TotalEnergies announced a significant $100 million investment in sustainable forestry projects in the United States. This strategic initiative is a collaboration with Anew Climate, a leader in climate solutions, and Aurora Sustainable Lands, a company specializing in carbon stewardship and forest management. 

The partnership aims to protect productive forests from extensive timber harvesting, promote sustainable management practices, and enhance the forests’ capacity to sequester carbon from the atmosphere.

Beyond Emissions: TotalEnergies’ Bold Move Towards Net Zero

The $100 million investment will support Improved Forest Management (IFM) practices across 300,000 hectares of forested land in 10 U.S. states. These include Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. 

The projects will focus on reducing timber harvesting to preserve natural carbon sinks, improving water and soil quality, protecting biodiversity, and conserving natural habitats. The carbon credits generated from these activities will be acquired by TotalEnergies and retired after 2030. 

The investment is part of TotalEnergies’ commitment to spend $100 million annually on nature-based solutions capable of generating at least 5 million metric tons of CO2e in carbon credits each year by 2030. The forest carbon credits will help the oil major offset a portion of its direct Scope 1 and 2 emissions as part of its broader climate strategy.

Scope 1+2 Emissions Reduction by 2030

From TotalEnergies Climate 2024 Progress Report

TotalEnergies has committed to a vision of becoming a net-zero energy company by 2050, a goal that aligns with the International Energy Agency’s net-zero pathway. As part of this strategy, the company aims for a 40% reduction in net Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2030 compared to 2015 levels. 

To achieve these ambitious goals, TotalEnergies plans to spend the next decade developing the necessary projects and capabilities.

In addition to nature-based solutions, the energy company is also focusing on a combination of carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies and e-fuels to potentially avoid up to 100 million tons of CO2 per year.

One of the key initiatives supporting this vision is the CO2 Fighters Squad, a dedicated team established in late 2018. This team is responsible for monitoring GHG emissions across the company and promoting a low-carbon mindset. Their work includes initiating energy efficiency projects, accelerating the electrification of facilities, and introducing greener energy consumption methods. 

By 2025, the CO2 Fighters Squad is expected to oversee 160 upstream and more than 200 downstream projects, resulting in significant reductions in Scope 1 and 2 emissions. These efforts are part of TotalEnergies’ broader commitment to sustainability and its strategic pivot towards cleaner energy sources.

Advancing Climate Action Through Nature

TotalEnergies’ investment is closely aligned with the U.S. government’s Voluntary Carbon Markets Principles, which emphasize integrity, transparency, and environmental protection in carbon trading. These principles were outlined in a joint policy statement issued in May 2024. TotalEnergies committed to adhering to these guidelines to ensure that its investments in carbon projects contribute meaningfully to climate action.

RELATED: US Government Releases New Voluntary Carbon Credit Market Policy Guidelines

Last month, the oil major made headlines by announcing its decision to halt its gas exploration activities in South Africa. This move highlights the growing global awareness of the harmful environmental impacts of fossil fuels and supports the broader movement towards sustainable energy solutions.

Under the Anew Climate and Aurora Sustainable Lands partnership, the latter two will provide operational oversight to the projects. This is to ensure that the carbon projects meet the highest standards of additionality and durability. 

Their collaboration highlights a shared commitment to advancing climate action through nature-based solutions that offer tangible environmental and social benefits. 

Anew Climate’s CEO, Angela Schwarz, emphasized the alignment between TotalEnergies’ comprehensive climate action strategy and Anew’s mission to create meaningful climate impact through diverse solutions. She noted that:

“…it was clear that their [TotalEnergies] commitment to avoiding and reducing emissions as a first principle while recognizing the co-benefits of investing in meaningful carbon projects as part of a comprehensive climate action strategy aligned perfectly with Anew’s mission.”

How Green Giants are Revolutionizing Carbon Stewardship

Anew Climate is a global leader in climate solutions, focusing on transparency and accountability. They offer innovative products and services to reduce or offset carbon footprints, restore the environment, and create economic value. With operations across five continents, Anew leverages technology and nature-based solutions for environmental credit markets.

Jamie Houston, CEO of Aurora Sustainable Lands, highlighted the importance of maintaining the delicate balance between forest health, soil quality, watersheds, and wildlife habitats through this partnership. 

Aurora Sustainable Lands is a leading platform for carbon removal and climate-focused asset management. Managing over 1.7 million acres of U.S. forestland previously used for industrial logging, Aurora employs a carbon stewardship strategy that maximizes carbon removal and storage. 

Utilizing advanced technologies, Aurora offers high-quality, durable nature-based carbon credits at scale. This venture is a joint effort between Anew Climate and key equity investors, including Oak Hill Advisors, EIG, and GenZero.

