Grain Ecosystem

At the 2025 North American Biochar Conference, Ryan Letourneau joined the stage to discuss how biochar projects are being financed today, and what’s changed since last year. 

The panel, “Financing the Future of Biochar: Real Capital for Real Infrastructure,” explored how project developers can make their projects bankable by combining climate impact, sound business fundamentals, and realistic capital strategies. 

Since 2024, the financing landscape has shifted: large pre-purchase carbon credit deals have largely given way to forward commitments, Investment Tax Credits (ITCs) have become key to unlocking capital, and developers are focusing more on proven technology, reliable feedstock, and long-term offtake agreements. 

Ryan emphasized that investors look for projects with clear economic logic: those that align environmental goals with strong financial foundations. 

That often means finding opportunities where biochar provides both climate benefits and operational savings, whether by reducing waste management costs, generating renewable energy, or creating high-value carbon removals. 

“Biochar is an amazing product," Letourneau noted, but investability starts with solving a real problem. Projects that combine clear feedstock security, proven technology, and transparent delivery are the ones that attract capital. 

Rethinking the Revenue Mix and the New Capital Stack

Biochar projects typically earn revenue from several sources: tipping fees, biochar physical sales, carbon credits, and sometimes energy. What matters most, Letourneau noted, isn’t just the amount but the

timing of those revenues. Early cash flow from tipping fees or energy sales can help sustain operations while waiting for carbon credit verification and delivery. That balance is often what determines whether a project can secure financing.

In today’s market, no single source of capital gets a project built. Successful developers are layering multiple tools (grants, low-interest loans, ITC-backed financing, and equity) into structured stacks that share risk across investors. This diversification, Letourneau explained, is replacing the old reliance on large carbon pre-purchases. “It’s unlikely we will see millions of dollars in pre-purchases in this space,” he said. What’s taking their place are forward commitments, grants, and credits that can actually be collateralized and underwritten.

"Outside of revenues, the next thing that investors are thinking about is risk," Ryan said. For investors, what matters most is reliability. Projects that demonstrate secure feedstock supply, proven technology, verified monitoring, and transparent contracts inspire confidence and move faster through financing. Investors aren’t just funding carbon, they’re funding reliability. Projects that show they can deliver what they promise are the ones that move first.

“We need as an industry more bankable projects. What’s good for everyone is more projects: more projects delivering biochar, more projects selling into new offtake markets, more carbon removed”, he said. Biochar continues to lead the carbon removal market, and the path forward depends on bringing real capital into real projects. As Ryan closed the session, his message to developers was simple: "design wisely, build smart, operate at scale."

A practical guide to financing biochar projects today: what’s changed since last year, which revenues actually matter, how to stack capital, and what “bankable” really looks like. 

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<p></p><p>At the 2025 North American Biochar Conference, Ryan Letourneau joined the stage to discuss how biochar projects are being financed today, and what’s changed since last year. </p><p>The panel, “Financing the Future of Biochar: Real Capital for Real Infrastructure,” explored how project developers can make their projects bankable by combining climate impact, sound business fundamentals, and realistic capital strategies. </p><p><iframe width="908" height="508" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8HSyKS-zxHQ?list=PLeBkf5YxlTT0J3OJszKL5Oz75_pkQQGKe" title="Financing the Future of Biochar: Real Capital for Real Infrastructure - Panel" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe> </p><p><a href="https://youtu.be/8HSyKS-zxHQ?list=PLeBkf5YxlTT0J3OJszKL5Oz75_pkQQGKe" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">If the video doesn’t display properly, click here to view it.</a> </p><p>Since 2024, the financing landscape has shifted: large pre-purchase carbon credit deals have largely given way to forward commitments, Investment Tax Credits (ITCs) have become key to unlocking capital, and developers are focusing more on proven technology, reliable feedstock, and long-term offtake agreements. </p><h2>Finding the Real Value Drivers </h2><p>Ryan emphasized that investors look for projects with clear economic logic: those that align environmental goals with strong financial foundations. </p><p>That often means finding opportunities where biochar provides both climate benefits and operational savings, whether by reducing waste management costs, generating renewable energy, or creating high-value carbon removals. </p><p>“Biochar is an amazing product," Letourneau noted, but investability starts with solving a real problem. Projects that combine clear feedstock security, proven technology, and transparent delivery are the ones that attract capital. </p><h2><strong>Rethinking the Revenue Mix and the New Capital Stack</strong></h2><p>Biochar projects typically earn revenue from several sources: tipping fees, biochar physical sales, carbon credits, and sometimes energy. What matters most, Letourneau noted, isn’t just the amount but the<strong> </strong>timing of those revenues. Early cash flow from tipping fees or energy sales can help sustain operations while waiting for carbon credit verification and delivery. That balance is often what determines whether a project can secure financing.</p><p>In today’s market, no single source of capital gets a project built. Successful developers are layering multiple tools (grants, low-interest loans, ITC-backed financing, and equity) into structured stacks that share risk across investors. This diversification, Letourneau explained, is replacing the old reliance on large carbon pre-purchases. “It’s unlikely we will see millions of dollars in pre-purchases in this space,” he said. What’s taking their place are forward commitments, grants, and credits that can actually be collateralized and underwritten.</p><h2><strong>Building Bankable Projects</strong></h2><p>"Outside of revenues, the next thing that investors are thinking about is risk," Ryan said. For investors, what matters most is reliability. Projects that demonstrate secure feedstock supply, proven technology, verified monitoring, and transparent contracts inspire confidence and move faster through financing. Investors aren’t just funding carbon, they’re funding reliability. Projects that show they can deliver what they promise are the ones that move first.</p><h2><strong>Closing Thoughts</strong></h2><p>“We need as an industry more bankable projects. What’s good for everyone is more projects: more projects delivering biochar, more projects selling into new offtake markets, more carbon removed”, he said. Biochar continues to lead the carbon removal market, and the path forward depends on bringing real capital into real projects. As Ryan closed the session, his message to developers was simple: "design wisely, build smart, operate at scale."</p>

