Introduction

The U.S. Department of Energy is investing up to $1.2 billion in giant vacuums that suck carbon out of the air in an effort to slow global warming.

Direct Air Capture: Emerging Technology with Promising Potential

So-called direct air capture, or DAC, is an emerging technology that has not scaled up enough to make much of a difference in the fight against global warming. That may be about to change.

Funding Two DAC Hub Projects

The money from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will now help fund two DAC hub projects, one in Texas and one in Louisiana. They will eventually remove more carbon per year than all of the current projects combined. Once the carbon is trapped, it can be stored underground or used for various other resources, from building materials to agricultural products, even to manmade diamonds.

First Commercial-Scale DAC Projects in the U.S.

There are currently 18 DAC projects globally, but these would be the first commercial-scale ones in the U.S.

Removing Millions of Metric Tons of Carbon Dioxide

“Once they’re up and running these hubs are expected to remove more than 2 million metric tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere every year, which is like taking nearly half a million gas powered cars off the road,” said Department of Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm on a call with reporters.

Texas Hub: Run by Occidental Petroleum

The Texas hub is being run by Occidental Petroleum and its subsidiary 1PointFive, which leased 106,000 acres south of Corpus Christi for CO2 removal and storage. Occidental’s CEO, Vicki Hollub, said she estimates the hub has the potential to remove up to 30 million metric tons of CO2 per year through direct air capture.

Louisiana Hub: Run by Climeworks and Heirloom

The Louisiana hub is run by Climeworks and Heirloom. Climeworks currently has the world’s largest DAC plant in Iceland, which removes about 4,000 tons of CO2 per year.

Scaling Up Direct Air Capture

“We have to scale up in the next 20 years at the same pace that the solar and wind industries have done in the past two decades, which they did with strategic and forward-looking policies. The DAC Hubs program is a vital investment for DAC to reach climate impact at scale,” said Andrew Fishbein, senior climate policy manager for Climeworks.

Creating Jobs and Investing in Clean Energy

The hubs will create nearly 5,000 jobs for local workers as well as workers formerly employed in the fossil fuel industry. Both hubs will be powered by clean energy.

Future Funding for Carbon Reducing Technology

Funding for two more hubs is expected sometime next year, with the government committing up to $3.5 billion to this carbon reducing technology overall.

Achieving the Paris Agreement Target

Although the new DAC hubs will be a start, to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, billions of tons of carbon would have to be removed each year by 2050, or roughly 10% to 20% of carbon emitted.