Plans have been unveiled for what is believed to be the world’s first direct air capture (DAC) facility powered entirely by wind power.
Dubbed Project Concho, the plant aims to capture 30,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) annually in its initial phase, with plans to scale up to 500,000 tonnes per year.
To achieve this, a collaboration between Skytree, renewable energy firm Greenalia, and carbon capture project developers Return Carbon and Verified Carbon has formed.
Skytree will equip the site with its DAC technology, and Greenalia will develop the facility’s wind farm for 100% renewable carbon removal operations. Return Carbon and Verified Carbon will provide carbon capture-related expertise.
Project Concho will incorporate multiple Skytree Stratus units linked to a DAC Park. Skytree’s DAC technology is designed to optimise energy use and minimise consumption while maintaining effective CO2 capture.
Its modular design and continuous operation capabilities make it a suitable choice for a large-scale initiative like Project Concho, where additional units will be introduced progressively.
Elena Nikonova, Vice-President of North America at Skytree, described the news as a first-of-its-kind collaboration that will open the door to further carbon removal projects.
“Deploying DAC at a scale is necessary to drive down costs across the value chain and achieve greater impact, and we are thrilled to provide the technology needed to bring Project Concho to life.”
The Tom Green Country, Texas, site is based off Skytree’s Stratus DAC Park concept.
Read more: Skytree launches new direct air capture unit to meet CO2 needs
Speaking at gasworld’s North American CO2 Summit in Nashville, Rob Van Straten, CEO at Skytree, emphasised the need to remove levels of CO2 in our atmosphere for the future.
Skytree is driving the circular economy by transforming CO2 from a waste product into a valuable resource, generating CO2 from the atmosphere at the location where that CO2 is needed.
News of the project also comes just over a month since Skytree announced the opening of a North American headquarters in Toronto, Canada, and a new office in Nashville, Tennessee, to strengthen its North American footprint.
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