The collaboration with TotalEnergies will enable Aurora to enhance climate resilience across its forestlands, contributing to a substantial and lasting impact on a massive scale.

This partnership between TotalEnergies, Anew Climate, and Aurora Sustainable Lands represents a significant step forward in the global effort to combat climate change. By investing in sustainable forestry and carbon stewardship, TotalEnergies is fueling its net zero ambition while contributing to the preservation of vital ecosystems and the protection of natural carbon sinks.

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With Direct Air Capture (DAC) technology gaining momentum, some companies involved are facing the significant challenge of securing enough clean power to sustain their energy-intensive operations in the US. S&P Global has scrutinized the situation and has reported the challenges and potential solutions to overcome the massive clean energy demand of DACs.

As DACs Expand, So Does the Quest for Clean Energy                                                       

Earlier this year, Climeworks launched the world’s largest DAC plant in Hellisheiði, Iceland. The location was ideal, offering abundant geothermal heat and power. But as Climeworks shifted its focus to the U.S., drawn by federal subsidies and opportunities for expansion, the company faced a new hurdle: energy procurement.

Well, Douglas Chan, Chief Operating Officer of Climeworks, emphasized the importance of understanding the U.S. grid, which the company has studied for nearly three years. They pioneer in absorbing CO2 from the atmosphere and sell the carbon offsets to major corporations such as Microsoft. However, without a reliable source of clean power, the entire purpose of this technology i.e. reducing carbon emissions could be compromised.

SEE MORE: Microsoft Signs 10-year Carbon Removal Deal with Climeworks 

In another instance, Max Scholten, Head of Commercialization at Heirloom Carbon Technologies, explained the critical need for low-carbon electricity sources. He stressed that what DAC companies sell must be a net removal of CO2, meaning they cannot emit more CO2 than they capture. This need for clean energy has placed added pressure on DAC plants to prove that their electricity sources are zero-emission, new, and “additional” to the grid.

Is Funding Enough to Navigate the U.S. Energy Landscape?

Last year, in August, the DOE announced a whopping $1.2 billion in funding to develop two major DAC facilities led by Climeworks and Occidental (Oxy). The funding was part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, marking the beginning of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law’s Regional DAC Hubs program, designed to create a nationwide network of large-scale carbon removal sites.

Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm emphasized the importance of these investments by remarking,

“Addressing climate change requires not just reducing emissions but also removing existing CO2 from the atmosphere. This historic investment will help build a crucial industry for combating climate change while supporting local economies.”

For example, the landmark project is led by 1PointFive, a subsidiary of Occidental. This project will initiate the installation of the South Texas Direct Air Capture (DAC) Hub. The hub on King Ranch in Kleberg County aims to become the world’s first DAC plant capable of removing up to 1 million metric tons of CO2 annually.

Clean Power Solutions for DAC Expansion

As the U.S. power consumption continues to rise, DAC companies face long grid connection queues, some stretching over the years. Thus, many DAC companies are choosing to follow strict carbon accounting standards to meet the expectations of buyers and carbon credit exchanges.

Thus, funding is not a problem for DAC plants, but energy procurement is. S&P Global reported that Puro.earth, the carbon removal certifier requires detailed energy emissions analysis for DAC projects listed on its exchange. Such projects must use renewable energy certificates or similar instruments to offset grid emissions, ensuring that the electricity is generated and consumed within the same physical grid and calendar year.

DAC Projects in the U.S.

source: Reuters

The good news is the challenge of securing sufficient clean power has not deterred the sector’s growth. Consequently, Climeworks’ upcoming facility, part of the Battelle-led Project Cypress hub in Louisiana, is set to capture about 1 MMTCO2 annually. This is much more than its current Iceland plant, Mammoth. This project also comes under DOE’s 1.2 billion funding program. Notably, Climeworks is working with renewable energy developers to secure virtual power purchase agreements to achieve this target.

Meanwhile, Heirloom’s initial projects, also part of Project Cypress, will rely on additional wind, solar, and storage facilities. This approach is crucial as DOE has committed around $600 million each to support large-scale DAC hubs on the Gulf Coast.

MUST READ: Altman-Backed Company Opens Biggest US Direct Air Capture Plant 

Furthermore, this level of scrutiny highlights the importance of “additionality”—a concept ensuring that the clean power used by DAC plants is genuinely new and not merely diverted from other uses.

In conclusion, DAC offers great potential in combating climate change. However, as it expands in the U.S., securing clean energy to power operations is a major challenge. S&P Global has scooped this paramount factor and analyzed it focusing on innovative energy solutions and sustainability. With these viable solutions, major carbon capture companies like Climeworks and Heirloom are bound to succeed.

