Aninver to Pioneer High-Quality Blue Carbon Credits in Trinidad & Tobago

Aninver Development Partners is proud to announce the award of a consultancy contract in Trinidad and Tobago, a landmark moment in our firm’s growing portfolio of climate and environmental projects worldwide. This initiative will support the Government of Trinidad and Tobago in designing and piloting a high-quality blue carbon credit scheme, helping unlock the potential of the country’s rich coastal ecosystems to generate verified carbon credits while advancing national climate goals and sustainable development.

This is our first assignment in Trinidad & Tobago.

Building a Foundation for Blue Carbon Markets

The project has been commissioned by the Institute of Marine Affairs (IMA) and is financed by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). It is part of a broader technical cooperation program that aims to strengthen the country’s capacity to measure, report, and verify carbon sequestration from coastal ecosystems, while establishing the regulatory and governance foundations needed for a credible blue carbon credit market.

Specifically, the program focuses on Bon Accord Lagoon/Buccoo Bay and Kilgwyn Swamp in Southwest Tobago, as well as the Caroni Swamp in Trinidad — three ecologically rich sites that play a critical role in carbon sequestration and biodiversity conservation.

Coastal ecosystems such as mangroves, seagrass meadows, and salt marshes are increasingly recognized as powerful carbon sinks. Globally, these “blue carbon” ecosystems sequester carbon up to ten times faster than terrestrial forests, storing three to five times more carbon per hectare

Leveraging this natural capacity through well-designed carbon credit schemes offers countries like Trinidad and Tobago both a tool for climate mitigation and a pathway for sustainable economic opportunities, especially in coastal communities.

A Project with Depth and Strategic Vision

The consultancy, which will run from August 2025 to April 2027, has a strategic dual focus:

• Technical and Regulatory Foundations
• Conduct a detailed regulatory, legislative, and governance analysis to enable the establishment of a high-quality blue carbon credit scheme aligned with Article 6 of the Paris Agreement.
• Design a digital National Carbon Registry fully integrated with Trinidad and Tobago’s national Measurement, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) system, ensuring transparent accounting of carbon credits and alignment with UNFCCC requirements.
• Develop benefit-sharing mechanisms that ensure equitable distribution of revenues between government, communities, and project developers, while safeguarding the rights and leadership of local and marginalized groups.

Capacity Building and Market Development

• Develop a Blue Carbon Credit Scheme and Toolkit tailored to the Trinidad and Tobago context, including guidance for the private sector and communities to implement high-quality projects.
• Deliver a series of sensitization and training workshops across Tobago and Trinidad to engage government agencies, private investors, NGOs, and community stakeholders.
• Design training curricula and case studies that will build local expertise in blue carbon project design, carbon accounting, and investment pitching.
• Support the Government in developing an investor pitch to attract high-integrity private sector participation in the emerging blue carbon market.

This structured, step-by-step approach ensures that by the end of the project, Trinidad and Tobago will not only have the technical infrastructure in place but also the human and institutional capacity to lead in this innovative area of climate action

Why This Matters for Trinidad and Tobago

Trinidad and Tobago is already recognized for its leadership in the energy sector. By advancing into blue carbon, the country is taking a strategic step toward diversifying its climate mitigation portfolio and tapping into emerging carbon finance mechanisms to meet its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement.

The project will help close existing gaps in scientific data on the carbon sequestration potential of mangroves and seagrasses in the country, while creating the enabling conditions for a high-integrity carbon credit market. This is especially critical given the global challenges around greenwashing and double counting in carbon markets: high-quality, verifiable credits backed by strong governance will give Trinidad and Tobago a competitive edge in attracting responsible investors

Aninver’s Role and Vision

At Aninver, we bring extensive experience in designing and implementing complex, multi-stakeholder projects at the intersection of climate policy, economic development, and digital innovation. For this assignment, we will mobilize a multidisciplinary team of international and local experts — including specialists in blue carbon markets, legal and regulatory frameworks, MRV system design, environmental communication, and community engagement.

“Blue carbon represents a powerful opportunity to bring climate action closer to communities, aligning global mitigation goals with local economic development,” said José de la Maza, Managing Partner at Aninver Development Partners. “We’re thrilled to be working with the Institute of Marine Affairs and the IDB to help Trinidad and Tobago lay the groundwork for a robust, credible, and inclusive blue carbon market.”