Cover Story An oil company in reverse: Canada’s first DAC hub Montreal-based carbon project developer wants to pull carbon out of the air and put it back in the ground By Sarah Sobanski, editor Deep Sky Labs will test up to 14 different DAC technologies and look to capture 3,000 tonnes of CO2 per year. | Photo: Deep Sky D eep Sky, a Montreal-based car-bon removal project developer, is launching a $50-million carbon re-moval innovation and commercialization centre in Western Canada. Deep Sky Labs, planned for Innisfail, Alta., represents an industry first for the private development of scalable carbon dioxide removal (CDR) and the first com -mercial direct air capture (DAC) project in Canada. “Imagine the atmosphere is a bathtub overflowing with water. CO2 (carbon di -oxide emissions) is the water,” said Phil De Luna, chief carbon scientist and head of engineering with Deep Sky. “When your bathtub overflows you can do two things, you can turn off the tap… or you can pull the plug. “Emissions reductions, point-source carbon capture… biofuels, clean energy, electrification; all of it is turning off the tap. It’s reducing the flow of water into the bathtub. “But your bathtub’s already overflow -ing. You have to drain it at the same time.” Deep Sky’s goal is to accelerate the path to low-cost, low-energy intensity and highly scalable CDR to produce high integrity carbon credits — which other companies can use to offset emissions and meet their decarbonization commitments. Its estimated $50-million centre, on a 50-acre site, will look to get up and run-ning this winter and can test up to 14 dif-ferent DAC technologies. It’s expected to have the capacity to capture 3,000 tonnes of CO2 per year and operate for two de-cades. FALL 2024 10 Canadian BIOMASS
Canadian Biomass Fall 2024: Page 10
