Skip to content
Menu
REDD-Monitor
  • Start here
  • About REDD-Monitor
  • REDD: An introduction
  • Contact
REDD-Monitor
Advanced Global Trading

Questions for Lotus F1 about carbon credits and Advanced Global Trading

Posted on 15 August 20132 June 2021

By Chris Lang

Since 2012, the Lotus Formula 1 Team claims to be “targeting carbon neutral status”. It is doing so with the help of Advanced Global Trading – a Dubai-based company selling carbon credits as investments.

Advanced Global Trading publicises its relationship with Lotus F1 on its website, in company publications and in press releases. In its corporate magazine, Arena, AGT states that, “Thanks to AGT, the Lotus F1 Team is now carbon neutral.” But exactly what does AGT do for Lotus F1?

Lotus F1 explains on its website that,

The new relationship with AGT will see every aspect of Enstone come under greater scrutiny than ever before, with the objective of minimising carbon emissions from all processes and procedures at the race team’s base. AGT will also work with Lotus F1 Team partners to help achieve their environmental plans and their Corporate Social Responsibility goals.

Which is pretty vague. In a press release dated 28 May 2013, AGT explains further:

Advanced Global Trading has been provided with last season’s data for all Lotus F1 Team’s season’s races and an independent agency based in the UK is now calculating the operation’s cumulative emissions, which will then be offset by Advanced Global Trading AGT by purchasing and retiring this value in Verified Emissions Reduction Carbon Credits.

Charles Stephenson, AGT’s CEO says,

“We’re delighted to continue this association with the Lotus F1 Team, and are eager to see just how many VERS are necessary to offset for an operation of this magnitude.”

And in Arena, AGT claims to have sold large numbers of carbon credits in 2012:

“AGT carbon credits have recorded a 14.97% ROI ytd for clients which was due at least in part to large purchases of credits by major multinationals Microsoft, Co-op and Lotus F1 Team.”

Three weeks ago, REDD-Monitor sent some questions to the Lotus F1 Team about its relationship with Advanced Global Trading. Having received no reply, I sent the questions again earlier this week to the Lotus F1 press office.

I look forward to posting Lotus F1’s reply on REDD-Monitor.

From: Chris Lang
Date: 12 August 2013 13:24
Subject: Lotus F1, Advanced Global Trading and carbon credits
To: [email protected]

Dear Sir or Madam,

I run a website called redd-monitor.org. I have a few questions about Lotus F1 Team’s partnership with Advanced Global Trading. I sent these questions via the Lotus F1 website on 25 July 2013. As I have not received a reply, I am resending them.

1. Are you aware of the controversy surrounding AGT’s sale of carbon credits as investments? Here are a couple of reports in The Nation (a UAE newspaper): http://bit.ly/17s49js and http://bit.ly/1bkZx3t.

2. What services does AGT provide for Lotus F1 Team? Has Lotus F1 Team for example bought carbon credits from AGT?

3. How much has Lotus F1 Team paid AGT for its services so far since the partnership started in 2012? Or does AGT pay Lotus F1 Team sponsorship in return for having its logo on the cars?

4. How did the partnership with AGT come about? Did AGT approach Lotus F1 Team, or did Lotus F1 Team approach AGT?

5. What due diligence did Lotus F1 Team carry out before agreeing to the partnership with AGT?

Please consider your response to be on the record.

Thanks and best regards,

Chris Lang

 

3 thoughts on “Questions for Lotus F1 about carbon credits and Advanced Global Trading”

  1. Mike says:
    18 August 2013 at 9:21 pm

    Chris, I think it is an excellent tack to ask companies that have purchased VERs to make themselves ‘carbon neutral’ about their supplier, when the ‘supplier’ appears to involved in investment scam. (What about CNI and McLaren?) After all these companies are doing it for PR purposes and might take a different view if they realised the ‘other side’ to the business their suppliers are involved in.

  2. Christopher Joseph says:
    30 September 2013 at 3:15 pm

    Hello Chris,

    I wondered if you got any further with the Lotus and AGT story?

    I have recently done an article on CNI UK and McLaren so would be interested in any comments you have.

    Regards,

    Christopher

  3. Gavin Hastie says:
    20 August 2014 at 11:52 am

    As a small investor who was foolish enough to believe this , i have been anxiously watching this story for some time. Seems there is little we can do to stop them and even less chance of getting money back. I would have hoped the DeD would have done something about it by now !!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

SUBSCRIBE!

Recent themes
30x30
Natural Climate Solutions
WWF's conservation scandals
Aviation and offsetting
Conservation Watch

Recent Comments

  • Ben on Response from Kurt Kaiser, Director of Compass Carbon: “Your article was of great concern to us”. And some questions for Kaiser from REDD-Monitor
  • James Mewa Kamaya on Papua New Guinea’s Forest Authority cancels Mayur Resources’ Kamula Doso REDD project
  • Benedikt von Butler on Switzerland’s offsetting deal with Peru excludes REDD. It will still not reduce emissions
  • Chris Ibe on Bar Works: The return of Renwick Haddow
  • Xindia on Bar Works: The return of Renwick Haddow

Recent Posts

  • REDD-Monitor is moving to Substack
  • REDD Project in Brazil Nut concessions in Madre de Dios, Peru finally started paying communities a decade after the project started. “I’m still lacking money,” says one community member
  • REDD-Monitor’s top ten posts in 2022
  • The harsh reality of 30×30: The EU is keen to allow extractivism in the 30×30 target – but not Indigenous Peoples’ territories
  • Human rights abuses against Indigenous Peoples and the proposed “30×30” target

Recent Comments

  • Ben on Response from Kurt Kaiser, Director of Compass Carbon: “Your article was of great concern to us”. And some questions for Kaiser from REDD-Monitor
  • James Mewa Kamaya on Papua New Guinea’s Forest Authority cancels Mayur Resources’ Kamula Doso REDD project
  • Benedikt von Butler on Switzerland’s offsetting deal with Peru excludes REDD. It will still not reduce emissions
  • Chris Ibe on Bar Works: The return of Renwick Haddow
  • Xindia on Bar Works: The return of Renwick Haddow

Issues and Organisations

30x30 AB 32 Andes Amazon Boiler rooms California Can REDD save ... ? Carbon accounting Carbon Credits Carbon Offsets CDM Conservation-Watch Conservation International COP21 Paris Cryptocurrency Deforestation EcoPlanet Bamboo Evictions FCPF Financing REDD Fossil fuels FSC Green Climate Fund Greenpeace Guest post Human rights ICAO Illegal logging Indigenous Peoples Natural Climate Solutions NGO statements Plantations R-M interview REDD and rights REDD in the news Risk RSPO-Watch Safeguards Sengwer The Nature Conservancy UN-REDD UNFCCC Verra World Bank WRM WWF

Countries

Australia Bolivia Brazil Cambodia Cameroon Canada China Colombia Congo Basin region Costa Rica DR Congo Ecuador El Salvador European Union France Gabon Germany Guyana Honduras India Indonesia Kenya Luxembourg Madagascar Malaysia Mexico Netherlands Nicaragua Norway Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Republic of Congo Sierra Leone Spain Sweden Tanzania Thailand Uganda UK Uncategorized United Arab Emirates USA West Papua
©2025 REDD-Monitor | Powered by SuperbThemes!