From pilot to commercial activity

Pros and cons

To reach such capacity, time is tight. DAC and CDR companies will need to build and develop quickly from pilot phase to commercial activity, growing capacity along the way.

Fortunately, the technology is scalable, and facilities can be built in disparate locations. Though funding will remain an issue, governments are getting involved with various forms of support. This should enable permanent carbon removal through carbon capture technology to play an important role in aviation’s commitment to net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

There are good reasons for the interest in DAC and other CRD technologies. First, and most importantly, it is unequivocal carbon removal. DAC – which is about 20 per cent of the carbon capture market – takes CO₂ out of the air and safely traps it underground. With carbon reaching over 400 parts per million – a record high – this is a crucial step forward.

Traditional carbon offsets work in a variety of ways, including avoidance, but CDR is a transparent method of real emissions reduction. Indeed, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report mentions carbon capture as a critical enabler in limiting the effects of climate change.

Second, as a fledgling industry, carbon capture has the potential to create new markets and new jobs. The United Kingdom estimates it could support some 50,000 jobs within a decade, for example.

It is also possible that the captured CO₂ could be used in other green initiatives, such as the production of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF), enhancing the eco-credentials of the aviation industry and accelerating the path to net zero.

The communication gains should be considered too. The indisputable nature of the carbon removal would resonate with the travelling public and partners in the aviation ecosystem.

But there are challenges too. Price is an issue. Compared with carbon offsets, carbon capture credits are still enormously expensive. It is reported that to capture and store a tonne of CO₂ at Mammoth costs about $1,000. Costs are coming down rapidly, however, and in Wyoming, Spiritus believes it can eventually achieve a capture cost of under $100 per tonne.

Another concern is the amount of energy involved in direct air capture. Despite the record high, CO₂ is less than one per cent of the atmosphere so a lot of effort is required to extract it. This results in emissions, which obviously detracts from the amount of CO₂ captured. Mammoth overcomes this by using electricity from a neighbouring geothermal power plant, but such neat solutions aren’t always available.

Finally, for the time being at least, there is limited scale. Estimates suggest about six million tonnes of operating capacity in 2030, but it is thought about 500 million tonnes will be needed come 2050.

Government support

Activity in the United States in part stems from the Department of Energy’s $52.5 million initiative to push direct air capture (DAC). A Commercial Direct Air Capture Pilot Prize supports the construction of facilities capable of capturing at least 500 tonnes of CO₂ annually. Winning teams will receive up to $12 million and must operate a pilot facility for at least 2,000 hours among other criteria.

Other countries are also supporting DAC and carbon dioxide removal (CDR) technologies. The United Kingdom plans to store up to 20-30 million tonnes of CO₂ annually within its borders by 2030, which equates to removing 4 to 6 million cars from UK roads each year. The country’s £20 billion investment aims to create a competitive carbon capture, usage and storage market.

The United Kingdom is also exploring non-pipeline transport solutions. Mammoth directly injects its captured CO₂ into Iceland’s basalt. Many other facilities are located to enable similar operations. But UK plans call for rail or shipping transport options.

CO₂ captured from the South Wales Industrial Cluster could be shipped to a permanent storage site, for example. The aim is for non-pipeline transport methods to be eligible for selection as carbon capture projects from 2025 onwards.

Other countries and regions are also exploring a range of policies and funding. In the European Union, a certification framework for CDR credits has been published.

Benefitting from the technology works much like carbon offsets. Basically, an air navigation service provider (ANSP) can buy CO₂ credit from a carbon capture plant. As such, the technology could prove vital in aviation’s collective effort to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Carbon capture works one of two ways. Carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions can either be captured at source – such as at an industrial plant – or taken straight out of the air, known as direct air capture (DAC). In both cases, various processes make the CO₂ suitable for underground storage on geological timescales.

For some, capturing the CO₂ at source is the most logical way forward, but it is DAC that has hit the headlines. DAC facilities are already in operation with many more planned.

“Mammoth” has been developed by Swiss firm Climeworks and is located close to Reykjavik in Iceland. It can take 36,000 tonnes of CO₂ out of the air annually but plans to hit gigaton capacity by 2050. 

Other facilities opening for commercial operations in the coming years are aiming for the million tonne-mark in initial phases. This includes the Louisiana-based Project Cypress in the United States, which is due to break ground in 2026 and will feature the latest, ever-improving technology. 1PointFive is constructing a Direct Air Capture (DAC) plant in Texas, which is expected to be commercially operational in mid-2025 and already boasts airline clients. Meanwhile, Spiritus plans to build “Orchard One” in Wyoming with the ability to ultimately capture and store two million tonnes of CO₂ every year.

Carbon Capture has been hailed as an essential technology in the climate change battle. It has been around since the 1970s but has recently come to the fore as its cost-effectiveness increases.