The World Future Energy Summit will be held at ADNEC from 13–15 January 2026, alongside Carbon Forward Middle East 2026
The Middle East’s foremost platform for clean energy innovation and sustainability dialogue, the World Future Energy Summit, will return to Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC) from 13–15 January 2026, bringing with it the region’s most influential gathering on carbon markets: Carbon Forward Middle East 2026 (CFME 2026).
Part of Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week and hosted by Masdar, CFME 2026 will be an ADSW associated event, taking place on 14–15 January, and promises its most ambitious programme to date.
Carbon Forward Middle East is organised by Carbon Pulse and Redshaw Advisors and is in strategic partnership with Abu Dhabi-based Offset8 Capital, a global emissions investment and management group that supports the growth of high-integrity carbon markets. The event will convene policymakers, investors, financial institutions, project developers, ratings agencies, traders, law firms, and climate innovators to chart the future of carbon markets in a region increasingly important to global net-zero ambitions.
CFME, hosted at the World Future Energy Summit, marks a major step forward for carbon markets and regional climate cooperation. By uniting with CFME 2026, the World Future Energy Summit expands its remit to encompass critical levers for climate transition including carbon pricing, carbon finance, and Article 6 mechanisms.
Shyam Parmar, Event Director, World Future Energy Summit, said: “Carbon markets are becoming a defining feature of how nations and industries plan their net-zero pathways. By hosting Carbon Forward Middle East within the Summit, we are creating a unified platform where decarbonisation technologies, policy frameworks, and financial instruments are discussed in one place. This strengthens cross-sector collaboration, supports the region’s growing leadership in shaping high-integrity carbon markets, and enables us to address technology, policy, and finance as interconnected drivers of net zero.”
As the Middle East rapidly emerges as a global centre of climate finance and project development, the collaboration amplifies Carbon Forward’s mission to drive informed, practical engagement within carbon markets, added Mike Szabo, Co-founder, Carbon Forward and Co-founder Carbon Pulse.
“Last year’s inaugural Middle East event confirmed the region’s increasing ambition and readiness to build credible, scalable carbon markets,” he said. “CFME 2026 takes that momentum to the next level. By co-locating with World Future Energy Summit, we can deepen the dialogue between governments, investors, and industries and ensure the region is fully engaged with international market developments, Article 6, and the new dynamics shaping global carbon trade.”
CFME 2026’s newly released agenda presents a comprehensive, high-level exploration of both the opportunities and challenges facing carbon markets in the Middle East, with sessions spanning compliance systems, voluntary markets, Carbon Border Adjustment (CBAM) preparedness, aviation sector strategies, carbon removal, carbon capture, usage and storage (CCUS), climate finance, and international policy signals.
The event will open with a powerful keynote on the UAE’s ambitions to become the region’s carbon hub. It will examine how national rules, trading platforms, and financial market integration can create a high-integrity ecosystem for investment and decarbonisation. Further sessions will unpack global carbon market trends and regions of growth, as well as the state of play in Middle East carbon markets.
Attendees can expect country updates from UAE, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Türkiye on emerging carbon pricing frameworks and national mechanisms, as well as perspectives from Oman, Jordan, and Morocco addressing Article 6 readiness. The agenda will also explore opportunities in global emissions trading systems, lessons from mature markets, and how to unlock investment in the voluntary carbon market as well as the role of sovereign wealth funds and exchanges in mobilising regionwide climate finance.
A Women in Carbon breakfast will kick off the event’s second day, followed by deep-dive sessions on CBAM obligations and regional impacts, aviation and CORSIA, outlining compliance strategies for airlines and government support mechanisms. Additional sessions will cover nature-based and engineered removals, with a focus on innovation in the UAE and Oman. Presentations will also address CCUS and industrial decarbonisation and the legal classification of carbon credits. The day will conclude with a CBAM workshop designed to help companies map risks, reporting requirements, and future cost exposure.
“Every session has been designed and curated to provide a comprehensive carbon market agenda, reflecting both the urgency and sophistication of climate action advancing across the region,” said Louis Redshaw, Co-founder Carbon Forward and CEO, Redshaw Advisors. “As the world moves from ambition to implementation, carbon markets are evolving into essential tools for both mitigation and adaptation. High-quality credits, transparent rules, and robust market infrastructure are increasingly in focus as governments and companies align with net-zero commitments.”
CFME 2026 arrives at World Future Energy Summit, as an associated ADSW event, just as the Middle East is scaling climate finance through sovereign funds and specialised investment vehicles. New carbon market mechanisms are emerging in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Oman, and Türkiye, while regulatory frameworks are accelerating clarity around Article 6 and cross-border cooperation to help push businesses to account for, and reduce, emissions.
“Carbon markets in the Middle East are developing at remarkable pace, driven by progressive national strategies, advancing regulation, and growing investor participation,” said Ivan Mozharov, Co-Founder & Managing Partner at Offset8 Capital, noting that Carbon Forward Middle East 2026 arrives at a pivotal moment for the region. “This year’s agenda reflects the market’s growing sophistication, moving from ambition to implementation, with a focus on high-integrity credits, scalable infrastructure, and cross-border collaboration” he added.
