They came, they saw, they stole: Why these carbon markets projects failed to deliver on their promises
Power Shift Africa has been a strong and vocal critic of carbon markets in Africa as they, like the fossil fuel industry, serve the interests of polluters and not communities. Evidence against these controversial projects is mounting.
Once sold to the world as a win-win, two recent investigations by REDD Monitor show that behind the glossy “carbon neutral” labels lies a troubling reality of unfulfilled promises and greenwashing.
Case 1: The Isangi REDD Project
In 2019, the Finnish food delivery company Wolt announced its operations were “carbon neutral,” thanks to carbon credits from REDD+ projects in Africa and South America. One of these projects, Isangi REDD in the Democratic Republic of Congo, was supposed to protect forests and support local communities.
Instead, it became a case study in how carbon offset schemes fail.
The Isangi project was managed by Safbois, a logging company owned by the controversial Blattner family, and their US-based partner, Jadora LLC. They promised to bring fish farms, cacao cultivation, bee keeping, and new schools to local villages. Those promises never materialised.
Satellite images reveal that deforestation accelerated after the project began, while communities were left without jobs, infrastructure, or the benefits of the millions of euros earned from selling carbon credits.
In 2024, the Congolese Ministry of Environment cancelled the Isangi project altogether, and Verra, the world’s largest carbon credit certifier, delisted it.
Case 2: TotalEnergies’ Batéké Carbon Sink Project
In 2021, TotalEnergies launched the Batéké Carbon Sink Project in the Republic of Congo, vowing to plant 40 million trees to offset 10 million tonnes of its carbon emissions. Three years later, investigative reporting by Reporterre revealed that the project had quietly collapsed, with just 12.5% of the trees planted and the site now abandoned.
To add insult to injury, the project displaced local farmers without their consent. Many were forced off their land by security guards, some receiving as little as $1 per hectare in compensation.
Even as the project fell apart, TotalEnergies continued expanding oil extraction in the same country, a clear contradiction to its “carbon neutral” rhetoric.
The Truth About Carbon Markets
These cases expose a grim truth about carbon offsetting: it’s not solving the climate crisis but prolonging it. These projects end up enriching corporations and consultants while doing little to reduce emissions. At their core, they distract from the real work: ending fossil fuel expansion and investing in community-led renewable energy projects. Simply put, carbon markets do not work, at least not for the communities they disrupt.
