Releaf Earth, a leading climate and agriculture technology company, has announced the successful issuance of Nigeria’s first industrial-scale carbon removal credits, marking a fundamental shift in how Africa participates in the global carbon removal sector. The inaugural credits have been purchased by leading global companies, including Salesforce, through Milkywire, a global platform funding high-impact climate action, validating Nigeria’s potential to provide high-integrity solutions to the global climate crisis.
The inaugural issuance – a verified initial tranche of 190 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO₂e) – was generated from Releaf’s state-of-the-art biochar production facility in Iwuru, Cross River State, which converts agricultural waste into premium biochar. This process permanently sequesters carbon dioxide that would otherwise be released into the atmosphere while producing a potent soil amendment that boosts crop yields for smallholder farmers.
Unlike traditional forestry offsets, which carry a risk of reversal through wildfires or logging, Releaf Earth’s credits are based on biochar – a stable form of carbon that is chemically resistant to decay. This offers buyers a “physics-based” guarantee of permanence, ensuring that their investment delivers verifiable, long-term climate impact rather than just short-term compensation.
To ensure the credits meet the highest global standards, Releaf Earth issued them through the Rainbow Standard, a data-first registry for high-durability removals built on trusted standards (ICROA, CRCF, ICVCM). The permanence of the carbon removal is also guaranteed by the science that underpins Releaf Earth’s process. During pyrolysis, the process of transforming biomass through heat in a low-oxygen environment, Releaf Earth thermally stabilises agricultural waste into biochar, transforming the carbon into an inert, solid form that, once integrated into the soil, is chemically resistant to decay, locking carbon away for centuries. This is proven by Releaf Earth’s Inertinite Gold Certification, which shows the highest quality in terms of carbon storage security.
In addition, by layering its SITE geospatial tool with the Rainbow Protocol, Releaf Earth can also track every ton of carbon from the specific farm source to the final soil application. This combination ensures integrity at an industrial scale, giving buyers absolute certainty that every credit represents a permanent and verifiable removal from the atmosphere.
As the global economy decarbonises, the demand for high-integrity carbon removal is projected to become a trillion-dollar market. This presents a historic opportunity for the African continent, which already produces over a billion tonnes of biomass annually. Releaf Earth’s issuance demonstrates that Nigeria, and the wider African continent, can capture a significant share of this emerging sector, turning climate action into a powerful engine for GDP growth.
This milestone achievement also aligns with Nigeria’s moves to diversify its economy and accelerate sustainable growth. Nigeria’s President Tinubu recently approved a framework targeting $3 billion a year in carbon market revenue by 2030. This issuance is a critical proof point that Nigeria can export ‘climate solutions’ just as effectively as it has exported oil and agricultural products in the past, bringing in high-value foreign investment from global tech giants.
Commenting on the issuance, Ikenna Nzewi, CEO and co-founder of Releaf Earth, said,” It’s a landmark moment for us at Releaf Earth, but more importantly, it’s a landmark moment for Nigeria and the continent. It represents a fundamental shift in how Africa participates in the global climate economy. With this issuance, we are sending a clear signal that Africa is ready to lead this new era of climate action. We are removing carbon dioxide more cost-effectively than anywhere else. ”
At the heart of Releaf Earth’s carbon removal initiative is a “Circular Wealth Engine” designed to deliver simultaneous benefits for both people and the planet. By returning the produced biochar to the soil, farmers can achieve up to 23% increase in crop yields – a critical boost in an economic environment where synthetic fertiliser costs are surging. When combined with the new revenue streams generated from monetising previously discarded agricultural waste, the company is on track to increase smallholder farmer incomes by over 50%.
