Microsoft has signed an agreement to purchase 100,000 tons of biochar-based carbon removal credits (CDRs) from the Indian developer Varaha over the next three years, marking its first biochar contract with an Asian supplier.

The supply will come from a project in Maharashtra, India, which will use cotton waste from small farmers as raw material. The agreement funds 18 gasification reactors with an estimated 15-year lifespan and projects more than 2 million tons of CO₂ removed over the project’s lifecycle.

From an investment perspective, the announcement highlights:

Scalability and durability of biochar as CDR.
Project de-risking through long-term purchase agreements.
Social impact and local supply chains, aligned with ESG criteria.

Market consolidation: Varaha rises to 11th place on CDR.fyi, with over 491,000 tons sold and 118,000 tons delivered, while Microsoft leads the buyers with over 34.6 million tons acquired.

This development reinforces the thesis that durable CDRs are entering an industrial deployment phase, with anchor buyers accelerating the adoption curve and creating capital opportunities in infrastructure, technology, and supply.

Source and Credits to CDR.fyi

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