CarbonWire (2025)

18/09/2025

🌏 𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗣𝗮𝗹𝗺 𝗢𝗶𝗹 𝘁𝗼 𝗣𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘀: 𝗥𝗲𝗱𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗕𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗶𝗻 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗮’𝘀 𝗟𝗼𝘄-𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗯𝗼𝗻 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻

Carbon Wire sat down with Dr. Handoko Limaho, CEO of Hutan Kencana Group, to discuss his bold journey from the palm oil sector to leading one of Indonesia’s largest private restoration efforts – the PLUM Project, a 23,665-hectare peatland and mangrove initiative in Central Kalimantan.

✅ Over 60 million tonnes of carbon expected to be reduced or removed over the project’s lifetime
✅ Forest fires cut by 95% since 2022 through community-led patrols
✅ Villages achieving “open defecation free” status and significantly reduced stunting rates
✅ Coffee and honey farmers gaining access to new markets and recognition from local government

Dr. Limaho’s story is one of conviction, resilience, and proof that the private sector can be a catalyst for regenerative landscapes — aligning profitability with climate impact, biodiversity protection, and community well-being.

🔗 Read the full feature here: https://carbonwire.org/talking-heads/from-palm-oil-to-peatlands-dr-handoko-limahos-bold-bet-on-indonesias-low-carbon-future/

In Indonesia’s Central Kalimantan, a 23,665-hectare stretch of degraded peatland and mangrove forest is slowly being restored under a project that blends climate ambition with community resilience. At the helm is Dr. Handoko Limaho, CEO of Hutan Kencana Group, who has charted an unusual journey .....

18/09/2025

🌍 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗡𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲-𝗕𝗮𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗦𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹 𝗦𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵

In an exclusive conversation with Jahnavi Iyer of Carbon Wire, Neelesh Agrawal, CEO of Calculus Carbon, shared how the firm is helping bridge the capital gap for large-scale nature-based solutions (NbS) projects across Latin America, Africa, and Southeast Asia.

From treating NbS like long-term infrastructure assets to navigating regulatory complexities and shifting investor sentiment, Agrawal explained how institutional investors are increasingly backing high-quality NbS projects. He noted that:

🔹 The real growth in demand is coming from Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, rather than the US.
🔹 Investors today demand robust proof of viability before backing projects—making the market more resilient.
🔹 Pre-financing NbS projects is becoming more common, setting the stage for greater involvement from banks, sovereign wealth funds, and infrastructure capital.

👉 Read the full interview to learn how Calculus Carbon is building confidence and scale in NbS finance, helping unlock climate impact while ensuring returns for institutional investors.

https://carbonwire.org/talking-heads/unlocking-climate-capital-navigating-regulation-and-risk-in-nature-based-solutions/

Calculus Carbon, a Temasek portfolio firm, enables institutional grade NbS sponsors in the Global South to access the entire spectrum of capital stack across Equity, Structured Debt and Project Financing, required to finance and scale their underlying assets. Neelesh Agrawal, CEO, Calculus Carbon sh...

18/09/2025

🌍 𝗘𝗦𝗚 𝗶𝗻 𝗦𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝗔𝘀𝗶𝗮: 𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗔𝗱𝘃𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲

At Carbon Wire, we recently spoke with Kevin W F Lee, Group Head of Sustainability at CGS International Securities Singapore, about how financial institutions in ASEAN are navigating the sustainability agenda.

Key takeaways from the conversation:

🔹 ASEAN still lags behind Europe and the US, with ESG assets under management at just 3–5% — but this gap represents a huge growth opportunity.
🔹 CGS International’s ESG Integration Framework is embedding sustainability into brokerage, investment banking, and asset management, directing capital towards renewables and social outcomes.
🔹 Incentives such as preferential lending rates are proving more effective than regulation alone in driving corporate adoption.
🔹 Transition finance and carbon markets — including transition credits to phase out coal in Indonesia — are gaining traction across the region.
🔹 Beyond climate, CGS International is investing in diversity, education, and financial literacy, building internal capacity and training future leaders on ESG.

As Kevin highlighted, the challenge for many companies is moving beyond “ticking the boxes” to truly integrating sustainability into their business models. The opportunity for ASEAN is clear: to transform ESG from a regulatory burden into a long-term driver of value creation.

🔗 Read the full article on CarbonWire: https://carbonwire.org/conversation/cgs-international-pushes-esg-integration-as-se-asia-grapples-with-sustainability-gaps/

As regulatory frameworks tighten and climate risks mount, CGS International is stepping up efforts to embed sustainability into financial decision-making across Southeast Asia. In an exclusive conversation with CarbonWire, Kevin Lee, Group Head of Sustainability, outlined the firm’s strategy to mo...

17/12/2024

At this year’s COP29 in Baku, delegates reached a key milestone in the global effort to reduce carbon emissions by fully adopting the framework for Article 6.4 of the Paris Agreement. While this agreement has massive potential to stimulate global climate action, it will require a careful implantation to ensure the system’s effectiveness, equity and sustainability.

The model of international collaboration enabled by Article 6 is especially attractive to city-states such as Singapore which face unique challenges in reducing their carbon footprint due to the combination of a developed economy, high population density and limited spare land, says Christopher Lilholm, Global Head of ESG and Sustainability Services, DNV in this article in Carbon Wire.

At this year’s COP29 in Baku, delegates reached a key milestone in the global effort to reduce carbon emissions by fully adopting the framework for Article 6.4 of the Paris Agreement. This decision paves the way for a UN-governed international carbon market, creating a new mechanism for providing ...

23/11/2024

Ant International, a leader in digital payments and financial technology, has unveiled AquaViva, its ambitious new sustainability programme focused on marine conservation. Announced at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP29 Azerbaijan), the initiative aims to protect vital marine ecosystems through digital innovation and global partnerships.

Ant International, a leader in digital payments and financial technology, has unveiled AquaViva, its ambitious new sustainability programme focused on marine conservation. Announced at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP29), the initiative aims to protect vital marine ecosystems through digital in...

23/11/2024

Grid modernisation is focused on transforming the current electrical energy infrastructure to meet the demands of the 21st century and beyond. This change of the grid and energy industry is complex and ongoing. Collaboration between utilities, technology companies, policymakers, and consumers is essential to overcome the challenges and seize the opportunities presented by grid modernisation. Key to this transition will be the integration of multiple technologies into the energy grid.

Keysight

Grid modernisation is focused on transforming the current electrical energy infrastructure to meet the demands of the 21st century and beyond. This change of the grid and energy industry is complex and ongoing. Collaboration between utilities, technology companies, policymakers, and consumers is ess...

23/11/2024

The global regulatory framework aiming to decarbonize the shipping industry has reached a considerable level of complexity, confronting Asian shipowners and operators with the challenging task of collecting, managing, verifying and reporting emission data on a regular basis. DNV has developed a comprehensive online emission data validation and management tool that helps the industry share trustworthy data.

DNV - Maritime DNV - Energy Systems

The global regulatory framework aiming to decarbonize the shipping industry has reached a considerable level of complexity, confronting Asian shipowners and operators with the challenging task of collecting, managing, verifying and reporting emission data on a regular basis. DNV has developed a comp...

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