Article 6 of the Paris Agreement describes how countries can cooperate voluntarily to meet their climate commitments, their nationally determined contributions (NDCs). It contains three mechanisms: 6.2, bilateral and multilateral cooperative approaches that involve transferring mitigation outcomes (ITMOs); 6.4, a centralized UN mechanism (PACM); and 6.8, non-market approaches.
Article 6.2: cooperative approaches
Countries make agreements directly and transfer internationally transferred mitigation outcomes (ITMOs) to one another. ITMOs usually come from specific projects in the selling country.
The main condition is corresponding adjustments: the country that transfers an outcome adds it to its emissions balance, and the recipient subtracts it. This way, one tonne is never counted twice. For details, see Corresponding adjustments.
Key features of 6.2:
- the countries themselves set the rules of cooperation within the common guidance;
- reporting to the Paris Agreement bodies is required;
- ITMOs can be used toward NDCs and for other purposes authorized by the selling country.
Article 6.4: the UN mechanism (PACM)
The Article 6.4 mechanism (Paris Agreement Crediting Mechanism, PACM) is a centralized system supervised by a UN body. It registers projects, approves methodologies and issues mechanism units.
To take part, a project needs:
- Approval from the country where the project is implemented.
- A methodology approved for the mechanism.
- Validation and registration of the project.
- Monitoring, verification and issuance of units in the mechanism registry.
The Article 6.4 mechanism registry is operated under an approved registry procedure (version v03.0 of July 30, 2026). Until the final infrastructure is launched, an interim registry is in place.
Independent standards are adapting their tools to 6.4 requirements. For example, Gold Standard has released Tool 10 v1.0 (August 27, 2026) for calculating the grid emission factor for A6.4 projects: it uses annual data with a 10% discount and a 24-month lag, and sets separate criteria for renewables with storage.
Article 6.8: non-market approaches
This is cooperation that does not involve transferring units: technology sharing, capacity building and adaptation finance. Article 6.8 matters less to project owners, but it is significant for government programs.
6.2 and 6.4 compared
| Feature | 6.2 | 6.4 |
|---|---|---|
| Governance | Agreement between countries | UN body |
| Unit | ITMO | Article 6.4 mechanism unit |
| Methodologies | Agreed by the parties | Approved by the mechanism |
| Registry | National registries | Article 6.4 mechanism registry |
What it means for countries and projects
A participating country sets up national infrastructure: an authorized body, a registry and a project approval procedure. In Uzbekistan, this role is performed by the Ministry of Economy and Finance, under which a national carbon unit registry is being set up (see Uzbekistan's carbon regulation).
For a project owner, Article 6 means stricter data requirements: the baseline, grid emission factors and monitoring results must be traceable and immutable, or they will not be accepted at verification.
How it works in the platform
- The MRV contour for climate project calculations and the Market contour are marked “Soon”: they are under development.
- The platform does not submit applications to Article 6 mechanisms and does not maintain a unit registry.
- In the GHG contour, you can already collect the source data for a future project: monthly electricity, heat and fuel consumption by facility with supporting documents, as well as the monthly output of your own solar plants (Data entry).
Frequently asked questions
Can a company buy Article 6.4 mechanism units?
Whether such a purchase is possible, and on what terms, depends on the rules of the mechanism and the decisions of the host country: whether it has authorized the use of the units and whether a corresponding adjustment is applied. Check the current requirements in the regulatory map.
How does an ITMO differ from a voluntary market carbon unit?
An ITMO is transferred between countries and comes with a corresponding adjustment. A voluntary market unit without such an adjustment is not removed from the national accounts of the country where the project is implemented.
What is the interim registry of the 6.4 mechanism?
It is the infrastructure that operates until the mechanism's final registry is launched and allows units to be tracked under the approved procedure.