How Mast Reforestation improved project design and powered their go-to-market strategy with a pre-issuance rating

Without supporting market education, novel CO₂ removal methods such as biomass burials see barriers to uptake. As a post-fire reforestation and carbon removal company, Mast was faced with the challenge of not only raising awareness of a relatively nascent sector, but more specifically burned biomass utilisation. Carbon finance generated by this method, which involves storing wildfire-destroyed trees underground, effectively funds their replacement. With over six million acres of North American forestland burned past the point of natural recovery, their ambition was to position their activities as credible climate solutions.

Mast’s immediate goals were twofold. Firstly, get early, independent feedback on project design to catch and mitigate risks, and ensure seamless implementation. Secondly, show buyers how this novel combination of nature-based and engineered CDR can not only deliver durable, near-term carbon removals, but also longer term ecological benefits for communities from reforestation activities.

Mast highlighted how securing the rating helped inform and complete landowner agreements and construction within nine months, describing this implementation speed as rare for this market. Credits are expected by Q1 2026, issued with a 2025 vintage to reflect when removals occurred. Furthermore, incorporating BeZero’s feedback early sped up progress to their next phase of scalability, with minimal fine tuning.

They also reported how the ‘A.pre’ rating sent a key credibility signal to their buyer network, strengthening early confidence and interest in the project. Mast said BeZero’s rating report effectively communicated credit quality to C-suite audiences that don’t have a lot of carbon knowledge. The intuitive bond-like rating scale made the assessment easy to interpret, and the report’s rating summary table shared with buyers was viewed over 80 times. Anecdotally, pointing to the report using a QR code at events and conferences was found to be particularly impactful in the moment.

Finally, Mast noted how the independent rating helped reduce their buyers’ due diligence burden. Instead of interrogating the methodology and its trustworthiness, buyers now spend more time focusing on the project’s potential for immediate impact. Mast also heard the rating bolstered their intermediary partners’ due diligence, giving them confidence to recommend the project to buyers who often demand ‘BBB’-rated credits or above.