- Long-term Partnership: Microsoft will purchase 44,000 carbon removal credits from Carba, with deliveries beginning in 2025.
- Scalable Carbon Tech: Carba’s patented pyrolysis reactor converts biogenic waste into stable biochar with potential environmental co-benefits.
- Public-Private Backing: Carba’s project also received a $7 million U.S. Department of Energy grant under the Carbon Negative Shot initiative.
Microsoft is doubling down on durable carbon removal with a new five-year agreement to purchase 44,000 carbon removal credits from Carba, a Minnesota-based climate tech company. The credits will begin retiring in 2025, marking a significant commitment to long-term carbon sequestration through emerging pyrolysis technology.
Carba’s proprietary reactor stabilizes carbon by converting biogenic waste into biochar—an energy-efficient process powered by the company’s autothermal system. The resulting biochar will be buried in local landfills as alternate daily cover in low-oxygen conditions, making the carbon less susceptible to re-release into the atmosphere.
“We’re thrilled to contribute to Microsoft’s portfolio by providing high-quality carbon removal credits that will be retired starting in 2025,” said Andrew Jones, CEO of Carba. “Our fully integrated approach—combining biomass sourcing, processing, and secure storage—enables us to scale quickly while having the potential to deliver significant community co-benefits.”
Microsoft sees the deal as both an investment in high-integrity credits and a real-world test of biochar’s additional environmental benefits.
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“By co-locating biomass supply chain delivery, pyrolysis, and end-use & storage, Carba’s biochar burial offers the potential to become a scalable and cost-effective climate solution,” said Brian Marrs, Senior Director for Energy & Carbon Removal at Microsoft. “This agreement with Carba allows us to better explore the future of this biochar end-use and the possible co-benefits, while benefiting from the near-term delivery of these credits with a straightforward-monitoring and verification process.”
The partnership builds on momentum from Carba’s $7 million grant last year from the Department of Energy’s Carbon Negative Shot Pilot (FOA 382), a key federal initiative to accelerate carbon-negative technologies.
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