BERUs are certified financial instruments backed by metered utility data from real building retrofits. One BERU equals one tonne of verified CO₂e reduction over a ten-year crediting period.
BERUs are for buyers who want proof
Not just a model of what probably happened. Buyers of BERUs are impressed by real data and granular scientific evidence at the building level, that your money put real equipment into a real building and took fossil fuel out of it. Knowing exactly what your money funded — like boilers pulled out, electric heat pumps in, gas lines shut off.
That's why we certify down to the single building. The less you measure, the more you have to assume, and every assumption is a place the claim falls apart later. One building is the smallest unit that still has a meter on it — so that's where we draw the line.
Granular data & financial additionality assessment
Measured, not modelled. Emissions reductions are calculated from the building's own utility bills before and after the retrofit — the same bills the owner pays. Only months with real data are issued. We make no hypothetical adjustments to fill gaps.
A financial additionality score, not an assertion. Every project's financials runs through our Net Present Value (NPV) assessment and receives an Ontoly Additionality Score from 1 to 5, so you can see exactly how far short of viable the retrofit was without carbon revenue — and how much of that shortfall your purchase truly covers. Additionality, under our program, is calculated arithmetic, not a claim buried in a PDF.
Independent validation and annual verification
Ontoly hires a third-party validator to confirms eligibility, emissions calculations and financial additionality before any credit exists. A third-party verifier also audits the measured performance data and audits all assurances we provide every year for the entire 10-year crediting period.
Conservative by design
One building, one chain of legal title, one serial number per credit. Ontoly certifies down to the building level because we believe mega-project aggregation creates information assymetry for buyers.
Each building keeps its own monitoring data, its own annual quantification, and an unbroken record of legal title through to issuance — tracked on the Ontoly Registry from issuance to retirement.
Each project can earn annual credits for up to 10 years, allowing you to secure a verified supply stream from ongoing retrofits instead of constantly re-sourcing credits.
Our certification fees are paid by buyers and our prices are published. Nobody pays us to approve their project, so nothing about our revenue depends on a project passing.
Why buildings matter for net zero
Buildings account for about 37% of global emissions. While the technology exists to retrofit these buildings, the lack of capital is the real barrier for action. Deep retrofits often don’t make financial sense, so building owners are looking to carbon finance to close the financial gap.
BERUs can be purchased, claimed and retired for the following purposes:
Corporate Climate Reporting — Credits for the emissions you're still working to abate. SBTi's Corporate Net-Zero Standard V2 recognises avoidance and reduction credits for ongoing emissions during the transition — the lane BERUs are built for — alongside removals for residual emissions at net zero.
Green Building Certification — Offset residual emissions with credits traceable to a real building decarbonization project and its verified performance data. Recognised pathways include LEED v5 and the Zero Carbon Standard.
Building Performance Standard Compliance (subject to approval) — Ontoly is pursuing approval as an eligible compliance mechanism under emerging Building Performance Standards. Availability varies by jurisdiction.
Explore validated retrofit projects and reserve credits before they’re issued. These credits are then delivered annually as performance is verified. This pathway offers lower certification fees, as the certification is priced to reflect your early commitment.
Open a free Ontoly Buyer account to explore validated projects:
Issued (ex-post) credits become available once full building performance utility data is monitored, uploaded, verified, and units are serialized for the monitored year by Ontoly.
Open a free Ontoly Buyer account to purchase issued credits from real decarbonization projects:
Learn more about pre-purchase agreements and our pricing:
Send your engineering report and project financials — no account needed. We check emissions performance and run the financial analysis, free of charge.
Once your project is eligible, create your Ontoly Portal account and list it. Buyers can find and pre-commit to it immediately.
Ontoly hires an independent validator to confirm your project's eligibility, emissions calculations, and financial additionality — the checks behind every credit we issue.
Once the retrofit is complete, submit post-retrofit utility data annually. An independent third-party verifier audits it each year for 10 years.
Once verified, your BERUs are issued to your Portal account — a serialized instrument tracked by year and quantity.
Credits are reserved, sold, and transferred to buyers through the Portal. Unsold credits can be retired toward your own reporting.
A Building Emissions Reduction Unit is a carbon credit representing one tonne of CO2e reduced through a certified building retrofit — issued, tracked, and retired on the Ontoly Registry.
Every BERU is quantified from measured utility data, not models or estimates, and traces to a specific building and retrofit — no mega-project aggregation.
Building owners, managers, retrofit engineering firms, and consultants with eligible retrofit projects under the BERS Program. Check eligibility on the program page.
Voluntary offsetting, green building certification offsets (LEED v5, Zero Carbon Standard), and — subject to jurisdictional approval — compliance under emerging Building Performance Standards.
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