Climate tech company Climeworks sets sights on expansion in Asia

Climate tech company Climeworks, which currently operates two commercial direct air capture (DAC) plants in Iceland, with plans for another in the US, is now eyeing future opportunities in countries such as Malaysia, Indonesia and Japan.

- Leow Wen Xuan

"We are looking to expand globally, and Asia is part of that story," said Ms Trishna Nagrani, who is Climeworks' head of business development for the Asia-Pacific region.

DAC is a novel technology that removes carbon dioxide (CO2) directly from the atmosphere.

These systems use large fans to pull ambient air through filters that selectively capture CO2 before it is stored underground or converted into other products such as synthetic fuels.

But she said that future projects must meet three key criteria.

First, renewable energy must be available at a "competitive price point".

All of Climeworks' facilities are powered using renewables, said Ms Nagrani.

Iceland uses geothermal energy, but in different parts of the world, different sources of renewable energy are needed to power these facilities.