MOL Signs Japan’s First Ever Enhanced Rock Weathering (ERW) Offtake Deal with Alt Carbon

Shrey Agarwal Co-Founder, Alt Carbon and Yoshikazu Hirose, Head of Carbon Removal Team / MOL

Tokyo/Darjeeling , April 2025 

In a major step toward advancing global carbon removal efforts, Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL Group) has signed Japan’s first-ever offtake agreement for Enhanced Rock Weathering (ERW)-based carbon removal credits with Alt Carbon, a pioneering carbon removal company operating projects in Darjeeling, India.

With this milestone, MOL becomes the first shipping company globally, and the first Japanese company, to offtake ERW-based carbon removal credits. Under the agreement, MOL has secured 10,000 tonnes of durable carbon removal credits as part of its ambitious "BLUE ACTION 2035" strategy, aimed at achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.

The partnership is particularly significant in multiple ways:

• It represents the first ERW offtake by a shipping company globally.

• It marks the first direct bilateral agreement between a Japanese buyer and an Indian company for carbon removal.

• It signals the beginning of a new climate collaboration corridor between Japan and India.

  
  

Alt Carbon and MOL Group first engaged during the Carbon Unbound event in New York last year, and their relationship has since deepened through site visits in Darjeeling, strategy discussions in Tokyo, and participation in the Futures Summit. The collaboration has grown into a bold, action-driven alliance, from site visits in Darjeeling to strategic discussions in Tokyo, and participation in the Futures Summit.

The collaboration leverages the rich heritage of Darjeeling’s tea estates for ERW projects. By enhancing natural rock weathering processes, Alt Carbon’s work facilitates the permanent removal of CO₂, eventually storing it as sea shells and corals in the Bay of Bengal — a process that combines natural carbon sequestration with sustainable community development.

This unique pact not only demonstrates MOL’s commitment to decarbonizing its operations but also presents a scalable model for the shipping and logistics industry at large. In light of recent International Maritime Organization (IMO) discussions around carbon taxation for the maritime sector, MOL’s initiative places it at the forefront of climate leadership within the shipping world.

Through this pioneering agreement, MOL and Alt Carbon are setting a precedent for how cross-border, cross-sector collaboration can drive innovation, climate action, and sustainable growth — from Darjeeling’s hills to Tokyo Bay.