Cases / Carbon credits · Brazil · 2022
Biomas restoration initiative
Nature's voice · report
No measurement of the harm done to me here is on record.
Did nature suffer? Not measured.
Not on record
- The record does not name which of my species, waters, soils or forests were harmed.
What the record lacks: 2 none on record · 1 not disclosed · 2 insufficient · 1 not measured See the gaps
Six Brazilian and international companies announced Biomas at COP27 in November 2022, a company to restore, conserve and preserve 4 million hectares over 20 years, financed by selling carbon credits. Later project details rest on press reports that the research did not verify.
4 million ha in 20 yearsStated target of a company founded by Vale, Itaú Unibanco, Marfrig, Rabobank, Santander and Suzano
Target in Vale's market notice of 14 November 2022: 2 million hectares restored with about 2 billion trees and 2 million conserved. Delivered area is not documented in the verified sources.
Target in Vale's market notice of 14 November 2022: 2 million hectares restored with about 2 billion trees and 2 million conserved. Delivered area is not documented in the verified sources.
Status As of October 2026: Biomas was founded in November 2022 with a 4-million-hectare, 20-year target; its first project and later details rest on press reports that were not verified.
What?
A company founded by six firms to restore, conserve and preserve forests in Brazil, financed by sales of carbon credits. Vale
Where?
Brazil; the announcement was made during COP27. Vale
When?
Announced in November 2022 (notice dated 14 November); target period 20 years. Vale
Who?
Gained
None on recordLost
None on recordHarmed
None on recordWhy?
The notice describes the company as dedicated to forest restoration, conservation and preservation, with each project made viable by carbon-credit sales. Vale
How?
Each founder put in an initial R$20 million; projects are to be financed by the sale of carbon credits; the target is 2 million hectares restored and 2 million conserved. Vale
5 of 6 questions answered from the record · open: who
What happened
The record, in order.
Vale published a market notice in Rio de Janeiro on 14 November 2022 saying that it and Itaú Unibanco, Marfrig, Rabobank, Santander and Suzano had announced, during COP27, the creation of a company entirely dedicated to restoring, conserving and preserving forests in Brazil. The company is Biomas.
According to the notice, each partner put in an initial R$20 million, and each project is to be made viable through the sale of carbon credits. The target is 4 million hectares over 20 years: 2 million restored with about 2 billion trees and 2 million conserved. The notice estimates that about 900 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent would be removed or avoided over the 20 years.
The founders come from mining (Vale), pulp (Suzano), meat processing (Marfrig) and banking (Itaú Unibanco, Rabobank, Santander). Biomas is listed as a member of the International Emissions Trading Association (IETA).
Sérgio Rial is a director of TNC's Global Board and Investment Committee (term February 2022 to October 2031). TNC's biography gives him roles as chief executive of Banco Santander (Brasil) from 2016 to 2022 and chairman from 2022 to early 2023, and chief executive of Marfrig Global Foods from 2012 to 2015. Santander and Marfrig are two of the six Biomas founders, and the November 2022 announcement fell in the period when he chaired Santander Brasil.
- 2022Rial joins TNC's Global Board and Investment Committee (February); Biomas announced at COP27 by six founders (Vale notice dated 14 November); Rial chairs Santander Brasil (2022 to early 2023)
How it looked
What was shown, beside what was recorded.
Shown
- A company dedicated to restoring, conserving and preserving forests in Brazil, with a target of 4 million hectares over 20 yearsVale, market notice of 14 November 2022 · Vale
- About 900 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent removed or avoided over 20 yearsVale, market notice of 14 November 2022 (the notice's estimate) · Vale
Recorded
- Each of the six founders made an initial commitment of R$20 million; the business model rests on selling carbon credits
- The stated target splits into 2 million hectares restored with about 2 billion trees and 2 million hectares conserved
- Biomas is listed among IETA's members
- Sérgio Rial, a TNC director, was chairman of Santander Brasil (2022 to early 2023) when Santander was announced as a Biomas founder
Who gained
Money that reached nature, beside money that stayed elsewhere.
Reached nature or the ground
Not published
No figure published.
Gained elsewhere
Not totalled
Currency: BRL · Window: 2022. All figures cover the same period. * Estimate built from cited figures.
Responses on record
- Vale (14 November 2022): In a market notice, said it and five other companies had announced at COP27 the creation of a company dedicated to restoring, conserving and preserving forests in Brazil, with R$20 million from each partner, projects financed by carbon-credit sales and a target of 4 million hectares over 20 years. · Vale
In court and with insurers
Every proceeding and every insurer decision on record.
Lawsuits and rulings
No court case on record. No court has ruled on this case.
Insurers
No insurer decision on record.
What nature saw
Outcomes measured on the ground, and nature's note.
Nature's report opens this page. Below: further outcomes measured on the ground.
Target area
4 million ha
Over 20 years: 2 million restored (about 2 billion trees), 2 million conserved (Vale notice, 2022)
Area restored or conserved so far
Not documented
A first project reported by press in 2025 was not verified
Stated climate estimate
About 900 million t CO2e
Removed or avoided over 20 years, per the notice
What we don't know
Undisclosed, unproven, untried: recorded as data.
Nature
- Not measured Harm to nature: The record holds no measurement of harm to nature.
Record
- None on record No restored or conserved area attributable to Biomas is documented in the verified sources.
- Not disclosed Biomas's official website could not be reached (biomas.com.br, biomas.eco and biomas.org.br did not respond) and no official domain was found; the founders are confirmed only through Vale's 2022 notice.
- Insufficient Reported but not independently verified (press only): a 16.66% stake for each founder; approval by Brazil's competition authority (CADE) in December 2022; a first project in 2025 worth R$55 million on Veracel land in Bahia (Muçununga); and the name of the chief executive.
- Insufficient Reported but not independently verified: Vale's separate target of 500,000 hectares by 2030 and implementation of about 14,000 of a 100,000-hectare restoration target by May 2024.
- None on record Which carbon standard or registry the Biomas credits would use is not stated in the sources reviewed.
Did the harm stop?
Not applicable: the verified sources record no harm attributed to Biomas itself, and no restored area is documented.
Who paid?
The six founding companies each committed R$20 million at the start; according to Vale's notice, later projects are to be financed through the sale of carbon credits.
Sources
Voices on record: ✓ Company or project— Government and regulators— Courts— Press and investigations— Communities and civil society— Researchers
Company or project
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