Google has entered into a four-year agreement to purchase 1 million carbon credits from Indian climate-tech startup Mitti Labs, culminating in 2030. The companies describe this as the largest publicly announced transaction for credits derived from reducing methane emissions in rice cultivation.
The agreement spans agricultural lands across the Indian states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana. According to Mitti Labs co-founder Xavier Laguarta, the initiative will cover approximately 100,000 hectares at peak delivery. Financial specifics of the deal were not revealed.
Under the project, farmers are compensated for modifying their irrigation practices to decrease the duration that rice fields remain flooded. This approach aims to lower methane release during the growing season while also conserving water. Mitti Labs reports that the method can reduce methane emissions by roughly half and cut irrigation water usage by 40%, all without diminishing crop yields.
The partnership addresses a critical challenge for Google as it strives to achieve net-zero emissions by 2030. The tech giant’s greenhouse gas output increased by 18% in 2025 compared to the previous year, reaching approximately 14.5 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, largely driven by heavy investments in artificial intelligence infrastructure, according to its June environmental report.
Laguarta noted that discussions between the two entities began about a year ago as Google sought to incorporate methane-reduction initiatives into its carbon-credit portfolio. He stated that the company was attracted to the project’s potential for significant water savings and its capacity to operate at scale. Over the last two years, Mitti Labs has conserved more than 500 billion liters of water through its projects.
The startup, founded in 2023 with offices in New York and Bengaluru, utilizes a GeoAI platform that merges satellite radar imagery with on-the-ground measurements. This technology allows for the remote monitoring of crop growth, soil moisture, and flooding across smallholder farms. The system relies on synthetic aperture radar imagery with resolutions between 50 centimeters and 10 meters, alongside proprietary field data used to train its AI models.
Google conducted rigorous due diligence prior to signing, including scrutiny of Mitti Labs’ monitoring technology and site visits to farms. Laguarta described Google as one of the market’s most sophisticated buyers, noting that the association serves as a strong signal for the startup’s credibility.
The carbon credits generated under this agreement can be certified through either the Gold Standard or Isometric frameworks, with independent third-party verification required before issuance. Beyond Google, Mitti Labs collaborates with customers such as the carbon marketplace Cool Effect, rice producer Ebro Foods, and agricultural giant Syngenta.
Mitti Labs currently engages with over 100,000 farmers and aims to expand this network to millions by 2030. While the company declined to disclose the exact payment per farmer for the Google project, Laguarta emphasized that the majority of revenue from its initiatives goes directly to farming communities.
Although the current agreement is confined to India, Mitti Labs plans to launch operations in the Philippines later this year, with expansions into Indonesia and other Southeast Asian markets scheduled for 2027. Laguarta highlighted the vast potential in the region, noting that approximately 150 million farmers cultivate rice across India, Southeast Asia, and China.
This transaction follows another significant carbon-removal investment by Google in India. In January 2025, the company partnered with Gurugram-based Varaha to purchase 100,000 tons of carbon credits, marking its first large-scale acquisition of biochar-based removal credits in the country. Additionally, Google has secured clean-energy projects in India, including a 150-megawatt solar agreement in Rajasthan, bringing its total contracted solar capacity with ReNew in the state to 300 megawatts.
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