A California startup that uses seawater-splitting technology to pull carbon dioxide from the atmosphere is planning to build the world’s first commercial-scale ocean carbon removal plant in Canada.
Equatic intends to begin building the facility in Quebec next year with the Canadian project developer Deep Sky and commence operations by 2027, the startup announced Tuesday. Once completed, the facility would able to filter over 109,000 metric tons of CO2 from the air annually while also producing 3,600 tons of hydrogen.
The company estimates that, through manufacturing efficiency gains and hydrogen sales, it can reduce the cost of carbon removal credits to $100 per ton by 2030 — a price target set by the Biden administration that’s widely viewed as the industry’s holy grail.
“We are ready to spend the money, the effort and have the partnerships that are needed to build a $100 million plant,” said Edward Sanders, the chief operating officer of Equatic, in an interview with POLITICO’s E&E News. The company — founded by University of California, Los Angeles, sustainability professor Gaurav Sant — has already hired an engineering firm to begin the assessment, siting, permitting and community engagement efforts needed for the plant.
