Author | Lightnews

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 14h

That's day 25/31 of Climtober. Breaking down climate topics daily so you know more than the gatekeepers keeping you out.

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 14h

When capital funds the infrastructure our future needs, climate pledges turn into actual CO₂ pulled from the sky.

So here's my question to you: Should companies get carbon credits for signing offtake agreements, or only after the CO₂ is actually removed and verified?

1

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 14h

Together, these startups are proving that offtake agreements work at scale - clearing regulatory paths, proving the economics, and building the verification systems that let buyers commit with confidence.

1

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 14h

4) Performance assurance. Buyers need proof carbon stays removed, not just captured.

CREW Carbon's $32M Frontier agreement includes continuous monitoring systems that verify every ton of removal, building buyer trust.

1

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 14h

3) Market uncertainty. Can't build 10-year projects when prices might crash in year three.

Eion locked in a $33M Frontier deal with guaranteed prices and demand, eliminating market risk for their enhanced rock weathering projects.

1

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 14h

2) Capital intensity. Facilities cost ~$50M+ before removing a single ton.

CO280 secured a $48M Frontier offtake that provided the capital needed to retrofit pulp and paper mills.

1

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 14h

1) Regulatory complexity delays projects and drives up costs across jurisdictions.

Carbon Clean Solutions partnered with the UK government early to navigate regulatory approvals, proving their technology worked before seeking large-scale offtakes.

1

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 14h

But CDR startups trying to build at scale face real problems:

1

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 14h

→ Startup builds facility and starts removing CO₂ from the atmosphere

→ Independent verifiers confirm removal and 100+ year permanence

→ Credits get issued, buyer receives them, startup gets paid

One agreement can remove 70,000 tons of CO₂ annually. Equivalent to taking 15,000 cars off the road

1

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 14h

Here's how it works:

→ Buyer commits to purchasing carbon removal credits (say, 10,000 tons annually for 7 years)

→ Startup takes that contract to banks and investors, unlocking 3 to 5 times more capital

1

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 14h

Technologies sit in labs. Billions stay unspent. Gigatons of CO₂ stay in the atmosphere.

Imagine if a company could say: "Build your facility. We'll buy everything you produce for the next 7 years. Here's the contract."

That's an offtake agreement.

1

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 14h

Banks say: "Show us revenue"

Customers say: "Show us scale"

Investors say: "Too risky without both"

Companies are pledging billions for carbon removal but startups can't access any of it.

1

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 14h

A carbon removal startup spends five years perfecting technology that can pull CO₂ from the air.

They build a pilot plant. The science works. The process is proven. Independent labs verify it.

Then they try to scale.

1

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 14h

Companies have billions of dollars specifically set aside to fight climate change.

But the people who can actually do it can't get a penny…

(thread)

1

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 1d

So here's my question to you: Would you rather a cement plant capture 90% of its emissions for 20 more years, or shut it down today?

That's day 24/31 of Climtober, breaking down climate topics daily so you know more than most industry insiders.

1

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 1d

Together, these companies are actually making industrial decarbonization possible.

CCS isn't perfect though. Most industries still misuse it as an excuse to keep polluting instead of actually cutting emissions.

Yet for cement and steel, it's one of the few tools that works at scale today.

1

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 1d

3) Regulation. Getting permits for injection sites is slow and uncertain, scaring off investment.

Net Power builds natural gas power plants with built-in zero-emissions capture, working with regulators to streamline permits.

1

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 1d

2) Shared infrastructure. We lack enough CO₂ pipelines and storage hubs. Every project builds from scratch, killing economics

Oxy Low Carbon Venture builds shared CCS infrastructure in the Permian Basin, building shared pipelines so multiple emitters use common storage instead of building their own

1

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 1d

1) A way to afford it. CCS is expensive and most factories can't afford it alone.

Carbon America offers integrated CCS and handles financing, engineering, and site development so facilities don't figure it out alone.

1

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 1d

→ Inject 1 to 3 km underground into saline aquifers or depleted oil fields

→ Monitor continuously to ensure it stays contained

Doing this at scale could solve industrial emissions we have no other answer for, but facilities need three things to make it happen:

1

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 1d

→ Capture CO₂ from smokestacks using chemical solvents or membranes (90% capture rates)

→ Compress it into a supercritical fluid for transport

→ Transport via pipeline or ship to storage sites

1

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 1d

So here's the uncomfortable truth: if we want to hit net zero while civilization keeps running, we need to capture the carbon these industries produce and bury it underground.

That's Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS).

Here’s how it works:

1

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 1d

The chemistry requires carbon.

The heat requires fossil fuels.

Even if we perfect green hydrogen tomorrow, retrofitting every factory on Earth would take decades.

1

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 1d

Chemical manufacturing, refineries, natural gas plants: all massive point sources of carbon.

And unlike cars or buildings, you can't just swap in a battery and call it clean.

1

Akhila Kosaraju @akhilak.bsky.social · 1d

You can't make steel without heat. You can't make cement without chemistry. You can't do either without releasing massive amounts of CO₂.

Cement alone accounts for 8% of global emissions. Steel adds another 7%.

1