Climate Insider Brief:
- Bill Gates’s Breakthrough Energy has awarded a $40 million grant to Deep Sky, a Canadian startup developing the “Alpha” testing ground in Alberta to accelerate the deployment of direct air capture (DAC) technologies.
- The facility, set to launch next spring, will host up to eight companies, including Airhive and Mission Zero, to refine their carbon removal systems. Deep Sky is simultaneously advancing multiple development stages to speed up commercial-scale deployment.
- The Alpha site aims to address DAC’s high costs and energy demands while testing performance in Canada’s cold climate. Breakthrough Energy’s Catalyst program emphasizes reducing the “green premium” to make carbon removal technologies profitable.
Bill Gates’s Breakthrough Energy has granted $40 million to Deep Sky, a Canadian startup developing a cutting-edge testing ground for direct air capture (DAC) technologies. The initiative, announced Wednesday, aims to fast-track the deployment of technologies that remove carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere.
This funding addresses a critical challenge outlined by U.N. scientists, who emphasize the need to extract billions of metric tons of CO2 annually to mitigate climate change, in addition to reducing current emissions. Direct Air Capture is widely seen as a promising solution, but existing methods remain energy-intensive, costly, and difficult to scale.
Deep Sky’s “Alpha” test ground, set to launch in Alberta, will accommodate up to eight companies testing and optimizing their DAC technologies under real-world conditions. The facility will also explore the performance of DAC systems in Canada’s cold climate.
Deep Sky CEO Damien Steel highlighted the project’s sense of urgency:
“We don’t have the time. The reason [steps are] done in a sequential order is because nobody ever wants to take on any risk,” he said. Deep Sky is pursuing multiple development processes simultaneously to accelerate progress.
Testing Starts Next Spring
The Alpha site is expected to start removing CO2 as early as next spring. Steel stated that Deep Sky is working to identify efficient technologies to implement in future commercial-scale plants, with the test ground acting as a proving ground. The project is unique in that construction began before selecting the final technology—an approach that increases speed but involves significant risk.
The first seven DAC companies selected for Alpha include Airhive, Mission Zero, Skyrenu, Skytree, NEG8 Carbon, Greenlyte, and Phlair.
Breakthrough Energy’s Mission
Breakthrough Energy Catalyst, the funding unit behind the grant, is focused on driving down the cost of emerging clean energy technologies to make them commercially viable. Mario Fernandez, head of Breakthrough Energy Catalyst, explained the importance of this approach:
“The overall mission of Catalyst is to drive down the green premium and move these technologies towards profitability.”
Fernandez acknowledged the challenges facing DAC systems but emphasized the potential impact of initiatives like Alpha:
“DAC is currently very challenging,” he said, but projects like this could pave the way for transformative advancements.
Canada’s Role in Carbon Removal
Canada’s cold climate and its status as a major oil producer make it an important testing ground for DAC technology. Just last week, the Canadian government raised its greenhouse gas reduction target to 50% by 2035, underscoring the urgency of initiatives like Alpha.
As Steel explained, Alpha aims to bridge the gap between innovation and scale by creating a space for companies to refine their technologies and accelerate their deployment:
“We’re starting to develop commercial-scale direct air capture plants in Canada. Alpha will help us find the most efficient technology for that.”
Climate Insider Notes
- Significance of DAC Testing: Direct Air Capture is a critical tool in the global fight against climate change, but the technology’s high costs and energy demands remain barriers to large-scale adoption.
- Accelerated Development: Deep Sky’s approach of parallel development is bold but necessary in the race to scale climate technologies quickly.
- Global Implications: If successful, the Alpha site could serve as a model for other countries seeking to test and scale carbon removal solutions in challenging climates.
- Investor Impact: Breakthrough Energy’s investment underscores the growing focus on carbon removal technologies as a key part of climate tech portfolios.
Deep Sky’s Alpha project represents a pivotal step in accelerating the development of DAC technologies, potentially transforming the fight against climate change.
Source: Reuters
Featured Image: Credit: Deep Sky
