GenZero Cuts 3 Million Tonnes of Emissions Through Its Investments

It is targeting at least 7m tonnes of direct emission removals, cuts by March 2028

- Ang Qing

Three million tonnes of planet-warming emissions have been directly reduced or removed from the atmosphere due to investments made by Singapore-based climate investment firm GenZero as at Dec 31, 2024.

In its inaugural sustainability report published on Sept 1, GenZero said it aims to contribute to at least seven million tonnes of direct emission reductions or removals through its investments by March 31, 2028.

This is equivalent to about 10.9 per cent of Singapore's emissions projected for 2028.

GenZero was set up by Singapore's investment company Temasek in 2022 with an initial injection of about $5 billion.

Its focus is on enabling a global trade in carbon credits by investing in nature and technology, as well as services to boost the credibility of carbon markets.

GenZero chief executive Frederick Teo declined to reveal the investment quantum utilised so far, saying only that "the majority of the firm's initial funding has not been deployed".

Setting a climate impact performance target puts GenZero among the first global investment entities to do so.

Other ways of measuring climate impact used by other firms include the size of investments in sustainability initiatives, size of nature areas restored, and species saved.

The report's coordinator Sofia Galanek told the media at a briefing ahead of the report's release that by setting the target, the firm hopes to hold itself to "a higher level of accountability" in a market where few set goals for the amount of emissions reduced or removed by their actual level of investment.