Saudi Aramco launched the Kingdom’s first direct air capture test unit capable of removing 12 tonnes of carbon dioxide annually, as the state-controlled oil giant explores technologies to curb emissions, the company said on Mar. 20.
Pilot Plant with Siemens Energy
Aramco said in a statement that the pilot plant, developed in collaboration with Siemens Energy, will serve as a testing platform for advanced CO2 capture materials suited to Saudi Arabia’s climate. The aim is to reduce costs and scale up deployment.
“Technologies that directly capture carbon dioxide from the air will likely play an important role in reducing gas emissions moving forward, particularly in hard-to-abate sectors,” said Ali A. Al-Meshari, Aramco’s senior vice president of technology oversight and coordination, in a statement.
Carbon Capture for Sustainable Fuels
The company said it plans to use the captured CO2 to produce more sustainable chemicals and fuels, aligning with its broader strategy to cut emissions.
Aramco has set a goal of achieving net-zero Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas emissions across its wholly owned and operated assets by 2050.
Scope 1 emissions are direct emissions from sources owned or controlled by an organization, such as fuel combustion in vehicles, boilers, furnaces or other equipment, while Scope 2 is indirect releases, such as electricity, steam, heating or cooling purchased from external providers.
Scaling Up Carbon Capture Technologies
The DAC launch comes after Aramco and its partners, Linde and SLB, announced a shareholders’ agreement to develop a carbon capture and storage hub in Jubail in December 2024.
The project’s first phase aims to capture nine million tonnes of CO2 annually from three Aramco gas plants and other industrial sources.
DAC technology, which extracts carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere, remains costly compared to conventional carbon capture methods.
Aramco and Siemens Energy will continue working together to scale up the technology, potentially paving the way for large-scale DAC facilities in the future, the company said.
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