(Image source: HJBC/Shutterstock)
To further reduce its environmental impact, Microsoft has partnered with the aptly named CarbonCapture has contracted to bury its CO2 emissions in the ground. The tech giant has been making various gestures to go green in recent years, especially regarding the data centers used to power its cloud computing and CDN platform, Azure. It was also one of the first companies to back projects aimed at removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. While CarbonCapture is headquartered in Los Angeles, it is building a new direct air capture (DAC) facility in Wyoming called Project Bison, which is scheduled to begin operations in late 2024. The company’s modular technology will emit carbon dioxide from the air and store it in containers, which themselves will be stored underground.
Prevention and Catch
By 2030, Microsoft wants to be carbon negative, which means It would end up removing more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere than it actually produced. By 2050, it hopes to eliminate the same amount of carbon dioxide it has produced since its inception. Technologies to capture such large amounts of carbon don’t exist right now, but Microsoft seems to believe they will eventually, and this new deal with CarbonCapture is putting them in the right path . Phillip Goodman, Product Portfolio Director for Carbon Removal at Microsoft, said:
” This agreement with CarbonCapture will help us achieve our carbon negative goals while also helping to promote direct air growth captures the entire industry.”
Despite Microsoft’s ongoing efforts to prevent the amount of CO2 it releases (opens in a new tab) First, its emissions start to rise in 2021
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For the first time in years, produced 14 million tons, which is the annual electricity consumption generated by more than 2.7 million households. By itself, CarbonCapture can only capture 10,000 metric tons of CO2 per year based on its projections for Project Bison. However, it hopes to increase this number to 5 million by 2030, which is a big deal considering all 18 DAC plants currently operating globally can only capture 100,000 metric tons in total
(opens in a new tab) Now. Nonetheless, CarbonCapture CEO and CTO Adrian Corless is excited about the deal with Microsoft, as it is the startup’s biggest deal to date – even Bigger than all other contracts combined – told The Verge
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This is “an important…to verify our Steps in business.”
There are few details on how much of Microsoft’s CO2 emissions will actually be captured by CarbonCapture and how much the transaction is worth. Microsoft also purchased carbon credits for an undisclosed amount from another company, Switzerland-based Climeworks. What we do know is that Climeworks is buying $600 per ton of captured CO2.
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Lewis Maddison is a graduate junior writer at TechRadar Pro. His coverage ranges from online safety to technology usage habits in personal and professional settings.
His main area of interest lies in technology as it relates to the social and cultural issues surrounding the world, and revels in uncovering the light of day that might not otherwise be seen s story.
He holds a BA in Philosophy from the University of London and spent a year studying in the UK in the sunny climate of Malta.
