$65 million in grants awarded through Carbon Capture Technologies Program

The federal government has awarded $65 million in grants to seven organisations through the Carbon Capture Technologies Program (CCTP), including building materials startup MCi Carbon, solvent technology business KC8 Capture Technologies and battery material company Novalith.   

According to a statement from the department of climate change on Tuesday, the funded projects “will cut emissions from critical industries, directly remove climate-changing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, and use carbon dioxide in new manufactured products.”

The program aims to support R&D of new ways to capture and use carbon dioxide, “especially in hard to abate sectors such as cement manufacturing.”

Projects supported will see captured greenhouse gases stored in the ground or incorporated in new products including building materials, fuel, and materials used in batteries.

MCi Carbon, for example, received funding to further its work creating construction products from carbon dioxide captured during cement production.

Lithium business Novalith was awarded $9.9 million “to demonstrate the production of battery-grade lithium carbonate from carbon dioxide captured directly from the atmosphere.”

And industrial technology company Calix was awarded $15 million for a project creating methanol out of carbon dioxide released during cement production.

KC8’s funding followed a recent capital raise of $10 million, announced earlier this month and featuring Woodside Energy and Cemex Ventures as investors. Their $5.4 million grant will support demonstrating “the production of potassium carbonate from carbon dioxide released during cement production.”

A full list of funded projects can be read here.

Picture: credit KC8 Capture Technologies

Further reading

KC8 raises cash, deploys tech in cement sector

New Japanese investment in MCi Carbon

Calix technology to be used for direct CO2 capture