The Orca plant operated by Climeworks, which is located near to the Icelandic capital Reykjavik, has been awarded a rating of AAA by the London-based carbon rating agency BeZero Carbon. As a result, the Zurich-based organization has received another important confirmation that its efforts to scale its carbon capture technology as quickly as possible is not coming at the expense of quality, according to a press release.
The AAA rating is not only the highest one in the industry, but also the first time ever that a project has received a rating this high. Climeworks, a spin-off from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, previously discussed the major importance of such independent verifications as an enabler of its technology as part of a webinar in 2023 entitled “Why third-party verification matters”.
Orca went into operation almost exactly four years ago on September 8, 2021. The plant consists of eight collection containers, which each offer an annual separation capacity of 500 tons. The containers are arranged around a central process hall, where all the electrical equipment as well as the processing unit are housed. This means that the plant can be operated and controlled on a remote basis. The heat and electricity required for plant operations are supplied by the Hellisheidi geothermal power plant.
Climeworks shares this recognition from BeZero Carbon with its Icelandic storage partner Carbfix, whose innovative solutions have made it possible to securely and permanently store the captured CO2 underground. Moreover, the company reserves special praise also for the Helsinki-based Puro.earth, “our certifier, whose rigorous standards and validation have been integral to this success”.
Related news
Meet with an expansion expert
Our services are free of charge and include:
- Introduction to key contacts in industry, academia, and government
- Advice on regulatory framework, taxes, labor, market, and setting up a company
- Custom-made fact-finding visits, including office and co-working space