Real-time, fractionalized carbon credits for environmentally responsible end-of-life vehicle scrapping

Problem

India is the fourth-largest producer and third-largest generator of end-of-life vehicles (ELVs) – an estimated 8.7 million in 2015, projected to reach 22 million by 2025 – yet the informal sector accounts for over 99% of activity. Unorganized scrappers operate in environmentally hazardous ways, fueling pollution, tax evasion, spurious parts, and crime. Government-authorized scrapping centers face high capital and compliance costs and struggle to source vehicles or compete with informal operators that flout environmental norms while earning higher revenues.

Solution

MMCM builds a transparent, measurable, verifiable ecosystem for automotive circularity. Using Hedera Guardian’s dMRV capabilities, it digitizes a combined CDM methodology (AMS-III.AJ and AMS-III.BA) as the basis for End-of-Life Vehicle (ELV) credits, listing credits for vehicles scrapped responsibly by government-authorized scrappers. Its Autoloop System captures 40 data points per ELV, and Hedera via DOVU establishes a trust chain that guarantees accountability and auditability – helping authorized scrappers close the viability gap with the informal sector.

By embedding transparency, traceability, and verified climate impact into end-of-life vehicle recycling, we envision to set a new benchmark for sustainable industry practices. The goal is not just to manage waste, but to redefine it as a verified contributor to national climate commitments and global sustainability goals.

Nitin Chitkara

CEO

A viability gap that credits can close

India’s Voluntary Vehicle Scrapping Policy 2021 calls for formal, government-authorized scrapping centers subject to strict environmental and compliance requirements – but these carry significant capital and operating costs. With roughly 50 centres operating and perhaps 1,000 to 1,500 more needed, authorized scrappers struggle to source vehicles and compete with informal operators that ignore environmental norms and earn higher revenues. MMCM’s ELV Credits provide the additional revenue stream that makes responsible, compliant scrapping financially viable.

Traceability through the Autoloop System

The program’s backbone, MMCM’s Autoloop System, captures a comprehensive 40 data points for each end-of-life vehicle, ensuring the traceability, transparency, and integrity of every credit generated. This meticulous data collection and verification – supported by Hedera via DOVU – establishes a trust chain that guarantees each transaction’s accountability and auditability, effectively combating greenwashing. Captured data includes vehicle provenance, owner KYC, and government-issued documents, alongside the material composition of each part used to compile compliance reports for the Ministry.

Real-time issuance and shared value

MMCM’s use case generates real-time credit issuance and exemplifies a seamless integration of digital MRV. By digitizing the combined CDM methodology behind ELV credits and anchoring data on Hedera, the program delivers value to individuals and organizations through environmental stewardship, compliance fulfillment, and the promotion of sustainable practices. It turns the previously informal, opaque business of vehicle scrapping into a transparent, auditable activity that can attract finance and meet regulatory expectations.

Why Hedera?

MMCM relies on Hedera Guardian’s advanced dMRV capabilities to digitize complex CDM methodologies and issue ELV credits in real time. Guardian provides the framework to transform a fragmented, manual process into a verifiable, standardized one.

Anchoring the Autoloop System’s 40-point data records on Hedera – accessed via DOVU – establishes a trust chain that guarantees the accountability and auditability of every transaction. Hedera’s transparency, low cost, and sustainability make it well suited to combating greenwashing and supporting a circular-economy program that must satisfy government regulators while remaining commercially viable for authorized scrappers.