Microsoft, one of the most prominent buyers of CO2 removals, has published a paper reflecting on the lessons learned during the six years of running its carbon dioxide removal (CDR) program.

Launched back in 2020, the program has backed numerous CDR projects to date. Microsoft highlights that since publishing its last reflections on carbon removal purchasing back in 2023, the company has signed offtake agreements for 80 million tonnes of additional CDR procurement by summer 2026. 

Throughout this time, the corporation continued annually refining and updating its quality criteria while also sponsoring technical whitepapers to make complex qualitative issues practically accessible.

The first five years of this decade, the publication notes, were marked by efforts to build knowledge and gain practical experience. 

In the second half of the decade, Microsoft points out that the priority should be to translate those insights into action, learning through CDR deployment while accelerating responsible scale. 

The corporation shares that its CDR procurement program has shaped out four major lessons so far. 

One of the lessons is that supporting carbon removal requires patience, as in Microsoft’s experience it takes years from project inception to the receipt of first credits. 

Specifically, the company describes a process that takes between 5 and 8 years, stressing that if a company is working on CDR targets or ambitions for 2035 or beyond, it should start procuring opportunities today. 

Another important takeaway is taking into consideration potential setbacks when engaging with a carbon removal project. As project execution risks, Microsoft lists details centred around permissions, market risk, financing, execution, and generation.

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