FURTHER READING: U.S. DOE Injects $54.4M to Boost Carbon Management Tech and Cut Carbon Emissions 

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Verra, the leading nonprofit organization in the voluntary carbon credit market, has taken a significant and unprecedented step by rejecting 37 rice cultivation projects in China. Alongside this rejection, Verra has imposed substantial sanctions on the project proponents and the validation/verification bodies (VVBs) involved. 

These actions are a result of an extensive quality control review, showing Verra’s commitment to improving transparency, integrity, and quality within voluntary carbon markets.

Cracking Down on Compliance

The projects in question employed the AMS-III.AU methodology, part of the UNFCCC Clean Development Mechanism. It was permanently inactivated by Verra in March 2023. This methodology was designed to reduce methane emissions through adjusted water management practices in rice cultivation. 

However, the quality control review revealed serious issues, namely:

insufficient demonstration of additionality, 
overstated project areas, and 
a lack of credible evidence to support baseline and project scenario implementation.

The review was bolstered by an analysis of remote sensing data, further validating the concerns raised.

Verra’s decision to impose sanctions on these projects marks a watershed moment in the voluntary carbon market. As part of the sanctions, Verra has issued non-conformity reports to four VVBs: 

China Classification Society Certification Company, 
China Quality Certification Center, 
Shenzhen CTI International Certification Co., Ltd, and 
TÜV Nord Cert GmbH. 

These VVBs are required to present strong corrective action plans within 15 days to prevent similar issues from happening again. Failure to do so could result in their temporary suspension from doing audits of other projects under Verra’s Agriculture, Forestry, and Other Land Use (AFOLU) sector.

Verra’s Sanctions Send Shockwaves Through Carbon Markets

One of the most critical aspects of Verra’s action is the decision to seek compensation from the project proponents for the over issued Verified Carbon Units (VCUs). This move reinforces the importance of accountability in the carbon market, ensuring that projects adhere to the rigorous standards set by Verra. By holding project proponents accountable, Verra aims to maintain the integrity of the market and ensure that carbon credits represent genuine emission reductions.

About a year ago, Verra was criticized for the quality of carbon offset credits the certifier approves. The standard setter has been accused of approving “worthless” carbon offsets that could harm corporate climate goals. 

READ MORE: Do Deforestation Projects Really Reduce Carbon?

Verra’s response to these issues reflects its broader mission to tackle global environmental and social challenges. The organization works with both the private and public sectors to support climate action and sustainable development, providing standards, tools, and programs that credibly assess environmental and social impacts.

As a mission-driven nonprofit, Verra is committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, improving livelihoods, and protecting natural resources. 

In line with its commitment to continuous improvement, Verra is also developing a new rice cultivation methodology under the Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) Program. This new methodology will incorporate more robust provisions, including: 

guidance for field stratification, 
consideration of nitrous oxide emissions, and 
soil organic carbon stocks, and standardized protocols for methane measurements. 

The goal is to enable project proponents to achieve credible emission reductions and generate high-quality VCUs. The consultation for this new methodology recently closed, and its official launch is anticipated later this year.

Reimagining Carbon Credits: A New Era for Rice Cultivation Projects Begins

The suspension and sanctions against the 37 rice cultivation projects conclude a process that began in March 2023. At that time, Verra inactivated the AMS-III.AU methodology following a thorough review.

SEE MORE: Verra Holds Crediting for CDM Rice Cultivation Methodology

The new methodology aims to address the shortcomings identified in the previous approach. This includes providing clearer guidance and more efficient processes for: 

determining additionality,
quantifying emission reductions, and 
ensuring transparent data measurement, reporting, and verification (MRV) procedures.

As of now, Verra has registered 37 projects applying the AMS-III.AU methodology, with 25 of these projects having issued VCUs totaling 4.56 million units, which represents 0.43% of all VCUs.

Verra’s decisive action in this matter serves as a strong signal to the market that inclusion in the Verra Registry is a mark of quality and integrity of carbon credits. It also highlights the organization’s commitment to ensuring that all projects meet the high standards necessary to deliver meaningful environmental and social benefits.

Janice O’Brien, Director, Auditing and Accreditation, Verra, noted on this announcement saying that:

“Our quality control review identified serious failures that required a serious response. What we have learned in this process will also support the development of a more effective and credible rice cultivation methodology for future projects.”

By taking these unprecedented steps, Verra not only addresses the immediate issues with the rejected projects but also sets a precedent for how similar issues will be handled in the future. The organization’s actions are expected to contribute to a more robust and credible voluntary carbon market. This is particularly important in supporting global efforts to combat climate change and promote sustainable development.

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Microsoft is doubling down on its renewable energy commitments with groundbreaking deals in both Singapore and India. The company securred a 20-year agreement with Singapore’s largest SolarNova project and a significant green energy purchase from India’s ReNew Energy Global.

Shining Bright with Singapore’s SolarNova 8

The long-term contract will see Microsoft buying 100% of the renewable energy exported to the grid from the project, which is managed by EDP Renewables (EDPR). 

