Munich, Germany, 31 August 2026 — Today, UPM Umwelt-Projekt-Management GmbH (UPM) published the 2026 Impact Report for its landmark Sichuan Household Biogas Programme, confirming the project as one of the highest-integrity, large-scale carbon avoidance programmes available in the voluntary market. With verified GHG emissions reductions of 7.77 million tCO₂e throughout its entire crediting period and dual Gold Standard and CDM certification, this carbon avoidance programme offers corporate buyers a proven, low-risk pathway to achieving immediate climate impact while delivering measurable sustainable development benefits to over 1.2 million people in rural China.

Avoiding Methane for a Fast Slow Down of Global Warming

The project’s concluding impact report arrives as leading corporates, such as Google, Netflix, Workday, and Amazon, increasingly prioritise superpollutant mitigation in their carbon credit portfolios. Methane, the primary target of the Sichuan programme, has a global warming potential more than 80 times that of CO₂over a 20-year horizon. By capturing methane from livestock manure across 395,435 low-income rural households and converting it into clean biogas for cooking and heating, thus replacing coal, the programme avoids approximately 725,000 tCO₂e annually, delivering near-term global warming reductions that complement long-term decarbonisation strategies.

Independent Project Ratings Confirm Top-Tier Quality and Integrity

The programme’s exceptional quality and integrity has been independently verified by some of the world’s leading carbon rating agencies. Calyx Global awarded the project’s Gold Standard VERs a Tier 1 GHG Rating of “A”, on its 8-point scale from AAA to D, alongside an SDG Impact Rating of 4+ on a 5-point scale ranging from 1+ to 5+, with 5+ being the highest score. MSCI Carbon Markets also assigned the programme an “A” rating, placing it in the top 10% of all household devices projects assessed globally.

"These ratings are not just badges of honour. They represent rigorous, independent confirmation that every carbon credit from this programme represents real, additional, and permanent emissions reductions," said Martin Dilger, Managing Director of UPM. "For buyers of this PoA’s GS VERs, this means they can have full confidence in the integrity and impact of their climate investment based on robust evidence."

Verified Contributions to 14 UN Sustainable Development Goals

Beyond climate impact, the programme delivers profound social and environmental co-benefits verified under the Gold Standard for the Global Goals (GS4GG). Six core SDGs are independently monitored and certified annually:

• SDG 13 (Climate Action): ~725,000 tCO₂e of GHG emissions avoided annually
• SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy): 395,435 low-income rural households now with reliable, cost-free renewable energy
• SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-Being): Indoor air pollution dropped significantly after the switch from coal to biogas reducing respiratory disease risks for women and children in particular
• SDG 5 (Gender Equality): Household biogas trainings empower women of participating households and save them an average of 1.5 hours per day on cooking, freeing time for income generation, education and recreation
• SDG 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation): Sealed digesters prevent manure leaching into groundwater and surface water improve sanitary conditions on the farms and help avoiding zoonotic deseases.
• SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth): 10,550 temporary and permanent jobs created in the local biogas sector, including over 1,000 positions for women.

Independent research by the Centre for Sustainable Environmental Sanitation (CSES) at the University of Science & Technology Beijing demonstrates that the programme even contributes verifiably to achieving 14 of the 17 UN SDGs, which is an unprecedented range of positive impact.

Strong Financial and Livelihood Returns for Poor Rural Families

The programme exclusively targets poor rural households that were included with an annual per capita income below the average of Sichuan province. Today, participating families experience roughly 40% higher annual disposable income, mainly driven by energy cost savings, reduced chemical fertiliser purchases, and higher agricultural yields from using potent organic digestate. Cumulatively, the programme has stimulated approx. EUR 300 million in domestic green technology investment.

A Resilient, Long-Term Biogas Investment with Lasting Impact

Distributing proven biogas digesters with an average lifespan of 20 years and backed by the Sichuan Rural Energy Office’s well-established maintenance network with over 2,000 certified biogas technicians across 180+ local service centres, the programme ensures that nearly all 400,000 installed biogas systems remain fully operational and continue reducing GHG emissions and generating co-benefits for decades and even beyond the crediting period.

Recently issued GS VERs, vintages 2024-2025 available now at very attractive pricing

In June 2026, the Sichuan Household Biogas Programme has obtained its final issuance with slightly more than 139,000 premium-quality GS VERs covering vintages 2024 and 2025. These new GS VERs are now available spot at competitive pricing for corporate buyers seeking to meet near-term climate targets without compromising on project quality and integrity.

As China’s current carbon market regulation does not foresee using GS VERs issued under a voluntary carbon market scheme to meet its Paris NDC targets, there is no double counting risk and the carbon credits can be used both for compensation and contribution claims. This makes them eligible for traditional voluntary carbon offsetting but also for supporting Ongoing Emission Reductions (OERs) in line with SBTi’s new Corporate Net Zero Standard 2.0.

Contact Us

To inquire about purchasing Gold Standard VERs from the Sichuan Household Biogas Programme and obtain further claims guidance, please contact

Martin Dilger, Managing Director, UPM Germany
mdilger(at)upm-climate.eu, T: +49 89 1222197 – 50

and

Gaiai Guo, Vice General Manager, UPM China
guog(at)upm-climate.eu, T: +86 10 6468 0500

The Sichuan Household Biogas Programme’s 2026 impact report can be downloaded here:

Link