Carbon Engineering

Carbon Engineering is a Canadian clean-technology company focused on commercializing direct air capture (DAC), a method for removing carbon dioxide directly from ambient air. Founded in 2009 by atmospheric scientist and climate-policy scholar David Keith, the company developed an integrated chemical process intended to operate continuously at industrial scale rather than relying on naturally occurring carbon sinks alone. Its system uses large air-contacting structures and alkaline solutions to capture dilute carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, then regenerates the capture medium and produces a concentrated stream of carbon dioxide. The company’s technology is designed for two principal applications. Captured carbon dioxide can be transported and stored underground, potentially as part of a carbon-removal or carbon-management project. It can also be combined with hydrogen produced from water using electricity to manufacture synthetic hydrocarbons. Carbon Engineering has described this latter pathway as “air to fuels,” with potential products including gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel. The approach is intended to provide fuels compatible with existing transport infrastructure while using atmospheric carbon dioxide as a carbon feedstock rather than relying exclusively on crude oil. The climate performance of such fuels depends on the energy source, process efficiency, carbon accounting, and the treatment of the resulting emissions. Carbon Engineering began operating a full end-to-end pilot plant in Squamish, British Columbia, in 2015. The facility was designed to capture approximately one tonne of carbon dioxide per day when operating. In 2017, the company added fuel-synthesis capability, and it reported producing fuel from captured atmospheric carbon dioxide for the first time in December of that year. Data from the pilot informed a 2018 technical-economic analysis that estimated capture costs in a broad range of approximately US$94 to US$233 per tonne, depending on financing assumptions, energy costs, and the selected process configuration. These estimates were projections and not evidence of a uniform commercial price. Carbon Engineering attracted funding from public agencies, sustainability-oriented investors, and prominent private investors, including Bill Gates and N. Murray Edwards. In 2019, investors including Chevron, Occidental Petroleum, and BHP provided a further US$68 million, according to reference material. The participation of major fossil-fuel companies reflected interest in carbon dioxide management, enhanced oil recovery, and future carbon-removal markets, while also placing the company within wider debates about whether carbon capture should complement or delay emissions reductions. Commercialization efforts accelerated through a partnership announced in 2019 with Oxy Low Carbon Ventures, a subsidiary of Occidental Petroleum. The proposed project in the Permian Basin was initially described as a plant capable of capturing 500,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide annually, with the design later expanded to an expected capacity of approximately one million tonnes per year. The captured gas was intended for use in enhanced oil recovery followed by permanent underground storage. In August 2023, Occidental announced its acquisition of Carbon Engineering for US$1.1 billion, with payments scheduled over three years and an objective of developing approximately 100 direct-air-capture plants. Carbon Engineering therefore operates as an Occidental-owned technology business, with its identity associated with the engineering, scaling, and deployment of DAC and related fuel technologies.

