these initiatives were precedential in nature, setting new standards for GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions mitigation across the value chain. With the growing focus on net-zero targets, the notion of carbon neutral energy is set to become even more relevant in the future.

There are, nonetheless, several challenges related to the deployment of carbon neutral energy. The lack of transparency in relation to GHG emissions quantification and certification is widely seen as a major concern. Another set of challenges is related to the scalability of carbon reduction technologies and the development of carbon markets, including voluntary markets for carbon offsets. The risk of regulatory changes adds another layer of complexity to the structuring and execution of energy projects and contracts that are designated carbon (or GHG) neutral. There is, finally, a disputes risk that is embedded in transactions with carbon neutrality objectives.

This Special Issue is a timely collection of insights from the leading practitioners and academics on the key issues related to the emerging carbon neutral energy trade.

Taking a multi-jurisdictional perspective, the Special Issue opens with five articles discussing a wide range of recent decarbonisation efforts, including industry-driven initiatives and regulatory support schemes, primarily focused on LNG and hydrogen:

• James Atkin, Adam Hedley, Nicole Cheung, Amber Davies, GHG Neutral LNG, An Essential Evolution
• Luis Agosti, Boaz Moselle, Carbon Neutral LNG: Price and Prejudice
• Chioma Basil, Michael Ukponu, Carbon Capture and Storage Technology Development in Australia: Economics, Policy and Regulation
• Kenryo Mizutani, Rudiger Tscherning, Charting the Trans-Pacific Clean Hydrogen Trade from Canada to Japan
• Foster Asamani, Institutional Governance in Ghana's Energy Sector: Legal, Policy and Regulatory Challenges in Setting Ghana on the Path to Net Zero

The next three articles explore new categories of decarbonisation-related disputes and highlight several aspects of commercial risk allocation and sovereign risk mitigation:

• Louise Barber, Disputes in a Decarbonising World: The Challenges for Commercial Actors in the Energy Sector
• Matthew Secomb, Philip Tan, Decarbonisation and Gas/LNG Price Reviews
• Mark Mangan, Lukas Lim, Protecting Investments in Carbon Credits through Investment Treaties

The issue closes with the reviews of a recent book exploring Carbon Markets Around the Globe by Sven Rudolph and Elena Aydos (Edward Elgar 2021).

The editors would like to thank all contributors for their excellent articles and the OGEL publisher for their support.

We welcome further contributions to this volume to be included as an Addendum.