Grab maintains carbon offsets verified by reputable agencies

E-hailing service provider Grab has affirmed its partnership with verified agencies in its effort to decrease carbon emissions.

In a statement last Friday, the company said its selected carbon projects are rated and verified by reputable carbon agencies and suppliers.

This includes the project in Katingan Mentaya in Indonesia - whereby carbon rating agencies Sylvera and BeZero have independently rated the project with “AA” and “A”.

“Carbon exchanges in Southeast Asia such as Bursa Malaysia’s Carbon Exchange and Temasek-back Climate Impact (CIX) in Singapore have listed the project (as well),” it added.

The company was responding to environmental watchdog RimbaWatch, which accused Grab of greenwashing its impact on climate change by offering “junk” carbon offsets to its consumers.

Grab customers are allowed to pay RM0.20 per ride or RM0.10 for GrabFood or GrabMart orders to offset the emissions they incur from the ride or delivery, which will used for forest protection projects including the Katingan Mentaya.

RimbaWatch added that the project and its auditor, Verified Carbon Standard (Verra) are deemed questionable by investigative journalists, NGOs and academia.

Greenpeace also reported that since the project started in Central Kalimantan, it has decreased the forest cover leading to locals having to migrate and resulting in land conflicts.

While admitting that there is no universal-aligned carbon market standard, Grab said it does not want to discount carbon credits as a legitimate financial instrument for long-term environmental good.

“We will continue to hold a high bar to our suppliers to ensure our selected project supports its intended outcome and hope the industry will keep debating the topic and work constructively together towards a lower carbon future,” it added.

The company also said they are working closely with the government and industry partners, as well as supporting the transition of its driver-partners to electrical vehicles and other low-emission vehicles as part of its decarbonisation strategy.

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