US-based company group has entered into 11 carbon dioxide removal deals with eight companies, two biomass supply option agreements, the establishment of an esteemed Advisory Council, and the creation of four knowledge collaborationsto advance research and understanding in carbon dioxide removal technologies
More than 20 potential bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) sites under review in North America alone for potential BECCS facilities with additional projects under consideration in six more countries
New independent research reveals 74 percent of Americans are concerned about climate change, with only 37 percent believing the government is doing enough to support the development of carbon removal technologies
NEW YORK, Sept. 24, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Elimini, a new US-based business with an ambition to be a leader in carbon removals, has today been launched at Climate Week NYC. The company is dedicated to permanently removing carbon from the atmosphere while generating renewable, 24/7 power.
Elimini Logo
By advancing bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) in the United States and beyond, the new company will help meet soaring demand for both 24/7 renewable energy and high-integrity carbon removals. Nearly all realistic pathways to limit global warming to 1.5C and 2C require developing and deploying carbon removal technology at gigaton scale and tripling renewable energy capacity. Elimini will pair 24/7 renewable energy production with carbon capture technology through BECCS – the only technology that currently supports the delivery of both targets simultaneously.
The business has been launched as new research finds that 74 percent of Americans are concerned about climate change, with 56 percent believing the government should be doing more to support the development of carbon removal technologies – and for those already familiar with these technologies, that number jumps to 72 percent, suggesting that familiarity directly drives increased favorability.
Elimini's purpose is to remove carbon for good. To achieve this, it is convening engineers, environmentalists, communities, investors, and innovators to scale the market for carbon removals, with the aspiration of transforming our economies from carbon emitters to carbon removers. As an independently operated, wholly owned subsidiary within Drax Group, Elimini will also sell carbon removals generated at Drax Power Station, which conducted the first BECCS pilot of its kind in Europe and with the right government support will convert that facility to BECCS.
"Carbon removals are desperately needed to reverse the legacy emissions warming our planet – and that industry represents more than a $1 trillion opportunity once it reaches gigaton scale," saidElimini Executive Chair and Drax Group CEO Will Gardiner. "Elimini will have the focus and agility needed to become a leader in the maturing carbon market, rapidly advancing high-quality carbon removals and renewable energy production at global scale."
Today, Elimini announced the following:
Investment from first-mover climate leaders including:
An advisory council formed of experts from across the carbon removals value chain: Established to help Elimini shape the company's strategy and hold it true to its purpose and values. Comprised of experts with diverse backgrounds who share our commitment to removing carbon for good – including:
David Hill, Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of the New York Independent System Operator and Senior Research Scholar at Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy. Previously, he was Executive Vice President & General Counsel of NRG Energy and served as the US Department of Energy General Counsel.
Miranda Ballentine, former Assistant Secretary of the Air Force (Installations, Environment, and Energy) and Founding CEO of the Clean Energy Buyers Association; currently serving as Senior Advisor at Green Strategies, and as a Board Member and Independent Practitioner to clean energy organizations.
Melissa Lott, Professor, Climate School, Columbia University.
Freddie Davis, Director of the Rural Training and Research Center at the Federation of Southern Cooperatives.
Rajiv S. Joshi, Founder of Bridging Ventures and former Executive Director of the Global Call to Action Against Poverty (GCAP), the world's largest civil society alliance, launched by Nelson Mandela, working to end poverty and inequality.
Knowledge collaborations: Elimini is partnering with innovative institutions to push the boundaries of carbon capture technology, including:
University of Texas: Supporting research on carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS).
University of Houston: Supporting the Center for Carbon Management with its goal of researching and developing projects that will advance all aspects of carbon management as it applies to the energy industry.
Mission Innovation: Sponsorship of the SMART CDR Competition, a first-of-its-kind global competition for university and college students from around the world.
Elimini will launch a new program for local, family-owned, or underserved landowners to receive assistance with managing their forests and providing feedstocks for BECCS facilities that will meet Elimini's high sustainability standards.
