Puro.earth listed

Support scale with the Carbo Culture next-generation reactor

Quantity
18 000
CORC Price
225 €
Production Timeline
Q1 2025-Q4 2025

About the project

We are a climate technology company with a breakthrough, scalable carbon removal solution. We convert CO₂ from plants into stable carbon and lock it away permanently.

Basic Info

Biochar. Biochar technology combines natural and engineered approaches for carbon removal: Plants naturally capture atmospheric carbon through photosynthesis. We convert this carbon-containing biomass into an ultra-stable material called biochar using our Carbolysis technology.

Scale. There are billions of tonnes of sustainably harvested and waste biomass in the world. Much of this material can be converted into biochar. This is why the IPCC sets out a potential for biochar to permanently remove up to two gigatonnes of CO2 annually, or 20% of the carbon removal that is needed by 2100 (Source: https://www.ipcc.ch/sr15/chapter/chapter-3/).

New Technology. Biochar technology thus far is too small to effectively tap into these biomass sources. That is why Carbo Culture has developed its Carbolysis™technology to get to industrial and scalable biochar production fast.

Expertise. Carbo Culture has been building years of R&D experience with two operating reactors in California. Backed by a EUR 2.16mm grant from the European Innovation Council (EIC) as well as a grant from the German government, we have full sponsorship to resolve all outstanding R&D questions before we build our commercial project ‘Alpha’ in 2024/5.

Alpha Facility. Our first commercial facility is more than just ‘another biochar plant’. Alpha is a comprehensive new technology deployment that is a major stepping stone to get to industrial-scale carbon removal. The plant will feature Carbo Culture’s efficient Carbolysis™ process. The high-temperature process was custom-developed to maximize carbon removal capacity and to achieve high permanence in the biochar.

Heat for 4000 Households. The process of converting biomass to biochar also creates ‘syngas’. We turn the syngas into carbon-neutral heat for the local district heating network. ‘District heating’ means that heat is generated centrally and then distributed to households. This is common in Europe and allows us to scale.

A Template for Gigatonnes. With Alpha, Carbo Culture will prove its technology at scale and also feature a sophisticated business model by selling carbon credits, heat and biochar. After Alpha, we are looking to build the Nordic 10, a portfolio of 10+ facilities and we are already exploring our next locations.

Key Project Data

  • Type of project info
    New facility or site
  • Carbon removal methodology info
    Biochar
  • Durability of carbon removal in years (number) info
    1000
  • Co-benefits info

    Carbo Culture’s Alpha Facility will positively impact 10 of the 17 sustainable development goals (SDG’s):

    At Alpha, we will provide heat (SDG 7) to approx. 4000 households in the midst of the European energy crisis. Measurement: syngas produced and sold to district heating plant.

    Biochar-based carbon sequestration contributes directly to climate change mitigation (SDG13). Measurement: tonnes of biochar produced.

    Biochar applications in green and blue infrastructure improve access to clean water (SDG 6, 14), and sustainability of urban environments (SDG 11, 9) and improve agricultural productivity and soil health (SDG 15). Measurement: tonnes of biochar applied to applications.

    Selling carbon removal credits facilitate other businesses to reduce their carbon footprint (SDG 12). Measurement: carbon credits sold.

    As we scale through Europe, providing carbon negative heat will have significant co-benefits as it helps power plants to decarbonize while generating higher energy security in Europe. All of our facilities will create green jobs in rural frontline communities (SDG 8, 10). Measurement: jobs created.

  • Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) info
  • Production facility country info
    Europe
  • Site visits are possible info
    Yes
  • Certifications or assessments info

    Our Alpha carbon credits will be verified by the Puro Standard. The biochar will meet the highest standards of the European Biochar Certificate.

    Alpha is not our first facility - our Californian R&D facility has already been certified by the Puro standard. Hence, we feel confident that Alpha will reach and exceed the quality standards set out.

  • Project start date info
    01/01/2024
  • Expected certification and issuance date info
    01/01/2025
  • Annual carbon removal capacity in tCO2e (number) info
    30000
  • Additionality info

    We distinguish between two types of additionality: financial additionality and environmental additionality.

    1) Financial additionality

    A project is financially additional if the income from selling carbon credits is integral to its overall existence.

    This is the case with Alpha and with all of Carbo Culture’s projects: carbon credits is our primary product. Our biochar technology is uniquely positioned in the carbon removal market because it also generates revenues from the sale of high-quality biochar as well as the sale of heat. However, these revenue streams alone are not enough to support the project. Rather, we see the additional revenues as a key to scale: as our projects get larger in the future, heat and biochar can be used to lower the price per carbon credit.

    2) Environmental additionality

    In order to achieve environmental additionality the nature and range of activities that generate carbon credits must be particular to the implementation of that offsetting project, and not something that would have taken place anyway.

    This concept is important when it comes to other ‘nature based’ carbon credits: it is very hard to tell if a forest would have been deforested in the absence of a project.

    With biochar-based carbon removal, the question is much easier to answer: You can determine the amount of stable carbon in the biochar through chemical analysis. This would not have happened without the project, ensuring environmental additionality.

    A minor additionality question that is specific to the biochar space is related to the carbon-containing feedstock that is used to create the biochar. That is: ”is the feedstock used for other applications that may have had a different benefit than carbon removal, such as food or construction materials?” At Alpha we will use a certified sustainable industrial residue stream (sawmill dust) that is otherwise burned for energy. As we scale beyond Alpha, we will tap into other waste feedstocks. At our Californian R&D facilities, we are already experimenting with olive and peach pits as well as walnut shells; all abundant potential feedstocks for a global expansion.

About the supplier

Carbo Culture

Carbo Culture makes functional biocarbons and biographite from waste to keep CO2 out of the atmosphere.

We’re working with green and blue infrastructure and carbon-negative materials developers to start a new era of Carbon Culturing.
Our founders met in Singularity University’s Global Solutions Program. They believed that if climate change is not addressed, it will make worse other global challenges as well. Carbo Culture began in 2017. We’re proud alumni of StartX and currently part of the Autodesk SF Technology Center residency program.

We look forward to welcoming ambitious and dedicated people on board as partners to tackle climate change with us.

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