While most CDR headlines focus on North America and Europe, Asia is quietly building serious carbon removal capacity. The latest example: Japan’s Green Carbon Inc. has partnered with Ahmedabad-based Excellent Enfab to deploy industrial-scale biochar production in India.
The Deal
Two new pyrolysis plants will be built in Gujarat and West Bengal. Feedstock comes from locally sourced agricultural residues — peanut shells, flower stems, bamboo — the kind of waste that would otherwise decompose and release CO₂ back into the atmosphere.
The target: 18,000 tonnes of CDR credits per year, sustained over at least 10 years, for a total of 180,000 tonnes. The credits will be certified under the Isometric standard, which requires rigorous lifecycle accounting and permanent carbon storage verification.
The first plant is scheduled for commercial operations in Q2 2026.
Why It Matters
India faces a dual challenge that makes biochar uniquely compelling. Over the past 70 years, average soil organic carbon content has dropped from 1% to just 0.3% — a critical level. Applying biochar to agricultural land doesn’t just store carbon; it rebuilds degraded soil, improves water retention, and reduces fertilizer dependency.
The partnership also produces wood vinegar as a byproduct, which serves as a natural pesticide alternative. This isn’t just carbon removal — it’s a circular economy play.
The Bigger Picture
Green Carbon’s strategy extends across Asia — Thailand, Australia, South America. Their portfolio includes rice paddy credits, forest conservation, mangrove planting, and cattle methane reduction alongside biochar.
CDI has written extensively about biochar at different scales, featuring portfolio companies Cotierra and SYNCRAFT. The approach in India — using local waste streams and 50 TPD industrial pyrolysis — represents yet another model for scaling. Biochar’s strength is precisely this adaptability: small-scale artisanal production in Thailand, gasification combined heat and power in Austria, and now industrial pyrolysis fed by agricultural waste in India.
Biochar already delivers over 90% of commercially traded permanent CDR credits globally. With 40% of this year’s quality supply already contracted, projects like this matter.
Source: Green Carbon Inc.