Climeworks has announced that it has begun the operations of your Orca direct air storage and CO2 plant, which is the largest of its kind in the world. The installation is designed to eliminate the carbon dioxide of the air permanently. The construction of the Orca began in May 2020 and uses advanced modular technology with stackable collector units.
The stacking footprint allows the installation to capture significant amounts of carbon dioxide from the air we breathe while maintaining a small physical footprint. The design of the plant allowed it to be operational in less than 15 months. In addition, climaters say that compared to previous technology generations, Orca has reduced the use of steel in collection units by approximately 50 percent per output unit.
Modular design and construction time causes Orca technology easy to replicate in locations around the world, where storage conditions and renewable energies are available. The first orca plant is located next to the geothermal power plant of Power Helliseiði, and runs completely in renewable energy. The installation is the first floor of its kind to bring the direct air capture on an industrial scale and the storage of carbon dioxide in the real world.
The latest technology used in the installation allows a greater carbon dioxide capture capacity for each module that leads to an optimized process to capture and store more carbon dioxide than ever. Carbon dioxide captured by Orca is stored underground using a process by an associated company called Carbfix.
The process takes approximately two years for the underground mineralization of CO2 captured with deep lower pumping with water. The process of natural mineralization trap the CO2 in stone. The installation expects to remove around 4000 tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere per year, storing it safely underground.