How can a future payment become money today?

How does offtake-backed financing work, step by step?

• An offtaker signs an offtake agreement to pay for future tonnes as they are delivered.
• A lender examines the project, the contract and the offtaker, and agrees terms.
• The lender advances money, often in stages as construction milestones are met.
• The project builds, then removes and verifies tonnes.
• The offtaker pays for each verified tonne, and those payments repay the lender first.

What makes a contract strong enough to borrow against?

Clear volumes and prices, a creditworthy offtaker, measurement rules both sides accept in advance, fair terms for delays and shortfalls, and the right for payments to go to the lender, or for the lender to step in, if the project fails. A contract written only for the offtaker and the builder often needs reworking before a lender will rely on it.

Who carries which risk?

The offtaker carries the risk of paying the agreed price even if market prices fall. The builder carries the risk of building and running the plant. The lender carries the risk that delivery falls short and payments do not come. Good structuring puts each risk with the party best able to manage it, and makes the arrangement plain to all.

Has this been done before?

Yes, at great scale, in other industries. Many wind and solar farms were financed against long power purchase agreements before they produced a single unit of electricity. Carbon removal is following the same path, and what it still lacks is the track record and evidence those industries built up over time.

Where MOTHER Carbon fits

This is MOTHER Carbon's work: it assesses, structures and administers financing against contracted future revenue, beginning with carbon removal. MOTHER Carbon does not lend, and financing is provided by licensed partners on their own credit judgement.