The selection of its Owner's Engineer to support the development of its first BECCS facility in the US:
Elimini has selected engineering firm Sargent & Lundy as the owner's engineer to support with the development of a BECCS project in the United States. Full scale development is underway at our most advanced site for our first greenfield BECCS project. Once fully operational, the 300-megawatt generation project will produce two terawatt hours of renewable energy while capturing 3Mt of CO2 annually – the equivalent of the average annual emissions of 100 commercial airliners.
"Elimini is entering the market at a critical time for our planet and the global economy, when unprecedented demand for power threatens to extend the world's dependence on coal and other fossil fuels," said Elimini President Laurie Fitzmaurice. "By advancing BECCS and other carbon removal technologies in the United States and beyond, we will provide organizations and governments with realistic alternatives to power their communities and businesses while staying on track to achieve their climate commitments."
David Hill, Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of the New York Independent System Operator and Senior Research Scholar at Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy said, "Elimini's stated purpose is to remove carbon for good. As a member of the Advisory Council, I look forward to working with the company as it seeks to address some very interesting and exciting opportunities."
"Solving climate change will require many technologies, including a critical set of net-zero and net-negative power plants that are needed to supply the global economy with reliable, affordable, and clean electricity," said Dr. Melissa Lott, Professor, Climate School, Columbia University. "It is exciting to see Elimini step fully into this space at this critical time in global efforts to deploy technologies at the speed and scale that is needed to reduce emissions and protect the health of our communities."
Walid Rechache, Co-Founder and CEO at Holborn Trading said, "We are excited and proud to support Elimini on their carbon removal initiative. Holborn Trading is invested because we believe in securing a sustainable future. By supporting innovative solutions like decarbonization technologies and projects including carbon dioxide removal, we're not just offsetting emissions – we're actively restoring the balance of our planet's atmosphere, ensuring a healthier environment for generations to come."
Notes to editors with background information on the company and its leadership, founding company and decarbonization partner Drax, and the carbon removals industry.
An annex with details on the CDR deals, partnerships, and proprietary data announced as part of the launch.
About Elimini: Elimini exists to remove carbon for good. The company has an ambition to be the world's leading carbon removal company and to transform the carbon removals market through the deployment bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) technology at scale. By working with partners across its value chain, Elimini aims to permanently remove carbon from the atmosphere at megaton scale while generating 24/7 renewable, reliable power. For more information, visit www.elimini.com.
About Drax: Drax Group's (Drax) purpose is to enable a zero carbon, lower cost energy future and in 2019 announced a world-leading ambition to be carbon negative by 2030 using bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) technology.
Drax's c.3,500 employees operate across three principal areas of activity – electricity generation, electricity sales to business customers and compressed wood pellet production and supply to third parties. For more information visit www.drax.com.
Cautionary Statement: This communication contains both historical and forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical fact are, or may be deemed to be, forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements may include expectations related to targets, goals or objectives such as financed emissions targets, representation objectives and the achievement thereof, may be deemed "forward-looking statements". These statements are not historical facts or statements of current conditions, but instead are based on management's current expectations and are subject to uncertainty and changes in circumstances. These statements are not guarantees of future results or occurrences and involve certain known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict and are often beyond our control. In addition, this communication contains statements based on hypothetical scenarios and assumptions, which may not occur or differ significantly from actual events, and these statements should not necessarily be viewed as being representative of current or actual risk or forecasts of expected risk. Actual results and financial conditions may differ materially from those included in these statements due to a variety of factors, including, among others, global socio-demographic and economic trends; energy prices; technological innovations; climate-related conditions and weather events; counterparty and client behavior and financial health; insurance applicability, legislative and regulatory changes; our ability to retain and attract qualified employees in a competitive environment for talent; and other unforeseen events or conditions, and the precautionary statements included in this document. Certain forward-looking statements referenced in this communication are also based on assumptions, standards, metrics, methodologies and frameworks for measurement, reporting and analysis of climate change that continue to evolve, vary across jurisdictions and regulatory bodies and are the subject of proposed regulatory changes in multiple jurisdictions, which may have a material impact on our future measurement and reporting, as well as the results of the efforts set forth in this communication. There is no assurance that goals or targets stated in this document (including interim targets) will be achieved or result in positive measurable outcomes. Information contained in this document, including commitments, goals, targets and objectives, and their related frameworks, methodologies or approaches, are subject to change without notice.
