SAO PAULO, Sept 19 (Askume) – Alphabet’s (GOOGL.O) Google has agreed to buy nature-based carbon removal credits from a Brazilian startup for the first time, marking its first involvement in a carbon project in the South American country.
Google will buy 50,000 tonnes of carbon removal credits by 2030 from Mombak, which purchases degraded land or works with farmers and ranchers to replant native species in the Amazon rainforest, the companies said on Thursday.
Google, which previously purchased engineering removal credits, is now following in the footsteps of U.S. technology giant Microsoft (MSFT.O) , which last year signed a deal to buy 1.5 million credits from Mombak.
The Brazilian startup and Google did not disclose the terms of the deal. In 2023, when the points were sold to McLaren Racing , the average price charged by Mombach was more than $50 per ton.
Mombuk’s chief technology officer Dan Harburg said in an interview: “Google’s entry into this field gives us confidence, and this field is a very positive sign.”
The news comes as companies and executives gather in New York this month for the annual Climate Week.
Earlier this week, Facebook owner Meta (META.O) agreed to buy 3.9 million carbon offset credits from the forestry unit of Brazilian investment bank BTG Pactual.
Google, Microsoft, Meta and Salesforce (CRM.N) are co-founders of the so-called Symbiosis Alliance, which has committed to contracting 20 million tonnes of nature-based carbon removal credits by 2030.
Carbon offsets allow companies to compensate for greenhouse gas emissions by paying for emissions reduction actions elsewhere to achieve corporate climate goals. Each point represents a reduction in one ton of CO2 emissions.
Critics of the offset market, including Greenpeace, say it allows emitters to continue releasing greenhouse gases.
