Both Microsoft and Meta have signed carbon removal deals this week.

Microsoft has signed a deal with a biomass sequestering company, while Meta has signed a forestry deal in Latin America.

Microsoft signs carbon deal with Arbor

Microsoft has signed a biomass carbon sequestration carbon capture deal with Arbor.

Founded by a former SpaceX engineer, Abor's system uses waste biomass to create power, while also capturing the CO2 it says would have been released into the atmosphere via that biomass decomposing or burning up in forest fires.

As well as generating power, California-based Arbor's engine compresses captured CO2 into liquid and pumps it into the ground. Once underground it forms limestone. This process is known as Biogenic Carbon Capture and Sequestration (BCCS).

Starting in 2027, Arbor will support Microsoft’s climate goals by delivering 5,000 tons of carbon removal per year while generating 5MW.

“This contract with Microsoft serves as a significant endorsement from one of the most influential and trusted leaders in the industry,” said Brad Hartwig, CEO of Arbor.

“Microsoft’s commitment to draw down their historical emissions by 2050 perfectly aligns with our mission to bring the planet back into balance with carbon-negative electricity and permanent carbon removal. This agreement underlines the promise of our technology and is another critical step in getting this project off the ground. Together, we’re not just powering the future - we are erasing the emissions of the past.”

Arbor’s initial facility, which will supply credits to Microsoft, will be able to sequester and permanently store 75,000 tons of carbon annually while generating 5MW of clean electricity. Once fully scaled in 2030, Arbor will be able to generate 100MW of electricity while removing almost two million tons of carbon each year.

According to the California Department of Conservation, the plant is to be located in Auburn, Placer County.

Brian Marrs, senior director for carbon removal and energy at Microsoft, added: “The technical promise and modularity of Arbor’s system makes it a very compelling climate solution. Arbor has established a clear, actionable blueprint for simultaneously removing CO2 while producing clean electricity. We look forward to collaborating with the Arbor team on our path to carbon-negativity.”

Founded in 2022, Arbor is backed by Gigascale Capital, Voyager Ventures, Lowercarbon Capital, and Cantos Ventures.

Microsoft is aiming to be carbon-negative by 2030, and is pursuing this goal by signing renewable energy contracts en masse to power its operations, as well as investing in carbon capture and removal projects that can offset its historical emissions.

It has invested in a number of carbon capture projects, including DAC projects from Climeworks, CarbonCapture, and Heirloom.

Meta signs forestry deal in LatAm

In Latin America, Meta has signed a reforestation-based carbon removal deal.

Investment bank BTG Pactual Timberland Investment Group this week announced a long-term contract with Meta for the delivery of 1.3 million nature-based carbon removal credits, with options for delivery of an additional 2.6 million nature-based carbon removal credits.

The credits will be delivered from BTG Pactual TIG’s $1 billion reforestation and restoration strategy in Latin America, which focuses on the conservation, restoration, and planting of deforested and degraded properties in selected regions in Latin America.

“BTG Pactual TIG and Conservation International, in their visionary collaboration, are setting a new bar for how sustainable forestry operations can deliver restoration of degraded land, while providing important economic opportunities for local communities,” said Blair Swedeen, global head of net zero and sustainability at Meta.

“We are proud to support the bold impact strategy that TIG and CI have developed, which aligns with our own goals for our net zero program and for carbon markets broadly.”

Mark Wishnie, chief sustainability officer of BTG Pactual TIG and head of the firm’s reforestation strategy, added: “The due diligence, thought leadership, and technology that Meta has brought to this transaction has been extraordinary.

"The team has developed a clear and rigorous approach to carbon removal, and we are extremely pleased to help support their ambition on this front. Meta is among a small group of companies that have pressed forward to develop an approach that will not only underpin the integrity of its own efforts, but support the development of a high-quality carbon market more broadly."

Meta is part of a carbon removal coalition alongside Google, Microsoft, and Salesforce that aims to make advance market commitments for nature-based removal credits, including forestry projects.

Microsoft has signed a number of forestry deals in the last year, including an agroforestry project in Kenya, a reforestation project in Panama, and forestry projects in Brazil and California.

Orange, Digital Realty, and Gibraltar Telecom have previously funded other forestry projects. Equinix and CyrusOne are part of an Orchard initiative in Ireland.

Meta is also part of Frontier Climate – a consortium that makes aggregated purchases of carbon capture credits from a number of companies, projects, and technologies – alongside Google.

Meta is also developing its own direct air capture technology to potentially capture carbon at its data centers.