NextGen CDR signs landmark agreement with Alt Carbon to expand carbon removal efforts in Asia

NextGen CDR, a leading entity in the carbon dioxide removal industry, announced its groundbreaking agreement with Alt Carbon, a prominent carbon removal developer based in India, at the recent Futures Summit 2024. This agreement marks a significant expansion of Asia’s carbon removal market, allowing NextGen to purchase carbon dioxide removals (CDRs) from Alt Carbon, which is renowned for its innovative methods of enhanced rock weathering.

The event spotlighted the collaboration among joint venture partners South Pole and Mitsubishi Corporation, underlining the strategic importance of this offtake agreement. The collaboration aims to leverage the unique environmental conditions found in the Himalayan foothills, where Alt Carbon utilises basalt spread across tea plantations to enhance CO₂ absorption and storage in soil for thousands of years.

K. Kartick, Head of NextGen CDR, expressed enthusiasm for the partnership, stating, “Carbon dioxide removal technologies are set to play a vital role in the fight against climate change; it is the need of the hour to support innovative efforts with financial incentives. That’s why we are delighted to purchase from Alt Carbon to not only expand NextGen’s geographic footprint but also complete our portfolio technology mix." This purchase allows major corporations, including Boston Consulting Group and UBS, to access certified CDRs at an average price of $200 per tonne, representing a milestone in aligning carbon removal with corporate procurement targets.

The latest initiatives by Alt Carbon not only aim to combat climate change but also strive to support local farmers whose heritage industries are under threat. Shrey Agarwal, Co-founder and CEO of Alt Carbon, emphasized the mission of transforming family tea estates into leaders in climate action, stating, “Our aim is to transform our family’s heritage tea estates from being at-risk of climate change impact to become the frontier of climate action through the pathway of Enhanced Weathering.”

In a further commitment to innovation, Alt Carbon plans to establish a high-tech geochemical laboratory in Darjeeling, which is expected to hasten the quantification of CDR in a cost-effective manner while generating employment opportunities for local postgraduate science students. Dr. Sambuddha Misra, Associate Professor at the Centre for Earth Sciences at IISc, Bangalore, highlighted the potential local impact by stating, “This is an exciting time to be in Darjeeling!”

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warns that to mitigate the adverse effects of climate change, society needs to remove at least 10 billion tonnes of CO₂ from the atmosphere by 2050. Scaling enhanced rock weathering systems could potentially account for 4 billion tonnes of this target, which would fulfil 40% of the necessary annual removals.

NextGen’s agreement with Alt Carbon is noteworthy as it signifies the first purchase outside of the European and US markets, and sets a precedent for the affordability of CDRs, which have historically been beyond the reach of most buyers. The company aims to ensure that technological CDRs from projects capable of scaling and producing credits by 2025 become the industry standard, thus contributing to a rapid scale-up of market participation.

Source: Noah Wire Services