Latham & Watkins Advises TotalEnergies on Partnership With NativState to Support Sustainable Forestry Operations

TotalEnergies announced it has signed an agreement with NativState, an Arkansas-based forest carbon project developer, to conserve forests from land conversion and heavy timber harvesting. The transaction includes 13 Improved Forest Management (IFM) projects located in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee, covering 100,000 hectares (247,000 acres) owned by more than 280 private family forest landowners. The carbon program managed by NativState offers landowners a sustainable income alternative to this region’s common practice of heavy timber harvesting while restoring forest health and improving carbon stocks. All carbon credits generated by the project will be certified by the ACR, an internationally recognized carbon crediting program, and will be acquired by TotalEnergies.

Latham & Watkins LLP represents TotalEnergies in the transaction with a deal team led by New York partner JP Brisson, with associates Qingyi Pan* and Tal Carmeli. Advice was also provided on real estate matters by San Diego partner Robert Frances and San Diego counsel Aaron Friberg, with associate Madeline Hodges; on corporate matters by associate Morgen Seim; and on land use matters by Washington, D.C. partner Stacey VanBelleghem.

*Admitted to practice in New York only.