DAC is a technology that extracts carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere, rather than from the flue gases of a chimney. Air passes through a material that captures CO₂ molecules, much like a sponge; the material is then regenerated through a specific process and the CO₂ is released in concentrated form. It can be permanently stored in deep geological formations or mineralised in construction materials. Alternatively, it can be reused in industrial processes or converted into synthetic fuels, for example for aviation. The first two pathways generate removal credits and therefore negative emissions, because there is no risk of the CO₂ being released back into the atmosphere. With reuse, however, the CO₂ is re-emitted, but it replaces CO₂ of fossil or biogenic origin, contributing to the decarbonisation of hard-to-abate sectors.

Removal does not replace emission reduction and does not slow its urgency: it complements it. Even in the most ambitious climate scenarios, limiting warming to 2 °C requires removing tens of gigatonnes (billions of tonnes) of CO₂ from the atmosphere by the end of the century. This is needed for two reasons: hard-to-abate sectors like aviation, cement, steel, and chemicals will continue to emit a residual amount for decades, and CO₂ already accumulated remains in the atmosphere for centuries if not actively removed.

Forests are indispensable: they must be protected and expanded, but they are not enough on their own. The carbon they store is exposed to fires, droughts, and pathogens, especially with rising average temperatures, and can return to the atmosphere within a few years. DAC offers measurable, verifiable, and stable removal over geological timescales, occupying a fraction of the surface area required by an equivalent forest.

Because our plants can leverage the ‘chimney effect’ to generate airflow through the filters. In this configuration, it’s as if our plants are reverse chimneys: where a chimney releases CO₂ into the atmosphere, our chimneys emit clean, CO₂-free air because our modules have extracted it beforehand.

Point-source capture intercepts CO₂ before it enters the atmosphere, typically from an industrial plant or power station, and is applied where emissions are concentrated at a single point. It reduces emissions but cannot act on those already released. DAC, instead, works on ambient air, where CO₂ is much less concentrated (about 0.04%, or 420 ppm, compared to much higher percentages in flue gases) and therefore requires a process that minimises electrical consumption to make it sustainable, scalable, and affordable. On the other hand, it also works where emissions are diffuse, is not constrained by location, and allows for net removals. The two technologies are not alternatives: a net-zero scenario requires both.

According to the IPCC, all scenarios that limit warming to +1.5 °C involve the removal of hundreds of billions of tonnes of CO₂ this century, through natural methods and technological methods such as DAC. The UNEP Limiting Overshoot report (September 2026) adds that this limit will be exceeded and that returning below it will require net-negative emissions: more CO₂ removed than we continue to emit. Today, total removal is about 2.2 billion tonnes per year (less than 6% of all CO₂ emitted in 2024), and is almost entirely based on forests and ecosystems, which are threatened by extreme events, while durable removal, such as that from DAC technologies, is a minimal fraction.

The gap between current DAC capacity (tens of thousands of tonnes per year) and what would be needed according to these scenarios is enormous, but it is not unprecedented: the order of magnitude of scale-up required by the sector is comparable to what solar photovoltaics achieved in fifteen years (The State of CDR, June 2026). The modularity of our plant was designed specifically to follow that learning curve.

DAC is generally an energy-intensive process. Our plants are designed to operate predominantly with low-temperature heat, generated on-site (solar thermal) or recovered as waste from an industrial process, minimising the electrical contribution. For the industrial partner, this means valorising waste and saving on cooling costs. Our electricity consumption is less than 300 kWh per tonne of CO₂ captured, with a technological roadmap aiming to drop below €100/t with industrial scale-up by 2035.

The process is designed to be measured at every stage: inlet airflow, CO₂ concentration differential, adsorbent material cycle efficiency, compression, and transfer to storage. Removal is counted as net, subtracting the emissions required to achieve it. Certification is underway and will follow the European CRCF framework, with verification by an independent third party.

The extracted CO₂ is purified and compressed. If intended for permanent removal, it is injected into deep geological formations, where it remains trapped by physical and chemical mechanisms over timescales of thousands of years. Storage sites are subject to seismic monitoring and tracking after injection, in accordance with European regulations on geological storage.

This is the most important distinction. When captured CO₂ is stored permanently, or incorporated into durable materials, it generates a certifiable removal. When it is instead reused in an industrial process or transformed into a short-lived product, it is referred to as utilisation (or CCU): this is an activity that replaces fossil or biogenic CO₂ to reduce climate impact to a minimum. It does not generate removal credits but contributes to industrial decarbonisation.

Our pilot plant, with a nominal capacity of 30 tonnes of CO₂ per year, has been in operation since Q4 2025 and has exceeded 1,000 operating hours. And the first industrial plant is on its way.

Sì. Il sistema è progettato per il retrofit industriale. Il design modulare su skid consente l’installazione in sito senza interventi invasivi sulla linea produttiva esistente, valorizzando il calore di scarto già disponibile. La configurazione si dimensiona sul profilo termico dello stabilimento e sulle disponibilità di superficie. Con una prima valutazione, senza impegno, definiamo insieme un dimensionamento e un’ipotesi di costo.

Avoidance means preventing new CO₂ from entering the atmosphere, as a CCS plant does. Removal means physically removing a quantity already present, i.e., performing DAC with permanent storage. Reference standards, starting with the European CRCF, recognise the latter as neutralisation of residual emissions, and this is the direction in which reporting obligations and transition plans required of companies are moving.

For three reasons. Net-zero standards require long-duration removals for residual emissions. The supply of permanent removal is still limited. And the proposed ETS revision of 17 July 2026 includes public procurement of certified permanent removals of up to 250 million tonnes between 2031 and 2040, which could increase competition for available capacity. Long-term supply agreements allow volumes to be secured before the market tightens.