In May of 2025, we put $1.1M to work into 11 early-stage climate companies. We did this through the first philanthropic revolving fund applied to greenhouse gas removal.
In the 12 months that followed, those companies attracted over $114M in outside capital. One got acquired. One closed a deal with Microsoft. One secured a seven-figure bank loan that wouldn’t have happened without our purchase.
We shared a case study of how it worked with Graphyte and Wren, and now we’re ready to share an analysis of what we did, what worked, and what we’re doing next.
Commercial investors typically require 12–15% returns before committing capital. Early-stage CDR projects tend to land around 6–7%. That gap is where promising projects stall. Terraset’s combination of upfront pre-payment and volume commitment improved project financial returns by 2.2 to 3.6 percentage points. For ERW, that moved portfolio companies to within 0.4pp of the commercial threshold. One modest co-philanthropist could close it.
Terraset paid above the average market rate in three of four technology classes: $52/ton above average for Biochar/BiCRS, $110/ton above for ERW, and $4/ton above for refrigerant destruction. When an early-stage company can point to a credible buyer willing to pay for quality, it changes how commercial investors assess the project. The premium functions as a public signal. It also means Terraset is selecting for companies whose credits will hold up to scrutiny.
“For Biochar and ERW, commitment to a particular price point was cited as the most impactful component of the deal.”
Portfolio companies collectively attracted over $114M in third-party equity, grants, and offtake agreements in the 12 months following Terraset’s purchases. Restord secured a seven-figure bank loan directly catalyzed by our pre-purchase. Charm followed our commitment with $87M in additional offtakes. UNDO closed a debt facility, a Barclays offtake, and a Microsoft offtake. Eion was acquired by Terradot and cited the pre-purchase as key to reaching that agreement.
Unlike a grant, the capital recycles. And it moved faster than we expected. Within the first year, five buyers contracted or pledged purchases totaling over $200,000 back into the fund. Over $350,000 in new donations—separate from the Schmidt Family Foundation anchor gift—has been pledged in 2026 alone. Each cycle builds on the last, generating more market credibility, more recycled capital, and more projects crossing the commercial threshold without needing ongoing philanthropic support. The mechanics work. Now we need more volume.
The revolving fund started in carbon removal, but the model travels. We've deployed funding from it for methane abatement and refrigerant destruction, where the same mechanics apply: upfront prepayment, quality pricing, and volume commitment move project economics in ways that unlock commercial capital.
We're exploring other areas where the structure fits, anywhere an early-stage climate solution has real demand potential but can't yet attract the financing it needs to scale.
If you’re a developer with a project ready for pre-purchase commitments, we want to hear from you. Apply here.
If you’re a funder interested in having your dollar support multiple rounds of impact, reach out to Taylor at taylor@terrasetclimate.org.
If you’re a corporate buyer looking for meaningful purchases where your dollar gets redeployed into new solutions, reach out at hello@terrasetclimate.org.
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