CO280 and Aker Carbon Capture collaborate with Microsoft to scale-up permanent, affordable carbon removal in US and Canada

New collaboration aims to scale the full value chain of carbon removal by capturing and permanently sequestering biogenic CO2 at pulp and paper mills. CO280 and Aker Carbon Capture's collaboration with Microsoft will supply the market with significant volumes of permanent, verifiable, affordable Carbon Dioxide Removals (CDRs).

OSLO, Norway, April 18, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- CO280 and Aker Carbon Capture have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) agreement with Microsoft to explore opportunities for scaling the full physical and digital value chain of carbon removal in the US and Canada. Together the three companies have the expertise, technologies, and resources to develop this market by creating a scalable model to deploy large-scale projects quickly to meet global net zero targets. The collaboration aspires to leverage the strengths and capabilities of each partner to enable the ecosystem for the voluntary carbon market by providing traceability of data and enabling high-integrity carbon credits.

The three companies will collaborate to address the technological, regulatory, and commercial challenges and opportunities for creating carbon removal, with each party playing distinct commercial roles. The parties intend to collaborate on a non-exclusive basis. 

Under the terms of the MoU agreement, the parties agree to explore to:           

• Develop biogenic carbon capture project(s), including projects currently in CO280's development pipeline, as well as additional projects;            
• Apply CO280's expertise to jointly develop a standard and efficient screening process to evaluate the technical and economic feasibility of carbon capture on pulp and paper mills, with the subsequent deployment of Aker Carbon Capture's plants, including the modularized Just Catch series;           
• Standardize the lifecycle assessment (LCA) and measurement, verification, and reporting (MRV) systems for capture projects in pulp and paper, with the ambition to leverage Microsoft's digital capabilities, cloud computing platforms, services, and solutions;           
• Create a digital tool to compare CO280's planned projects against Microsoft Criteria for High Quality Carbon Removal;            
• Advocate for policies and demonstrate thought leadership to promote the pulp and paper carbon capture market, with the corresponding creation and use of high-integrity carbon removal credits.

North America's pulp and paper industry represents a carbon removal opportunity of up to 130 million tons per year, due to the fact that the average mill has a CO2 emissions profile that is 80-90% biogenic. By capturing and storing these emissions permanently, negative emissions are achieved as more carbon dioxide is removed from the atmosphere than is being emitted from the process.