TotalEnergies signed a $100 million agreement with Anew Climate, a North American brand in climate solutions, and Aurora Sustainable Lands, a carbon-stewardship company and forest landowner in the U.S. to deploy their projects aimed at protecting productive forests from heavy timber harvesting, advancing conversion to sustainable management practices, and enhancing their ability to store more carbon from the atmosphere.
The investment supports Improved Forest Management (IFM) practices across a portfolio of 20 carbon projects, covering 300,000 hectares in 10 states across the U.S. (Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin). Anew Climate and Aurora Sustainable Lands will provide operational oversight to ensure the carbon projects meet the highest standards of additionality and durability.
The environmental benefits expected from this improved forest management include the preservation of natural carbon sinks by reducing timber harvesting, as well as water and soil quality improvement, biodiversity protection and natural habitat conservation.
As per the press release, the carbon credits generated will be acquired by TotalEnergies and retired beyond 2030. After prioritizing emission avoidance and reduction, the Company will use these credits to voluntarily offset part of its remaining direct Scope 1 & 2 emissions.
“We are happy to partner with such experienced specialists as Anew Climate and Aurora Sustainable Lands, who develop high-quality projects aimed at the sustainable preservation of natural carbon sinks which is essential to achieve carbon neutrality,” said Adrien Henry, Vice President Nature Based Solutions at TotalEnergies Exploration and Production.
Henry added, “TotalEnergies has very positively received the U.S. government’s recently published guiding principles on Voluntary Carbon Markets and is committed to follow them to contribute to strengthening integrity and transparency in these markets, as demonstrated by this partnership”.
“Anew Climate is honoured to partner with TotalEnergies on their journey to reach carbon neutrality,” said Angela Schwarz, Anew Climate CEO.
Schwarz added, “As we worked closely with the TotalEnergies Nature Based Solutions team throughout the stringent due diligence process, it was clear that their commitment to avoiding and reducing emissions as a first principle while recognizing the co-benefits of investing in meaningful carbon projects as part of a comprehensive climate action strategy aligned perfectly with Anew’s mission. We have a shared belief that an ‘all of the above’ strategy is required to achieve meaningful climate impact”.
“Aurora’s carbon stewardship enhances climate resilience while safeguarding vital ecosystems across our forestlands,” said Jamie Houston, CEO of Aurora Sustainable Lands. Houston added, “Thanks to TotalEnergies’ steadfast trust and investment across our portfolio, we can maintain the delicate balance between forest health, soil quality, watersheds, and wildlife habitats. Together we are yielding substantial and lasting climate impact at a massive scale”.
