The swiss Company Climeworks launched the largest direct air capture (DAC) plant ever built. Orca, previously featured in our carbon capture series her on NetZero.aero, is able to scrub 4000 tons of CO2 per year.
On September 8th 2021, Climeworks opened the Orca plant on Iceland at Hellisheidi for production. The plant uses renewable power from the nearby geothermal power plant which is operated by ON power. The scrubbed CO2 is then transfered to Carbfix, a company which mixes the captured CO2 with water and pumps the solution underground. There through a natural mineralization process, the carbon dioxide is trapped within two years and will be safely trapped in stone for long term storage.
Shortly after the IPCC stated a clear and urgent need for carbon dioxide removal, the inauguration of Orca provides immediate impact: every ton of carbon dioxide removed from the air by Orca is a ton immediately not contributing to global warming.
Orca represents a milestone in the direct air capture industry with its capacity of capturing 4’000 tons of CO2 per year, which will be removed from the air safely and stored permanently through the Carbfix natural mineralization process.
The plant is a steppingstone for Climeworks’ expansion on route to megaton removal capacity by the second part of this decade, based on our leading and most scalable direct air capture technology.
Orca delivers permanent, metered carbon dioxide removal and sets the precedent for a high-quality, verifiable carbon removal market by being the first direct air capture and storage service with a validated process – awarded mid-June 2021 by independent third-party DNV.
Disclosure: Tiny Ventures LLC, the parent company of NetZero.aero is a Climeworks pioneer and purchases CO2 removal from them. AeroInside by Tiny Ventures LLC is donating 1% of all revenue to Stripe Climate and some of these funds end up at Climeworks for CO2 removal.