Amazon to Buy Nearly Half of Carbon Credits From South Africa Spekboom Restoration Project

said it will buy “just less than half” of the carbon credits to be generated by a land-restoration project in South Africa known for using Spekboom, a plant associated with long-term carbon sequestration through growth and biomass accumulation.

The project, described as focused on restoring degraded land, plans to establish thickets of Spekboom, which the reporting ties to the plant’s ability to draw down carbon from the atmosphere. The carbon credits Amazon will purchase are linked to the carbon-removal activity expected from those plantings.

In practical terms, carbon credits are quantified permits or certificates that represent a measured amount of greenhouse-gas reduction or removal. For companies, purchasing credits is often used to complement operational decarbonization efforts, particularly when direct emissions cuts and reductions from energy supply cannot fully account for an emissions profile in the near term.

While Amazon did not, in the available announcement, provide figures beyond the “just less than half” purchasing commitment, it characterized the deal as a way to support carbon-credit generation from the South African restoration effort. The reporting also frames the agreement around a specific nature-based approach rather than a purely industrial abatement project.

The disclosed information does not specify the delivery timetable for the credits, the contract length, the crediting standard used to issue them, or whether Amazon’s purchase is tied to verified outcomes over multiple years. Those elements are typically central to how investors and stakeholders evaluate the credibility and durability of nature-based carbon removals.

Sector-wide, corporate demand for carbon credits has increased as companies seek additional pathways to meet sustainability targets. Nature-based projects, particularly those involving forestry and managed vegetation, have also faced scrutiny regarding measurement uncertainty, permanence risks, and the likelihood that ecological gains persist over time.

An additional question for this kind of arrangement is how the credit accounting aligns with Amazon’s broader climate strategy, including what portion of any reported progress is expected to come from internal emissions reductions versus external credit purchases. The announcement available here does not break down that balance or provide a broader framework beyond the credit purchase commitment itself.

Looking ahead, the market will likely focus on whether the Spekboom project’s credits are issued under an established verification system, how quickly credits are delivered, and what independent assessments say about the permanence and effectiveness of carbon sequestration from land restoration. Amazon’s next disclosures, if any, may clarify deal terms and the methodology behind the credits it is buying.