UAE to turn 300 tonnes of CO2 into rock after success of pilot project

In Fujairah, 10 tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) were permanently mineralised with peridotite rock formations in under 100 days in a pilot project in 2023. With a scale-up announced, the carbon-to-rock project will inject more than 300 tonnes of CO2 over a longer duration to demonstrate the potential of the technology in the UAE.

Fujairah was selected for the Earthshot prize-winning pilot initiative by 44.01 and ADNOC, which commenced in 2023, due to its abundance of peridotite, a form of rock that naturally reacts with CO2 to mineralise it.

Stay up to date with the latest news. Follow KT on WhatsApp Channels.

At scale, peridotite mineralisation could eliminate billions of tons of carbon emissions, helping decarbonise vital industries and remove CO2 from the atmosphere.

During the initial pilot, operations were powered by renewable energy provided by Masdar. The CO2 was captured directly from the atmosphere, dissolved in seawater and injected into peridotite formations deep underground, where it mineralised – ensuring the CO2 can never escape back into the atmosphere. The first phase of the scale-up will build on this process.

The first phase of scale-up will inject more than 300 tonnes of CO2 over a longer duration to demonstrate the potential of the technology to be deployed at scale in the UAE.

Ali Qasem, Director-General of the Fujairah Natural Resources Corporation, commented on the project, saying, "The presence of peridotite formations in Fujairah offers unique potential to implement projects like this on a large scale, helping us reduce our carbon footprint and support environmental strategies."

44.01, supported by ADNOC and FNRC, is scaling up operations in Fujairah as they compete for the Carbon Removal XPRIZE. The project was named one of the XPRIZE's Top 20 projects earlier in 2024.

Talal Hasan, CEO of 44.01, said, "Our pilot project with ADNOC demonstrated the viability of carbon mineralisation in the UAE. We are pleased to be collaborating on scaling up operations and continuing to refine our technology on the way to demonstrating commerciality."

As part of ADNOC's carbon management strategy, the company is targeting a carbon capture capacity of 10 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) by 2030, equivalent to taking over 2 million internal combustion vehicles off the road. The company has embarked on major carbon capture projects, taking its committed investment for carbon capture capacity to almost 4 mtpa.