- Strategic Offtakes: Meta and Microsoft sign long-term carbon credit agreements to support climate-smart forestry and secure price certainty.
- Nature-Based Returns: Climate Asset Management’s forest investment strategy promises measurable carbon removals, biodiversity gains, and financial yield.
- High-Integrity Standards Rise: Regulatory shifts and market evolution are driving demand for durable, high-quality carbon credits with co-benefits.
As leading corporates move beyond operational decarbonization, they are turning to the voluntary carbon market (VCM) not only to offset hard-to-abate emissions but also to hedge against regulatory risks, direct capital into nature-positive projects, and showcase visible climate leadership.
Meta and Microsoft are among the frontrunners, securing long-term offtake agreements tied to the Olympic Rainforest in Washington State—a 68,000-acre project managed by EFM and backed by Climate Asset Management (CAM), a joint venture between HSBC Asset Management and Pollination.
“Blending timber income, conservation easements, and carbon credits can simultaneously de-risk and enhance returns,” said James Bullen, Head of Asset Management at CAM.
Why it matters:
Corporate procurement strategies have matured. The shift from spot carbon credit purchases to long-term offtakes—and even direct investment—signals a new era where carbon credits serve as strategic assets, not just compliance tools.
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CAM, managing over $1 billion in investor commitments, illustrates this evolution. Through its Natural Capital Fund (NCF) and Nature-Based Carbon Fund (NBCF), it offers exposure to real-asset carbon strategies that combine financial returns with measurable climate, biodiversity, and community impacts.
The Olympic Rainforest deal is a flagship case. Adjacent to Olympic National Park, this once-industrial timber estate is being transformed into a FSC-certified, climate-smart forest. Over the next decade, it is expected to deliver more than 1 million tonnes of carbon removals through an Improved Forest Management (IFM) approach. The project is also forecast to nearly double standing timber volumes within 15 years while restoring habitats for endangered species and strengthening partnerships with the Quileute and Hoh tribes.
“These contracts lock in price certainty for the bulk of projected carbon credits and affirm IFM as a credible, long-duration carbon removal pathway,” CAM stated.
The bigger picture:
The market is tightening its standards. The EU’s proposed Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF) and the Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market’s Core Carbon Principles (CCPs) are defining what qualifies as “high-integrity” carbon credits. Buyers are following suit, seeking permanence, co-benefits, and financial transparency.
“The Olympic Rainforest shows how corporates can mobilize capital at scale for high-integrity climate outcomes that complement, not replace, emissions reductions,” CAM emphasized.
The momentum is growing. With backing from initiatives like the Sustainable Markets Initiative’s Voluntary Carbon Market Mobilisation Guide, corporates now have a roadmap to accelerate climate-positive investments that deliver long-term economic and environmental returns.
Bottom Line:
High-integrity carbon credits are no longer a fringe solution—they are becoming a cornerstone of corporate climate and capital strategy.
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