Climeworks receives surprising green light for plant in Louisiana
Keystone-SDA
Swiss carbon removal firm Climeworks looks set to build a CO2 capture plant in Louisiana after the United States Department of Energy gave the green light for Project Cypress.
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With the inauguration of US President Donald Trump, the funding previously granted under the Biden administration was on the brink of cancellation.
But in mid-April, Climeworks received the surprise news that the the project would not be cancelled, a company spokesperson confirmed in response to an enquiry from the news agency AWP. The decision was first reported by the Wall Street Journal.
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“We look forward to planning the next steps with the ministry and our partners,” said the spokesperson. Specific details are still open.
Under the Democrat administration, Climeworks and its US partner Heirloom were awarded $50 million by the Department of Energy to realise a separation project in a traditional oil and gas region. Construction was originally due to start in 2026. In total, the project could receive up to $600 million in government investment.
With the new plant, Climeworks aims to further improve and scale up its direct air capture (DAC) technology. The method involves extracting CO2 from the air and storing it in the ground. This is considered expensive and is not yet available on a large scale.
Founded in 2009, the spin-off from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich has had a new US headquarters in Texas since 2024. The company’s prominent American customers include JPMorgan and Microsoft.
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Translated from Italian with AI/mga
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