· 3 min read
illuminem summarises for you the essential news of the day. Read the full piece on The Wall Street Journal or enjoy below:
🗞️ Driving the news: Chestnut Carbon has raised $250 million in 2025, the largest voluntary carbon market fundraise so far this year, underscoring renewed investor confidence in carbon removal despite recent market turbulence
• The New York-based forestry developer secured $90 million in its latest round, adding to earlier tranches, and surpassing high-profile raises by Climeworks and Heirloom
• The funding will support afforestation and reforestation projects across 60,000 acres in the U.S. Southeast
🔭 The context: The voluntary carbon market has struggled since 2022 amid greenwashing claims and weak demand, with investments falling sharply compared to the record-breaking raises of Climeworks ($650m) and Svante ($318m)
• Buyers have become more selective, focusing on high-integrity projects such as afforestation, reforestation, and revegetation (ARR), which are seen as lower cost and more credible than avoided-deforestation offsets
• Microsoft’s recent multi-year purchase of seven million tons of credits from Chestnut reflects this shift toward “flight to quality”
🌍 Why it matters for the planet: Scaling carbon removal is essential to achieving global climate targets, but quality and permanence remain major hurdles
• ARR projects provide proven, nature-based sequestration, but face reversal risks from wildfire, pests, or land-use changes
• By spreading projects across multiple states and making credits more tangible, Chestnut aims to strengthen credibility and durability
• If replicated, such strategies could bolster trust in carbon markets and channel investment toward scalable, verifiable removals
⏭️ What's next: Chestnut plans to expand its portfolio beyond 60,000 acres, targeting up to 11 million acres of serviceable land
• The funding is expected to accelerate planting of 35 million hardwood and softwood trees, diversifying regional risks
• Industry analysts forecast the global carbon credit market could grow from $1–3 billion today to as much as $35 billion by 2030, with investor attention now focused on standardization, transparency, and building regulatory frameworks to stabilize the sector
💬 One quote: “Buyers are demanding higher integrity and more transparency. What you’re seeing is a flight to quality.” — Greg Adams, CFO, Chestnut Carbon
📈 One stat: Chestnut Carbon has already planted more than 30,000 acres across eight Southeastern U.S. states, with a long-term goal of restoring over 60,000 acres through ARR projects
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