Boeing has signed a contract with startup Charm Industrial to remove 100,000 tons of carbon from the atmosphere.
Charm collects agricultural and forestry waste and uses heat to turn it into a product it calls “bio-oil.” This is a jumble of hydrocarbons that is injected underground, including former oil wells. Once sequestered, Charm will be able to sell carbon removal credits to businesses. Axios first reported on the startup’s deal with Boeing.
The aviation industry has made little progress in reducing carbon emissions. Companies in this sector are therefore looking for alternatives. Carbon removal has emerged as a candidate because it can be less costly than transitioning to sustainable aviation fuels.
One study found that by 2050, the airline industry will need to spend at least $60 billion on carbon offsets to reach net-zero emissions.
Charm could also produce biochar, a substance that helps increase soil productivity when applied to farmland, according to data from the Carbon Removal Registry Isometric, but the effort is still in its early stages.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Two years ago, Charm sold 112,000 carbon removal credits to Frontier, a developed market commitment, for $53 million, or about $470 per tonne. Charm says it hopes to bring costs down to about $50 per ton.
