CEFC, La Caisse launch $250m carbon credit platform with Rio Tinto as first customer
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The news: The Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) and Canadian-headquartered investment group La Caisse have invested $250 million in a diversified agricultural platform to generate Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCU). Rio Tinto has signed on as the first carbon credit customer.
The numbers: La Caisse has invested $200 million while the CEFC has committed $50 million to the Meldora platform, which has purchased a 15,000 hectare broadacre and irrigation farm in Central Queensland.
The context: The Meldora platform, which will involve “sustainable agricultural production with large-scale Environmental Plantings under the ACCU scheme”, is being managed by agriculture and natural capital asset manager Gunn Agri Partners (GAP).
The environmental plantings methodology involves native vegetation that is planted and maintained for a minimum of 25 years for some projects, but could be as long as a century for others.
Rio Tinto has signed a long term offtake agreement for “part of the ACCUs to be issued”, according to the CEFC.
CEFC and La Caisse previously committed to co-investing $200 million in agricultural land assets that were managed by Gunn Agri Partners in mid-2023.
What they said: “Teaming up once again with the CEFC and GAP – and with Rio Tinto as a foundation offtaker – reinforces our confidence in this platform’s ability to scale,” La Caisse executive vice-president and head of infrastructure and sustainability Emmanual Jaclot said.
CEFC head of natural capital Heechung Sung said that the integrated sustainable land management model can “produce high-quality agricultural commodities while also increasing biodiversity, improving ecosystems, and earning carbon revenues through the investment in native landscape restoration”.
The source: CEFC media release
