Insider Brief
- Microsoft has secured its largest carbon removal project in the Asia-Pacific region, committing to purchase 1.5 million tons of verified carbon removal credits from the Panna afforestation project in India over 30 years.
- The 20,000-hectare project, funded by Terra Natural Capital and developed by Climate Impact Partners, aims to remove three million tons of carbon while supporting biodiversity, water conservation, and economic empowerment for local farmers.
- The initiative follows Verra’s latest afforestation methodology and meets rigorous verification standards, reinforcing Microsoft’s strategy to invest in nature-based carbon removal solutions while driving sustainable development in climate-vulnerable communities.
PRESS RELEASE – Climate Impact Partners have announced a new deal with Terra Natural Capital to deliver long-term finance to the Panna afforestation project in India, from which Microsoft will purchase 1.5 million tons of verified carbon removal credits over 30 years, representing 50% of the project’s output.
The project brings together Climate Impact Partners’ project development expertise, finance from Terra Natural Capital, and long-term buyer commitment from Microsoft. The Panna afforestation project is Microsoft’s largest carbon removal project in the APAC region and first in India.
Following three years of due diligence and pilot activities, conducted by Climate Impact Partners’ project development team, and third-party buyer and investor assessments, the project has demonstrated a strong commitment to quality. Working with local implementation partners, up to 11.6 million mixed native trees will be planted across 20,000 hectares of farmer and community lands – an area bigger than Washington DC. To date, over 1.2 million trees have been planted across 100 communities.
The project offers significant benefits including:
- Economic Empowerment: Farmers will directly benefit from a share of carbon credit sales and income generated from the sale of fruit and medicinal produce from the trees planted.
- Sustainable Agriculture: Training programs on climate-smart agricultural techniques will be held to help enhance long-term yields.
- Water Conservation: The project has implemented large-scale water infrastructure, including ponds, borewells, and drip irrigation systems to support tree growth whilst capturing and conserving water.
- Improved Biodiversity: Planting will focus on native species intended to help enhance biodiversity and attract butterfly and bird species back to currently degraded lands.
Sheri Hickok, CEO, Climate Impact Partners commented: “We are incredibly proud that Microsoft, a company that continues to demonstrate bold, climate-responsible leadership, is supporting Panna, a project developed by our expert team. By securing a long-term supply of high-quality carbon credits, this model empowers companies like Microsoft to meet their ambitious climate targets, drive growth in the carbon removal market, and bring benefits to communities most impacted by climate change. Panna exemplifies how companies can help scale large-scale carbon removal infrastructure.”
Brian Marrs, Senior Director Energy Markets, Microsoft said: “At Microsoft, we believe that high-quality, nature-based solutions are vital to addressing climate change. Panna forms an important part of our growing portfolio of carbon removal projects – our first in India and largest in the APAC region. The collaboration with Climate Impact Partners helps to ensure that millions more trees are planted, more carbon is removed from the atmosphere, more jobs are created, and more finance flows back to local communities.”
Erica Vertefeuille, Managing Director, Terra Natural Capital said: “We are excited to work with Climate Impact Partners to realize large-scale nature-based carbon removal projects like Panna. This transaction reflects the power of collaboration between trusted project developers, corporate demand, and innovative finance to unlock climate impact. We recognize that access to project finance is a critical need for the carbon removal market to scale and are committed to providing long-term capital that will accelerate project development and empower corporates to achieve their climate targets.”
The project uses Verra’s latest Afforestation, Reforestation and Revegetation Methodology – VM0047 – approved for the ICVCM’s (Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market) CCP (Core Carbon Principle) label. It is rated A under BeZero’s ex-ante rating and will be verified to the Climate, Community and Biodiversity Standard to monitor for co-benefits.