Financing the Future of Biochar: Real Capital for Real Infrastructure 

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Internal High Impact

Internal Scan and/or Medium Impact

External - Low impact

External - DNS Query Only

Server-Side Request Forgery (SSRF)

Unsafe Cross-Origin Resource Sharing

HTTP Request Smuggling

Path Traversal

Sensitive Data Exposure

Non-Sensitive Data Exposure

Directory Listing Enabled

Same-Site Scripting

SSL Attack (BREACH, POODLE etc.)

Using Default Credentials

Basic Subdomain Takeover

High Impact Subdomain Takeover

Zone Transfer

Missing Certification Authority Authorization (CAA) Record

Misconfigured DNS

No Spoofing Protection on Email Domain

Email Spoofing to Inbox due to Missing or Misconfigured DMARC on Email Domain

Email Spoofing to Spam Folder

Missing or Misconfigured SPF and/or DKIM

Email Spoofing on Non-Email Domain

Mail Server Misconfiguration

Excessively Privileged User / DBA

Database Management System (DBMS) Misconfiguration

Change Email Address

Change Password

Delete Account

Manage 2FA

Lack of Password Confirmation

Registration

Login

Email-Triggering

SMS-Triggering

No Rate Limiting on Form

No Antivirus

No Size Limit

File Extension Filter Bypass

Unsafe File Upload

Cookie Scoped to Parent Domain

Session Token

Non-Session Cookie

Missing Secure or HTTPOnly Cookie Flag

Sensitive Click-Based Action

Form Input

Non-Sensitive Action

Clickjacking

Account Takeover

Account Squatting

Missing/Broken State Parameter

Insecure Redirect URI

OAuth Misconfiguration

Implementation Vulnerability

Brute Force

Missing

CAPTCHA

To Internet

Exposed Admin Portal

Missing DNSSEC

Fingerprinting/Banner Disclosure

Username/Email Enumeration

OPTIONS

TRACE

Potentially Unsafe HTTP Method Enabled

Lack of Forward Secrecy

Insecure Cipher Suite

Certificate Error

Insecure SSL

Reflected File Download (RFD)

X-Frame-Options

Cache-Control for a Non-Sensitive Page

X-XSS-Protection

Strict-Transport-Security

X-Content-Type-Options

Content-Security-Policy

Public-Key-Pins

X-Content-Security-Policy

X-Webkit-CSP

Content-Security-Policy-Report-Only

Cache-Control for a Sensitive Page

Lack of Security Headers

Direct Server Access

Web Application Firewall (WAF) Bypass

Race Condition

Cache Poisoning

Bitsquatting

Server Security Misconfiguration

Local

File Inclusion

Social Media Sharing Buttons

Parameter Pollution

Remote Code Execution (RCE)

LDAP Injection

SQL Injection

XML External Entity Injection (XXE)

Response Splitting (CRLF)

HTTP Response Manipulation

iframe Injection

Impersonation via Broken Link Hijacking

External Authentication Injection

Flash Based External Authentication Injection

HTML Content Injection

Email HTML Injection

Email Hyperlink Injection Based on Email Provider

Text Injection

Homograph/IDN-Based

Right-to-Left Override (RTLO)

Content Spoofing

Basic

Custom

Server-Side Template Injection (SSTI)

Server-Side Injection

Authentication Bypass

Second Factor Authentication (2FA) Bypass

Privilege Escalation

Cleartext Transmission of Session Token

Not Operational or Intended Public Access

Other Plaintext Protocol with no Secure Alternative

Over HTTP

Weak Login Function

Remote Attack Vector

Local Attack Vector

Session Fixation

On Logout (Client and Server-Side)

On Permission Change

On Logout (Server-Side Only)

On Password Reset and/or Change

Concurrent Sessions On Logout

On Email Change

On 2FA Activation/Change

Long Timeout

Failure to Invalidate Session

Concurrent Logins

Weak Registration Implementation

Broken Authentication and Session Management

For Publicly Accessible Asset

PII Leakage/Exposure

For Internal Asset

Pay-Per-Use Abuse

Intentionally Public, Sample or Invalid

Data/Traffic Spam

Non-Corporate User

Disclosure of Secrets

Automatic User Enumeration

Manual User Enumeration

EXIF Geolocation Data Not Stripped From Uploaded Images

Detailed Server Configuration

Full Path Disclosure

Descriptive Stack Trace

Visible Detailed Error/Debug Page

Disclosure of Known Public Information

Trusted 3rd Party

Untrusted 3rd Party

Token Leakage via Referer

User Facing

In the Background

On Password Reset

Sensitive Token in URL

Non-Sensitive Token in URL

Password Reset Token Sent Over HTTP

Token Leakage via Host Header Poisoning

Weak Password Reset Implementation

Mixed Content (HTTPS Sourcing HTTP)

OAuth Secret

File Paths

Sensitive Data Hardcoded

Internal IP Disclosure

Cross Site Script Inclusion (XSSI)

JSON Hijacking

Sensitive Token

Non-Sensitive Token

Via localStorage/sessionStorage