SBTi V2.0: What the new net-zero standard means for carbon removal buyers

  The Science Based Targets initiative published Version 2.0 of its Corporate Net-Zero Standard in June 2026, and for the first time it puts a date and a number on corporate carbon removal. What was once an optional gesture is now a scheduled obligation, and the companies that treat the next few years as preparation rather than breathing space will be in a far stronger position than those that wait.  

What actually changed

  The headline is that removals become mandatory. From 2035, large companies, those the standard classes as Category A (broadly firms above €450 million in turnover or with 1,000 or more employees, with lower thresholds in higher-income economies), must support carbon removals covering at least 1 per cent of their ongoing scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions. That share then rises in a straight line to 100 per cent of residual emissions by the company's net-zero year, which must fall no later than 2050. Within that requirement sits a durability ramp: long-lived removals start at 10 per cent of covered long-lived emissions in 2035 and climb to 100 per cent over the same period. It is worth noting that SBTi has described the 2035 percentages as illustrative and intends to review them in Version 3 before they take effect, so the precise figures may move even if the direction of travel will not.   Ahead of that, the standard introduces the Ongoing Emissions Responsibility (OER) programme, which replaces Beyond Value Chain Mitigation. Until 2035 it is voluntary, but it operates on a comply-or-explain basis. Every company seeking validation must publicly declare whether it is taking responsibility for its ongoing emissions, and a company that opts out has to submit a written explanation to SBTi. That declaration appears on the public SBTi dashboard, so investors, customers and staff can see who is acting and who is not.   OER offers three tiers of recognition. Engaged covers at least 1 per cent of ongoing emissions, with no mandated price. Advanced covers 100 per cent of scope 1 and 2 plus enough scope 3 to reach at least 10 per cent of the total, benchmarked at 20 US dollars per tonne. Leadership covers 100 per cent of all ongoing emissions at 80 US dollars per tonne. For the first time, finance teams have concrete reference prices to size a budget against.  

Why the timing matters

  The demand signal is unambiguous, and the supply position is not comfortable. Only a small fraction of SBTi-aligned companies buy removals today, and most of those that do are operating well below even the 1 per cent Engaged floor. Sylvera's day-one analysis puts potential SBTi-driven demand at somewhere between 293 million and 1.1 billion tonnes a year by 2035 if companies pursue recognition at scale. The durable removal market that would have to meet the permanent portion of that is currently a rounding error by comparison.   That gap does not close on its own. Durable removal projects take five to ten years to permit, finance and build, which means the capacity available in 2035 is being decided by the contracts signed today. Suppliers need long-term demand to justify construction, and buyers who wait until the deadline is in view will be left competing for scarce tonnes on worse terms. You cannot buy a removal that does not exist, and it will not exist unless the offtake is signed early.  

What buyers should do now

  The sensible response is to start building a removals strategy while there is still room to choose. That means mapping your residual emissions by gas, since the split between long-lived and short-lived determines how much of your portfolio has to be durable. It also means sourcing verified, independently rated projects with credible permanence rather than accumulating cheap credits of uncertain quality. V2.0 opens up shared scope 3 responsibility, letting value-chain partners co-fund a single removal and each claim a proportional share, which lowers the barrier to the more expensive durable options.   This is where transparency in sourcing earns its keep. At Carbon Compared we let buyers compare removal projects side by side on independent ratings and connect directly with the developers behind them, without the broker mark-up that has priced smaller buyers out of the market. As removal shifts from voluntary to mandatory, knowing exactly what you are buying, and buying it early, stops being good practice and becomes basic risk management. If you're looking for an easy way to compare high integrity carbon removal credits, use the free Request For Quote tool on the Carbon Compared website to receive multiple tailored quotes direct from project developers in minutes.