Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week: ADNOC to trial tech that mineralises C02

UAE’s ADNOC is partnering with Fujairah Natural Resources Corporation (FNRC), Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company (Masdar) and 44.01 to trial technology that permanently mineralises carbon dioxide (CO2) within rock formations found in Fujairah.

The announcement was made at the ongoing Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW) 2023.

The project, due to commence  this month, will use 44.01’s Earthshot prize-winning carbon capture and mineralisation (CCM) technology to eliminate CO2 from the atmosphere, reported the state news agency WAM.

It will be the first CCM project by an energy company in the Middle East.

Sophie Hildebrand, CTO at ADNOC, said, “Across ADNOC, we are committed to finding new ways to decarbonise our operations, while meeting our responsibility to supply vital energy to the world. As the first energy company in the region to run a carbon-negative project of this kind, this pilot marks the latest step in our $15bn investment into projects that will reduce our carbon footprint and help us achieve our Net Zero by 2050 ambition.”

Read: ADNOC earmarks $15bn for low-carbon solutions and decarbonisation tech

Partners in the project

Fujairah has been selected for this pilot as it has an abundance of peridotite, a form of rock that naturally reacts with CO2 to mineralise it.

Muhammad Saif Al Afkham, chairman of the Board of Directors for Fujairah Natural Resources Corporation, said, “We are proud to support ADNOC and our other partners to catalyse this natural process with 44.01’s technology. Success here could pave the way to help us make a significant contribution towards the UAE Net Zero by 2050 Strategic Initiative.”

#ADNOC partners with 44.01 to turn CO2 into rock #WamNews https://t.co/EM4HVTBrf2 pic.twitter.com/OIDqqG1HIQ

— WAM English (@WAMNEWS_ENG) January 17, 2023

In this pilot project, CO2 will be captured from the air, dissolved in seawater, and then injected into peridotite formations deep underground, where it will mineralise – ensuring that it cannot escape back into the atmosphere, reported WAM.

Talal Hasan, founder and CEO of 44.01, stated, “Removing CO2 from the atmosphere is vital if we are to halt and ultimately reverse climate change. Unlike CO2 storage, mineralisation removes CO2 permanently by turning it into rock, minimising the need for long-term monitoring and insurance. This pilot will enable us to test our technology at scale, on our way to offering a safe, cost-effective, natural solution for eliminating captured CO2 internationally.”

The project will be powered by solar energy supplied by Masdar. A successful pilot would open the possibility of mineralising billions of tonnes of captured CO2 across the region.