The document clearly defines institutional responsibilities, transfer procedures, operational custody, redemption processes and retirement rules, using the Tero Platform exclusively as the official registry for asset movements.
Clear institutional role separation
The SOP establishes a governance structure that distinguishes:
Tero Carbon as certification body and registry administrator;
The Tero Platform as the registry environment responsible for operational custody, transfers and retirement of VCUs;
GEAP as the marketplace responsible for intermediation and commercialization.
Trading occurs exclusively on the GEAP platform, while all operational movements are recorded on the Tero Platform with registration on the public Polygon blockchain, ensuring traceability and transparency.
Operational custody and asset integrity
Under the defined flow, VCUs intended for commercialization are transferred to GEAP’s account within the Tero Platform under operational custody, while economic ownership remains with the holder until the transaction is concluded, unless otherwise contractually agreed.
This structure reinforces:
Legal certainty;
Lot-level segregation;
Full traceability;
Alignment with internationally recognized marketplace practices.
Exclusivity and redemption rules
The SOP establishes a minimum 60-day exclusive listing period on GEAP for the lot designated for commercialization, unless the sale is concluded earlier.
After this period, if no sale has occurred, the holder may request redemption of the VCUs in accordance with applicable contractual conditions.
Retirement with immutable blockchain record
Where applicable, retirement of VCUs is executed through the Tero Platform with:
The formalization of the SOP represents a structural advancement in Brazil’s voluntary carbon market by integrating:
Environmental asset certification;
Digital registry with blockchain traceability;
Structured pathway to commercialization in an organized marketplace;
Clear transfer and retirement procedures.
This initiative reinforces Tero Carbon’s institutional commitment to integrity, transparency and governance in the carbon market, contributing to a safer and more predictable environment for project developers, investors and buyers.
Tero Carbon is a Brazilian-based carbon asset certifier dedicated to ensuring environmental integrity, transparency, and credibility across the carbon market value chain. The organization develops and administers certification standards and methodologies adapted to national and international contexts, supported by robust governance, independent assurance, and secure registry infrastructure.
Through its certification programs, Tero Carbon supports projects that contribute to climate change mitigation, environmental protection, and sustainable development, while promoting trust and accountability in carbon markets.
About GEAP – Global Environmental Asset Platform
GEAP is an electronic trading platform in Brazil for carbon credits, creating an organized marketplace for environmental assets with the goal of providing a liquidity pool for trading these assets. GEAP’s objective is to offer transparency, price formation, and greater liquidity to the currently opaque carbon credit market, while also preparing for the future regulated market and the significant market developments that will emerge alongside it. GEAP’s shareholders include CERC, which focuses on post-trade activities, and Ludovino Lopes, from Ludovino Lopes Advogados, one of the leading experts in environmental law and carbon market structuring.
Tero Carbon announces the publication of its Annual Report 2025, presenting a comprehensive and transparent overview of the organization’s governance framework, certification architecture, assurance model, and market operations.
The report reflects Tero Carbon’s ongoing commitment to integrity, accountability, and transparency in the carbon markets. It documents how certification decisions are structured, how environmental integrity risks are managed, and how independent verification and registry infrastructure support credible climate claims.
Rather than focusing on outcomes alone, the Annual Report provides stakeholders with a clear view of the processes, safeguards, and governance mechanisms that underpin Tero Carbon’s role as a carbon asset certifier.
Registry architecture and blockchain-based retirement
Risk mitigation frameworks and market integrity safeguards
Environmental and social co-benefits beyond carbon
By publishing this report, Tero Carbon reinforces its position as a certifier committed to high-integrity carbon markets, aligned with international best practices and the evolving regulatory landscape..
Access the Annual Report
To view the full Tero Carbon Annual Report 2025, please visit the dedicated report page:
Tero Carbon is a Brazilian-based carbon asset certifier dedicated to ensuring environmental integrity, transparency, and credibility across the carbon market value chain. The organization develops and administers certification standards and methodologies adapted to national and international contexts, supported by robust governance, independent assurance, and secure registry infrastructure.
