Alt Carbon Secures $12M Seed Funding to Scale Carbon Removal in India

From Family Tea Estate to Climate Tech Innovator

Alt Carbon, a climate-tech startup founded by siblings Shrey and Sparsh Agarwal, has secured $12 million in seed funding to scale its carbon dioxide removal efforts in India. The journey began in May 2020 when the Agarwal siblings visited their family's struggling tea estate in Darjeeling, which was facing bankruptcy. This visit unexpectedly planted the seeds for Alt Carbon, which they officially launched in late 2023 1

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Source: TechCrunch

Innovative Carbon Removal Technology

Alt Carbon's approach centers on enhanced rock weathering, a process that locks away carbon for thousands of years. The startup deploys waste basalt rock dust from mines and quarries in the Rajmahal Traps region of Eastern India. This dust is spread on farmlands where it reacts with rainwater to remove carbon dioxide and add micronutrients to the soil, improving fertility and crop yields 1

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The company has developed a proprietary combination of basalt with other organic ingredients, called Hari Maati (green soil in Hindi), to encourage farmers to use it on their lands. This innovative approach transforms Darjeeling's legacy from being at risk of climate change impact to a frontier of climate action 1

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Ambitious Goals and Expansion Plans

Alt Carbon started its pilot project on about 500 acres of land around the Agarwals' family tea estate and has since expanded to North Bengal, covering tea, rice, and bamboo farms. The startup aims to expand its operations to 500,000 hectares of land across South Asia 1

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By 2030, Alt Carbon targets the removal of 5 million tons of carbon from the region. The company estimates its carbon credits at $270 per metric ton, which is significantly cheaper than direct air capture credits 1

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Measurement and Verification

To ensure accuracy in carbon removal quantification, Alt Carbon employs a three-layer measurement system:

1. Tracking weathering progress
2. Measuring water within soil, groundwater sampling, and river monitoring
3. Using proprietary reactive transport models and machine learning-driven modeling

The startup's models adhere to methodologies set by carbon removal registries, including Isometric and Puro.earth, and have received approvals from intergovernmental organizations such as SBTi, ICVCM, and CORSIA 1

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Funding and Partnerships

The $12 million seed round was led by Lachy Groom, co-founder of the robotics AI company Physical Intelligence. Other participants included Shastra VC and several angel investors 1

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Alt Carbon has also secured strategic partnerships and agreements, including:

• A $500,000 pre-purchase by Frontier
• A strategic partnership with NextGen, a buyer coalition started by South Pole and Mitsubishi Corporation
• An offtake agreement with Japan's MOL Group to purchase 10,000 tons of carbon removal credits 1

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Source: Inc42

Future Plans

With the new funding, Alt Carbon plans to:

1. Scale up its labs in Darjeeling and Bengaluru
2. Expand its soil sample analysis capabilities
3. Set up a hardware studio for better data collection using remote sensing
4. Deploy sensors for more efficient insights
5. Improve its science and conduct advanced R&D
6. Create machine learning models to accelerate operations 1

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As Alt Carbon prepares to deliver its first carbon credits through Isometric in less than a month, the startup is poised to make a significant impact on carbon removal efforts in India and potentially transform the region into a hub for climate action 1

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