Carbon Engineering was established in 2009 by David Keith, a scientist whose work has included climate science, energy systems, and the policy implications of atmospheric carbon removal. The company was created around the proposition that industrial systems could remove carbon dioxide directly from ambient air and eventually deploy that capability at a scale relevant to climate mitigation. Unlike point-source capture, which removes carbon dioxide from concentrated emissions such as those from power stations or industrial facilities, direct air capture must process very large volumes of air because atmospheric carbon dioxide is highly diluted. Carbon Engineering developed a chemical process built around two linked operating cycles. In the first, fans or air-moving structures bring ambient air into contact with an alkaline hydroxide solution. The solution reacts with carbon dioxide and removes it from the air stream. In the second cycle, the company regenerates the capture liquid and releases a concentrated carbon-dioxide stream. The two cycles are intended to operate continuously, with energy, water, and replenishment materials as principal inputs. The process can be paired with geological storage, use in industrial applications, or fuel synthesis. The company’s Squamish, British Columbia, pilot plant became the central demonstration platform for this work. Full end-to-end operations began in 2015, and the facility was described as capable of capturing roughly one tonne of atmospheric carbon dioxide per day when operating. The pilot allowed the company to test the integration of air contactors, chemical regeneration, carbon-dioxide purification, and downstream applications. In 2017, Carbon Engineering incorporated fuel-synthesis equipment, and in December it reported producing fuel from captured atmospheric carbon dioxide. The air-to-fuels pathway uses captured carbon dioxide together with hydrogen made by electrolyzing water. When the electricity is supplied from low-carbon or renewable sources, the process can produce synthetic hydrocarbons such as gasoline, diesel, or jet fuel. These fuels can be compatible with existing engines and distribution systems, although their overall environmental benefit depends on the electricity supply, plant efficiency, carbon source, and end-of-life emissions. Carbon Engineering has presented this pathway as one possible response for transport sectors that are difficult to electrify directly, while presenting underground storage as another route for permanent carbon removal. In 2018, David Keith and colleagues published an analysis using information from the pilot and process simulations. The analysis estimated a broad direct-air-capture cost range of about US$94 to US$233 per tonne, depending on financing conditions, energy prices, and design choices. The range illustrated both the potential cost competitiveness and the uncertainty associated with scaling a relatively new industrial process. Carbon Engineering subsequently pursued private capital and commercial partnerships. Its backers included government and sustainability-focused organizations as well as private investors such as Bill Gates and N. Murray Edwards. In 2019, Chevron, Occidental Petroleum, and BHP were among investors participating in a reported US$68 million financing. Also in 2019, Carbon Engineering announced a partnership with Oxy Low Carbon Ventures, an Occidental Petroleum subsidiary, to design a large direct-air-capture plant in the Permian Basin. The initial plan called for approximately 500,000 tonnes of annual carbon-dioxide capture, with the gas intended for enhanced oil recovery and subsequent underground storage. The planned design was later expanded to approximately one million tonnes per year. The relationship connected Carbon Engineering’s capture technology with Occidental’s experience in carbon management and oil-field operations, but it also placed the technology within debates over enhanced oil recovery and the climate accounting of captured carbon. In August 2023, Occidental Petroleum announced that it would acquire all outstanding equity in Carbon Engineering for US$1.1 billion, with payments spread over three years. Occidental also described an ambition to build approximately 100 direct-air-capture plants. Following the acquisition, Carbon Engineering became an Occidental-owned technology business. Its continuing strategic role is to develop and scale the DAC systems and related process technologies that Occidental hopes to deploy in commercial carbon-removal projects.

• 2023

  Occidental Petroleum acquires Carbon Engineering

  [1]Carbon Engineeringen.wikipedia.org

  Occidental Petroleum announced a US$1.1 billion acquisition of Carbon Engineering and plans associated with developing approximately 100 DAC plants.

• 2019

  Private investment and Occidental partnership

  [1]Carbon Engineeringen.wikipedia.org

  The company received reported investment from major corporate and private backers and announced a partnership with Oxy Low Carbon Ventures to develop a large DAC facility in the Permian Basin.

• 2018

  Direct-air-capture cost analysis is published

  [1]Carbon Engineeringen.wikipedia.org

  An analysis based on pilot data estimated a direct-air-capture cost range of approximately US$94 to US$233 per tonne under different assumptions.

• 2017

  Air-to-fuels demonstration

  [1]Carbon Engineeringen.wikipedia.org

  Carbon Engineering added fuel-synthesis capability to its pilot plant and produced fuel from captured atmospheric carbon dioxide in December.

• 2015

  Squamish pilot plant begins operations

  [1]Carbon Engineeringen.wikipedia.org

  The company began operating a full end-to-end direct-air-capture pilot plant in Squamish, British Columbia, designed to capture approximately one tonne of carbon dioxide per day.

• 2009

  Carbon Engineering is founded

  [1]Carbon Engineeringen.wikipedia.org

  David Keith founded Carbon Engineering in Canada to develop industrial direct-air-capture technology and related carbon-utilization applications.

Carbon Engineering positions itself as an industrial carbon-removal and clean-fuels technology company. Its differentiation is the integration of direct air capture, carbon-dioxide purification, and fuel synthesis into chemical and engineering systems intended for continuous operation and large-scale deployment. The company emphasizes atmospheric carbon removal, compatibility with existing fuel infrastructure, and the use of captured carbon dioxide in either permanent storage or synthetic-fuel production.

• Carbon-removal technology

  Direct air capture system

  Carbon Engineering’s direct-air-capture system is designed to remove carbon dioxide from ambient air through a combination of air contactors, alkaline chemical absorption, and regeneration. The process produces a concentrated carbon-dioxide stream that can be sent to geological storage or used as an industrial feedstock. The technology is intended for continuous operation and eventual deployment in facilities with annual capture capacity measured in hundreds of thousands or millions of tonnes.

• Synthetic-fuel technology · 2017

  Air to fuels

  Air to fuels is Carbon Engineering’s pathway for converting atmospheric carbon dioxide into synthetic hydrocarbons. Captured carbon dioxide is combined with hydrogen produced from water using electricity, after which chemical synthesis can yield fuels such as gasoline, diesel, or jet fuel. The pilot plant demonstrated fuel production in 2017. The process is intended to provide lower-carbon alternatives for transport applications, subject to the use of low-carbon energy and favorable lifecycle accounting.

