De Beers invests $2 mln in a start-up that grows, manages kelp forests off the Namibian coast

De Beers has invested $2 million in Kelp Blue, an innovative start-up focused on growing and managing large-scale giant kelp forests, initially off the Namibian coast.
It said the underwater forests have the potential to safely and permanently lock away vast amounts of carbon dioxide in the ocean. 
De Beers said the investment supports a pioneering nature-based solution for sequestering carbon and enhancing biodiversity, while also delivering skills development and job creation in Namibia, where it had been mining diamonds in a joint venture partnership with the Namibian Government for about three decades.
“We are committed to being carbon neutral across our operations by 2030, and to achieve this ambitious target we will need to recover a share of our emissions after we have removed and replaced the majority of the fossil fuel energy in our business,” said group executive vice-president, strategy and innovation Neil Ventura.
“Instead of simply purchasing carbon credits on the market, we are looking to identify potential long-term, sustainable and innovative nature-based solutions for this – particularly those that can deliver additional carbon capture benefit beyond our own business.”
Kelp Blue was last year awarded a licence to cultivate Giant Kelp off the coast of Namibia and is now in the pilot phase. 
During the pilot phase, the business will generate a range of direct and indirect jobs in biotechnology, engineering, processing, support services and logistics in Namibia.

Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief of the African Bureau, in Zimbabwe, Rough&Polished