Varaha, the largest carbon removal developer in Asia today announced that its community-led biochar project, Agnisparsh (RIV2026PROJ164), has been assigned a BeZero Carbon ex ante Rating of A.pre, with low project execution risk, as of October 2026.
Set up in Western India, the project at full operation, will run approximately 450 Kon-Tiki kilns across multiple mobile sites, turning biomass from local smallholder farms into biochar. Biomass in the region is commonly burned in the field after harvest. The project instead converts them into biochar, most of which goes back, free of charge, to the smallholder farmers who supplied the biomass.
The project is being developed under Rainbow’s Distributed open-kiln biochar methodology (v1.0). In March 2026, the Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market confirmed Rainbow as eligible under its Core Carbon Principles, and the methodology is now under assessment for approval, which would allow the project’s credits to carry the Core Carbon Principles label.
“When it comes to carbon removal, distributed biochar is one of the most interesting pathways,” said Ludovic Chatoux, Co-founder and CEO, Rainbow. “It gives smallholder farmers a new source of income and healthier soils, and it can scale fast without heavy upfront investment. Developers like Varaha showed us that strong MRV is possible in the field, so we built a methodology with the rigour to match, including mandatory digital MRV. This rating is a strong signal for the whole pathway.”
“Distributed biochar will only scale if buyers can trust every tonne, and that trust has to be earned through independent scrutiny,” said Madhur Jain, Co-founder and CEO, Varaha. “While to date, all of our industrial-rated biochar projects have been A-rated, this rating shows that community-led biochar does not need to compromise in quality. The combination of community engagement, quality and affordability will enable us to scale this project quickly and sustainably.”
The project’s first issuance is planned in January 2027 with more than 100,000t delivered in 2027 alone making it one of the largest biochar projects globally and building on Varaha’s track record in community-led biochar.
“A BeZero Carbon ex ante Rating represents our independent opinion on the likelihood of a pre-issuance carbon credit achieving a tonne of CO₂e avoided or removed. The A.pre rating for this project reflects our current assessment of its additionality, carbon accounting and permanence” said Tommy Ricketts, CEO and co-founder, BeZero Carbon.
To view the rating report, visit bezerocarbonmarkets.com
About BeZero Carbon
BeZero Carbon is a global carbon ratings agency. It equips organizations with tools to make climate decisions and aims to scale investment in sustainable environmental markets. Backed by a diverse team of specialists and global research partnerships, BeZero provides ratings and risk tools for carbon market participants. For more details, visit www.bezerocarbon.com
About Varaha
Varaha is Asia’s largest carbon removal project developer and climate-tech platform. Founded in 2022, Varaha specializes in high-integrity, nature-based carbon dioxide removal (CDR) projects across the Global South. Leveraging an AI-driven digital Measurement, Reporting, and Verification (dMRV) platform, Varaha turns climate-positive farming into verified carbon credits for global buyers like Google and Microsoft, while directly improving rural smallholder livelihoods. For more information on Varaha, visit www.varaha.com