Belgium-based decarbonisation technology start-up D-CRBN wants to replace fossil-based chemicals and petrochemicals with alternatives from recycled CO2.
Speaking at gasworld’s European CO2 Summit 2025 in Rotterdam, Gill Scheltjens, CEO and co-founder of D-CRBN outlined the company’s vision to “close the carbon loop” by converting industrial CO2 emissions back into active carbon monoxide (CO). This is a crucial building block for many chemicals and industrial products.
Currently, the chemical industry sources CO primarily from oil and gas, generating roughly two tonnes of CO2 equivalent per tonne of CO produced. Scheltjens explained how D-CRBN’s plasma tech drastically reduces this environmental impact, even creating “a carbon-negative CO molecule” to help chemical producers to cut their emissions.
“Imagine a future where all the products that we are using on a day-to-day basis – like clothing, car parts, packaging – [are with] materials from CO2,” Scheltjens said.
D-CRBN’s Gill Scheltjens spoke about closing the carbon loop through CO2 recycling
D-CRBN’s plasma process uses about one-third of the energy required by current technologies to convert CO2 into CO. By integrating biochar or carbon waste from tyre recycling, D-CRBN prevents unwanted recombination into CO2.
The technology is already proving successful at industrial scale through a partnership with steel producer ArcelorMittal in Ghent, Belgium. At the steelmaker’s plant, D-CRBN converts captured blast-furnace gases into CO, which is then supplied to companies like US-based carbon management firm LanzaTech and ArcelorMittal’s own partners for further utilisation in chemicals.
Scheltjens noted that historically carbon capture and storage (CCS) has dominated Europe’s decarbonisation focus. However, he argued CCS is limited by its reliance on taxation and subsidies, describing it as “the most linear model that we can build, where CO2 is … moving from cradle to grave.”
Instead, Scheltjens believes the future lies in CCU technologies that actively create value, noting a recent shift in European priorities from CO2 storage to utilisation.
“Europe was more conservative in the past, aiming at storage of CO2 underground. They are slowly but surely understanding the importance of utilising CO2 as feedstock, as it will mean more independence for Europe,” he added.
D-CRBN has plans to scale rapidly, starting with a milestone facility capable of processing 10,000 tonnes of CO2 annually within two years. The company aspires to build dedicated CO2 recycling plants within major industrial clusters, such as Antwerp and Rotterdam.
“We are tackling a global challenge [in] climate change,” Scheltjens concluded. “We have to think big.”