• Industrial carbon-management infrastructure · 2019

  Large-scale DAC plant design

  Carbon Engineering has developed designs for large direct-air-capture facilities intended to capture up to approximately one million tonnes of carbon dioxide annually per plant. The company’s commercial planning has included integration with underground storage and, in the Permian Basin proposal, enhanced oil recovery followed by permanent storage. These designs represent a scale-up of the Squamish pilot rather than a mature mass-market consumer product.

• 2023

  Accept Occidental Petroleum acquisitionM&A

  Background

  Occidental Petroleum sought to expand its direct-air-capture capabilities and develop a portfolio of large carbon-removal facilities.

  Action taken

  Occidental announced the acquisition of all outstanding Carbon Engineering equity for US$1.1 billion, with payments scheduled over three years.

  Aftermath

  Carbon Engineering became an Occidental-owned technology business, while Occidental stated an intention to develop approximately 100 direct-air-capture plants.

  Acquisition consideration. US$1.1 billion (Announced August 2023; payments over three years)

  Source

• 2019

  Partner with Oxy Low Carbon Ventures on a large DAC facilityStrategy

  Background

  Carbon Engineering needed an industrial partner and project setting to move from pilot-scale capture toward a commercial-scale facility.

  Action taken

  The company partnered with Oxy Low Carbon Ventures, an Occidental Petroleum subsidiary, to design a Permian Basin plant initially planned for 500,000 tonnes of annual capture and later expanded to approximately one million tonnes.

  Aftermath

  The partnership linked Carbon Engineering’s technology to Occidental’s carbon-management and enhanced-oil-recovery activities and became a foundation for the later acquisition.

  Source

• 2017

  Add fuel synthesis to the DAC pilotProduct launch

  Background

  Carbon Engineering sought to demonstrate that captured atmospheric carbon dioxide could serve as a feedstock for synthetic fuels as well as for storage.

  Action taken

  The company incorporated fuel-synthesis capability into its Squamish pilot plant and produced fuel from captured carbon dioxide in December 2017.

  Aftermath

  The demonstration established the company’s air-to-fuels pathway as a second application for its capture technology, alongside permanent storage.

  Source

• 2023

  Occidental Petroleum agrees to acquire Carbon Engineering[1]Carbon Engineeringen.wikipedia.org

  M&A

  Occidental Petroleum announced the acquisition of all outstanding equity in Carbon Engineering for US$1.1 billion, with payments to be made over three years. Occidental stated an intention to develop approximately 100 direct-air-capture plants.

• 2019

  Carbon Engineering announces major private investment[1]Carbon Engineeringen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  The company received US$68 million from private investors, including Chevron, Occidental Petroleum, and BHP, according to the cited reference material.

• 2019

  Carbon Engineering partners with Oxy Low Carbon Ventures on a large DAC facility[1]Carbon Engineeringen.wikipedia.org

  M&A · Product launch

  Carbon Engineering and Oxy Low Carbon Ventures announced plans to design and engineer a large direct-air-capture plant in the Permian Basin. The proposed facility was initially sized at 500,000 tonnes of annual capture capacity and later expanded in design to approximately one million tonnes.

• 2018

  Carbon Engineering publishes estimated direct-air-capture costs[1]Carbon Engineeringen.wikipedia.org

  Other · Pricing

  A technical-economic analysis based on pilot data estimated capture costs of approximately US$94 to US$233 per tonne, with results varying according to financial, energy, and process assumptions.

• 2017

  Carbon Engineering demonstrates fuel production from captured atmospheric carbon dioxide[1]Carbon Engineeringen.wikipedia.org

  Product launch · Product generation

  The company added fuel-synthesis capability to its pilot plant and reported converting captured atmospheric carbon dioxide into fuel in December 2017.

• 2015

  Carbon Engineering begins operating its Squamish direct-air-capture pilot plant[1]Carbon Engineeringen.wikipedia.org

  Product launch · Other

  Carbon Engineering began operating a full end-to-end pilot facility in Squamish, British Columbia, designed to remove approximately one tonne of atmospheric carbon dioxide per day when running.

1. 1Carbon Engineeringen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Squamish-based Carbon Engineering Announces New Partnership Working to Deploy Large-Scale Direct Air Capture in Norwaybctechnology.com