Through its certification programs, Tero Carbon supports projects that contribute to climate change mitigation, environmental protection, and sustainable development, while promoting trust and accountability in carbon markets.
Tero Carbon is pleased to announce the start of the public consultation process for the new TERO.007 – Agricultural Land Management (ALM) methodology, version 1.0. The consultation opens on November 6, 2025 and will remain open for 30 days. We invite all AFOLU project developers, consultants, auditors, stakeholders, and other participants in the carbon market to take part in this important discussion and share their feedback and suggestions.
Now, through this collaboration with CENA/USP, the methodology gains additional scientific strength. CENA is a specialized institute within the University of São Paulo, with a long-standing record of excellence in research and development in agriculture, environmental sciences, and nuclear techniques applied to agri-environmental systems.
This partnership enhances Tero Carbon’s credibility and contributes to strengthening Brazil’s carbon market by providing a scientifically robust methodology tailored to local conditions.
Read the CENA/USP statement on the new methodology.
What’s New
In addition to the release of TERO.007, we also announce that the Tero Carbon Program document “TC-DC.CER.003 – Technical Guidelines for Carbon Quantification in AFOLU Projects” has been updated to version 1.2. Among the main innovations is the introduction of the “Bayesian Methodology for Carbon Stock Quantification and Certification,” authored by Maria Gabriela da Silva Araújo and Luiz Antonio Martinelli (CENA/USP). This new approach enhances the robustness of carbon quantification in agricultural systems, ensuring better adaptation to local conditions.
Why Participate in the Public Consultation?
Public consultations are a key component of Tero Carbon’s commitment to transparency, credibility, and collaborative participation. Your contributions help refine the methodology, ensuring it remains aligned with project developers’ needs, Brazilian regulatory frameworks (such as Law No. 15,042/2024 and Law No. 14,119/2021, which establish the SBCE), and international integrity standards (ICROA, ICAO/CORSIA).
How to Participate
Consultation period: November 6 – December 5, 2025
How to submit: Send comments, questions, or suggestions via the form available through this link
We count on your collaboration to help TERO.007 become a benchmark for credibility, technical rigor, and applicability in Brazil’s agricultural carbon sector.
About Tero Carbon
Tero Carbon is the only Brazilian certification body included in the international mapping of carbon standards and integrated into the CAD Trust registry network. The company stands out for its flexible and adaptive approach to environmental asset certification, promoting sustainability and enabling projects of various scales to access the global carbon market. Its technical team brings over 15 years of experience in forest carbon projects in the Amazon, combining deep knowledge of regional logistics and socio-environmental dynamics of traditional communities with Blockchain technology, ensuring security, transparency, and traceability of registered assets.
Tero Carbon also receives support from renowned institutions such as the National Institute for Amazonian Research (INPA) and its business incubator (IE-INPA), linked to the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation, as well as from the Federation of Industries of the State of Amazonas (FIEAM), the Amazonas Commercial Association (ACA), and the VB92 Launch Hub venture builder. With this foundation, Tero Carbon is prepared to lead the certification of Brazilian environmental assets for the global carbon market.
Tero Carbon, a Brazilian environmental asset certification body, invites project developers, methodologists, and participants in the voluntary carbon market to contribute to the Public Consultation for Version 2.0 of its Programs, available until April 30, 2025. This update reflects our commitment to continuous improvement, transparency, and the inclusion of small-scale projects in the global market, aligned with our mission to promote locally developed methodologies with integrity and quality.
What’s New in Version 2.0?
The evolution of the programs incorporates technical advancements and industry feedback, strengthening the robustness and applicability of Tero Carbon standards. Now, the Programs have been split into Auxiliary Documents that work synergistically across Programs. Here are the highlights
1. Certification Program (2.0)
Updated Technical Documents:
Definitions (2.0): Standardization of critical terms such as additionality, non-permanence risk, and leakage.
