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Climate Impact Partners has joined forces with Terra Natural Capital to finance the Panna afforestation project in India in a landmark agreement poised to reshape the carbon removal landscape. This initiative, a beacon of large-scale environmental restoration, will see Microsoft commit to purchasing 1.5 million tonnes of verified carbon removal credits over the next three decades—securing 50% of the project’s total carbon output.
Combining expertise, finance, and long-term commitment, the project leverages Climate Impact Partners’ deep-rooted experience in carbon markets, Terra Natural Capital’s investment strength, and Microsoft’s ambition to drive meaningful climate action. Notably, this marks Microsoft’s largest carbon removal project in the APAC region and its first in India, cementing its role in global sustainability efforts.
Three years of rigorous due diligence, pilot programs, and independent assessments have validated the project’s quality and impact. Now set for full-scale implementation, the initiative will plant up to 11.6 million native trees across 20,000 hectares—an expanse larger than Washington, DC—on farmer and community lands. Over 1.2 million trees have already taken root across 100 communities, signaling strong momentum.
But the project is more than just trees—it’s a catalyst for environmental renewal and economic upliftment:
🔹 Economic Empowerment: Farmers will receive a share of carbon credit revenues and income from fruit and medicinal tree harvests.
🔹 Sustainable Agriculture: Climate-smart training programs will equip communities with techniques to enhance crop yields over the long term.
🔹 Water Conservation: Large-scale infrastructure, including ponds, borewells, and drip irrigation systems, will ensure sustainable water management.
🔹 Biodiversity Revival: The planting of diverse native species will restore degraded lands, attracting butterflies, birds, and other wildlife.
Sheri Hickok, CEO of 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 of 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."
Climate Impact Partners
A pioneer in high-quality carbon market solutions, Climate Impact Partners has spent 25 years shaping global climate action, supporting over 600 carbon reduction and removal projects across 56 countries. Integrating carbon credits with corporate sustainability goals enables businesses to offset unavoidable emissions, incentivize greener operations, and push the world toward net zero.
Terra Natural Capital
At the forefront of climate finance innovation, Terra Natural Capital funds large-scale carbon removal and nature restoration projects. As a major player in institutional capital deployment for environmental solutions, it drives the development of natural capital assets that promise lasting climate impact.
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