High-polluting Australian companies that rely too heavily on offshore carbon credits – particularly those of dubious origin from countries with poor governance – are at risk of being shunned by investors, says a climate adviser to top 50 ASX firms.

Evan Stamatiou, managing director of Melbourne-based Carbon Risk Management, says that while carbon offsets such as farm-linked Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) have “robust” credentials supported by regulators, their international equivalents often “don’t deliver what they promise, with poor governance impacting on quality”.