Criteria Analysis Tool for Project Validation (2.0) and Project Verification (2.0): Checklists to assist developers in submitting their projects and avoiding rework.
Project Additionality Demonstration Tool (2.0): Flexible methods to prove additional impacts in NBS and TBS.
Project Scale Analysis Tool (2.0): Differentiated criteria for small- and large-scale projects, ensuring fairness.
DCP Structuring Tool (2.0): Optimized model for preparing Project Design Documents.
VVB Selection Criteria (2.0): Strengthened guidelines for selecting independent audits.
Methodological Basis for Carbon Stock Estimation in AFOLU (1.0): Allows for the submission of quantification software for NBS project validation.
Various Declarations: Helps developers collect declarations from NBS and TBS project proponents.
2. Methodologies Program (2.0)
Criteria Analysis Tool for Methodology Acceptance (2.0): Rigorous validation of new methods.
Methodology Structuring Tool (2.0): Standardization for creating Tero methodologies.
Response to Public Consultation Comments (2.0): Enhances transparency in incorporating technical contributions.
3. Assets Program (2.0)
Tokenization Process (2.0): Document for auditing Tero Carbon’s Smart Contracts.
Asset Integrity Policy (1.0): Ensures traceability and prevents double counting.
Technical Enhancements in Version 2.0
Key technical improvements in Version 2.0 include:
Risk Management: Introduction of dynamic approaches for buffer reserves and tonne-per-year, adaptable to different methodologies.
Socio-environmental Safeguards: Now applied to both small- and large-scale projects.
Risk Mitigation Flexibility: Developers can propose their own models for calculating non-permanence risk, subject to Tero’s validation.
Software Approval: Structured process for approving carbon stock quantification tools in forest and agricultural areas, prioritizing accuracy and transparency.
Join the Collective Construction
Your expertise is essential in refining our processes and tools to expand the access of Brazilian small- and large-scale projects to the global market.
Click the button below to access the documents, submit suggestions, and participate in the Public Consultation.
Tero Carbon is the only Brazilian certification body included in the international mapping of Standards and listed as a registry provider in CAD Trust. It stands out for its flexible and adaptive approach to certifying environmental assets. The focus is on promoting sustainability and including projects of various scales in the global carbon market. Its technical team has over 15 years of experience in forest carbon projects in the Amazon. This expertise combines deep knowledge of regional logistics and socio-environmental aspects of traditional communities with Blockchain technology, ensuring security, reliability, and traceability in its records.
Additionally, the company is supported by renowned institutions such as the National Institute for Amazonian Research (INPA) and its business incubator (IE-INPA), linked to the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation, the National Federation of Industries of the State of Amazonas (FIEAM), the Amazonas Commercial Association (ACA), and the venture builder VB92 Launch Hub. With this foundation, Tero Carbon is prepared to lead the certification of Brazilian environmental assets for the global carbon market.
Tero Carbon announces the official approval of version 1.1 of the Land Tenure Compliance Seals, now integrated into the Tero Carbon Certification Program. Following the Public Consultation, which had six participants and nine contributions, all suggestions were reviewed and incorporated into the document, further enhancing its applicability and impact in the carbon market.
With this approval, the Land Tenure Compliance Seals take effect starting today (03/13/2025), providing a transparent and robust mechanism to assess land tenure regularity in Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) projects within the AFOLU sector. This milestone reinforces Tero Carbon’s commitment to the credibility, traceability, and legal security of Brazilian environmental projects.
We extend our gratitude to everyone who participated in the public consultation and contributed to refining this framework. From now on, interested projects can apply for certification and achieve the Bronze, Silver, and Gold Seals, demonstrating their land tenure compliance and commitment to sustainability.
For more information on the Land Tenure Compliance Seals and how to obtain certification, visit the Tero Carbon link bellow.
Tero Carbon is a Brazilian environmental asset certification company that uses local methodologies and cutting-edge technology to audit and register data from climate mitigation projects. The company stands out for its use of blockchain to ensure security and traceability in carbon credit management, from minting to retirement.