The SolarNova 8 project is recognized as the largest solar initiative under Singapore’s SolarNova program. It aims to install solar panels on over 1,000 public housing blocks and more than 100 government-owned buildings. Together, they’ll collectively generate up to 200 megawatts (MW) of capacity.

The agreement is part of Microsoft’s broader strategy to meet its ambitious goal of using 100% renewable energy for its operations by 2030. The company has faced challenges in reducing its carbon footprint, particularly with rising emissions due to increased investments in artificial intelligence.

However, by securing a steady supply of renewable energy from projects like SolarNova 8, Microsoft is reinforcing its commitment to sustainability.

The SolarNova program, launched by Singapore’s Housing and Development Board (HDB) and the Economic Development Board (EDB), is a central component of the country’s plan to achieve a solar capacity of at least 2 gigawatts (GW) by 2030. The program has seen several phases, with SolarNova 8 being the most extensive to date. The energy generated from this phase alone is expected to contribute about 420 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of power annually, covering about 5% of Singapore’s total energy consumption.

Remarking on their Singapore renewables deal, Adrian Anderson, GM, Renewables, Carbon Free Energy, Microsoft, stated that:

“Building our renewable energy portfolio with EDPR ensures that we can continue to secure renewable energy supply to meet our Microsoft’s ambitious renewable energy and decarbonization goals.”

For Singapore, the success of the SolarNova program reflects the nation’s commitment to integrating sustainable energy solutions into its urban infrastructure, making it a model for other cities worldwide.

As the largest solar project in Singapore, SolarNova 8 not only boosts the nation’s clean energy capacity but also demonstrates how corporate partnerships can accelerate the shift towards a more sustainable future.

Tech Giants’ Solar Power Strategy

This partnership between Microsoft and EDPR is not their first collaboration. The two companies had previously worked together on a smaller solar project in Singapore in 2018, further cementing their relationship in advancing renewable energy initiatives. 

Through these efforts, Microsoft is not only progressing towards its own sustainability goals but also supporting Singapore’s broader objectives under the Green Plan 2030, which targets significant reductions in carbon emissions and increased reliance on clean energy.

The deal highlights the growing trend of major corporations like Microsoft leveraging long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs) to secure renewable energy sources, thus driving the global energy transition. 

Other tech giants are also using Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) or renewable energy carbon credits, to tackle their carbon footprint. 

In 2022, Amazon heavily relied on unbundled RECs for 52% of its renewable energy needs, making it the most dependent on these instruments among major tech companies. Amazon has acknowledged this reliance and stated plans to reduce it as more of its directly contracted renewable energy projects come online.

READ MORE: AI’s Hidden Carbon Footprint: How Tech Giants Are Masking Their Emissions

Likewise, Meta used unbundled RECs for 18% of its renewable energy in 2022. These approaches highlight different strategies of the big tech to achieve renewable energy goals.

It’s the same for Microsoft, which also aims to cut dependence on RECs in the future. Its acquisition of solar power from Singapore’s public buildings is a critical development in both the company’s and the country’s efforts to combat climate change.

Microsoft Expands Renewable Energy Push in India

Separately, in India, Microsoft has entered into an agreement to purchase 437.6 MW of green attributes from ReNew Energy Global. This contract is expected to generate over 1 million units of green electricity attributes annually, contributing significantly to Microsoft’s sustainability goals in the region.

This partnership is a substantial step forward for both companies, aligning with Microsoft’s ambitious renewable energy and decarbonization goals. Puneet Chandok, President of Microsoft India and South Asia, highlighted the importance of this agreement in accelerating Microsoft’s progress towards its sustainability objectives. He further said that:

“We are taking a holistic approach that includes progressing our climate goals and empowering the ecosystem with the technology that is needed to build a more resilient future.”

In addition to the energy supply contract, ReNew has committed to allocating $15 million of revenue from the Microsoft contract towards a community fund. This fund will focus on environmental justice initiatives, particularly those aimed at improving women’s livelihoods, economic empowerment, rural electrification, environmental remediation, and water quality. The ReNew Foundation, the philanthropic arm of ReNew, will collaborate on these initiatives, aligning with Microsoft’s environmental justice priorities.

Furthermore, in August 2024, Microsoft also entered into a five-year framework agreement with Pivot Energy to develop up to 500MW of community-scale solar projects across the United States from 2025 to 2029. This agreement further underscores Microsoft’s commitment to expanding its renewable energy footprint globally.

These agreements reflect Microsoft’s strategy to diversify its energy sources and support the global transition to renewable energy. These efforts are part of the company’s broader initiative to make renewable energy more accessible and widespread.

FURTHER READING: Microsoft Reported Q2 Record Earnings, How About Its Carbon Negative Goals?

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