BURN, the African clean‑cooking enterprise, has earned an “A” rating from MSCI ESG Research for its biomass carbon project in Tanzania, underscoring the company’s credentials in high‑integrity carbon credits.
MSCI’s assessment covered six core criteria—additionality, quantification, permanence, co‑benefits, reputational risk, and delivery risk—and concluded that BURN’s project stands out for its reliability and long‑term impact.
The rating is expected to strengthen confidence among corporations, carbon investors, and project developers seeking credible offsets, according to the announcement made by BURN on Thursday.
According to Chris McKinney at BURN, the MSCI rating is “a strong confirmation of the integrity and impact of our carbon projects in households across Tanzania and globally.”
Backed by the independent review, BURN aims to use carbon credit pre‑financing to subsidize clean cookstoves—cutting their cost to Tanzanian households by 60%–100%, McKinney said.
Relevant: BURN DRC Carbon Project Earns Top MSCI Rating
In the past five years, BURN has distributed about 199,000 energy‑efficient stoves across Tanzania, reaching some 900,000 people.
The company reports that its devices can reduce fuel use by 40%–60%, equivalent to annual household savings of roughly $119, and cut carbon emissions by some 3.5 tons per stove each year.
With a domestic manufacturing facility employing around 900 staff and a capacity of 6,000 stoves per month, BURN has supplied cookstoves to 230,000 Tanzanian households.
According to the company, these efforts have saved 1 million tonnes of wood, avoided 700,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, and saved families approximately $42.6 million in fuel costs.
BURN’s longer‑term goal for Tanzania is to reach 6 million households.
BURN uses the Gold Standard TPDDTEC methodology, aligned with the Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market (ICVCM), and applies rigorous verification techniques—such as Kitchen Performance Tests—to ensure measurable impact.
Several of its other projects across Africa also carry strong MSCI ratings, including “BBB” results in Somalia, Kenya, and Côte d’Ivoire, and “BB” ratings for certain Kenya initiatives.
The MSCI “A” rating arrives simultaneously with BURN being named runner‑up for Best Project Developer — Energy Efficiency in the 2025 Environmental Finance Awards, a nod from market peers to BURN’s influence in the voluntary carbon space.
