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Climeworks' CIO, Valentijn Bonger

Collected insights you can rely on

Net zero, carbon removal, direct air capture — let’s connect the dots. Expert advice is crucial in enabling businesses to form a comprehensive net-zero strategy in line with climate science. We’ve gathered perspectives from our pioneering customers and some of the top CO₂ removal experts, so you can be confident in your decision to work with Climeworks.

Why does a net-zero goal require carbon dioxide removal?

“The IPCC has shown that even if we reduced our emissions to zero today, we would still need to remove CO₂ from the atmosphere to reach our 1.5°C target” — Dr. Nathalie Casas, Head of Technology at Climeworks.  

Carbon removal solutions, such as direct air capture and storage, are essential for removing the CO₂ emissions we can’t tackle with reductions alone — i.e., historic CO₂ emissions and unavoidable CO₂ emissions. This is why companies are turning to carbon removal as an essential component of their science-based net-zero strategies and why it’s a critical tool in our journey toward a global net zero.

Why can’t we just plant trees?

“We need to plant trees, but unfortunately, they die after 50-100 years and re-release the carbon they’ve pulled down back into the atmosphere” — Merritt Dailey, Science Advisor at Carbon Direct.

While trees are vital for capturing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, and for habitat conservation and biodiversity, they can’t single-handedly solve the problem of global warming. We can’t scale afforestation to the required levels because it would demand far more land than we can provide, and regardless, when trees die and decay, they re-release the CO₂ they’ve collected over their lifetimes. That’s why we need both nature-based solutions, like afforestation, and permanent technological-based solutions, like direct air capture and storage.

What are the main benefits of direct air capture and storage (DAC+S)?

“Direct air capture provides permanent, durable carbon removal that is measurable, and, by definition, additional” — Jason Hochman, Co-founder and Senior Director at Direct Air Capture Coalition. 

Each carbon removal solution, whether natural or technology-based, has its benefits. That's why it's essential that every approach works in synergy with all others if climate targets are to be achieved. But at Climeworks, we’re particularly excited about direct air capture because of these unique advantages

  • Highly scalable and measurable: Our modular technology is highly scalable, and we can measure exactly how much CO₂ our machines capture. 

  • Efficient land usage: On a land area of 0.42 acres, our Orca plant can capture 4,000 tons of CO₂ from the air annually, nearly 1,000 times more effective than trees.

  • Location-independent: Our plants can be placed anywhere so long as there’s a renewable energy source and CO₂ storage potential.

Why are companies including Climeworks in their climate strategies?

“They’re the real market leader and provide a high-quality carbon removal service where the CO₂ is locked away in rock for thousands of years.” — Tom Spencer, Environmental Management Specialist at Swiss Re.  

With high integrity and a track record of serving top-tier businesses, Climeworks is a trusted service provider for permanent carbon dioxide removal. By including our high-quality, third-party verified service in your company's climate strategy, you can do your part to help the world get to net zero and fight climate change.

Interested to learn more?

Take an in-depth look at our service or read testimonials from our customers.

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