Google and Mitti Labs announced Thursday, Sept. 10, an agreement for the technology company to buy one million carbon credits generated by reducing methane emissions from rice farming in India by 2030. The companies described it as the largest publicly announced purchase of rice-methane credits and Google’s largest disclosed superpollutant-credit deal.
The projects are expected to reach about 100,000 hectares across Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana and involve more than 70,000 farmers. Financial terms were not disclosed. Inc42 reported that payments will be made when verified credits are delivered rather than as upfront project financing.
What the agreement covers
Mitti Labs will work with farmers to reduce the time rice fields remain flooded. The company says the irrigation practice can lower methane emissions while reducing water use without cutting crop yields. Its monitoring system combines satellite radar, field measurements and AI models to track flooding and farming practices.
Mitti says credits may be issued under Gold Standard or Isometric programs after independent third-party verification. That distinction is important: the agreement is a commitment to buy future credits, not evidence that all projected emissions reductions have already occurred. The claimed climate benefits will depend on delivery, measurement and verification through 2030.
AI growth is raising the stakes
Google’s reported greenhouse-gas emissions rose 18% in 2025 to about 14.5 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, according to the company’s environmental reporting cited by TechCrunch. Rapid investment in AI infrastructure is increasing the difficulty of meeting Google’s net-zero target for 2030.
The rice project does not replace the need to reduce power use or procure cleaner energy for data centers. It expands Google’s climate strategy into agricultural methane, a short-lived but potent greenhouse gas, while supporting water-management changes among smallholder farmers.
Why it matters
For corporate buyers, the deal is a test of whether agricultural methane credits can reach technology-sector scale without sacrificing credibility. The commercial signal is meaningful: a large buyer is committing demand for a credit category that depends on remote sensing, field operations and independent certification.
The accountability test comes later. Google and Mitti Labs will need to show that credited reductions are additional, accurately measured and delivered as promised. As AI growth increases technology companies’ emissions, investors and customers will judge climate programs on verified outcomes rather than the headline size of an offtake agreement.