Kenyan cleantech startup Octavia Carbon has successfully raised $5 million in seed funding to develop its Direct Air Capture (DAC) storage plant. This innovative technology aims to combat climate change by removing carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere, addressing one of the most pressing environmental challenges of our time.
Founded in 2022 by Martin Freimüller and Duncan Kariuki, Octavia Carbon specializes in designing, building, and operating machines that capture CO2 from the air. These machines draw in ambient air, filter out the carbon dioxide, and store it safely underground, preventing it from contributing to global warming. Excess CO2 in the atmosphere is a major driver of climate change, depleting the ozone layer and increasing harmful ultraviolet (UV) radiation, which can lead to skin cancer, cataracts, and damage to plants.
The startup’s unique approach involves liquefying captured CO2 and injecting it into the porous basalt formations of Kenya’s Rift Valley, where it mineralizes into solid rock over time. This process not only sequesters carbon but also contributes to a sustainable environmental strategy in the region.
Freimüller and Kariuki’s journey began humbly, with the construction of their first carbon capture machine on a kitchen table. With the new funding, they plan to launch the initial phase of Octavia’s DAC plant this year. The seed round was led by Lateral Frontier and E4E Africa, with additional support from Catalyst Fund, Launch Africa, Fondation Botnar, and Renew Capital.
“This funding enables us to become the world’s second DAC company to complete the full cycle of deploying CO2 capture and geological storage in the field,” said Freimüller, the Co-founder and CEO of Octavia. The company is among a select group of 18 direct air capture plants globally, including well-known players like Climeworks and Carbon Engineering, all striving to meet the United Nations’ global climate goals for carbon removal.
One of Octavia’s key advantages lies in its ability to harness Kenya’s abundant geothermal energy, particularly waste heat, to lower DAC costs significantly. Freimüller noted that the company uses geothermal energy to meet about 80% of its electricity needs, which positions Octavia as a leader in cost-effective carbon capture technology.
Revenue generation for Octavia primarily comes from selling carbon credits to corporations and individuals aiming to offset their carbon emissions. By purchasing these credits, companies can neutralize their carbon footprints. Octavia has already pre-sold 2,000 tons of carbon dioxide, potentially earning over $1 million from this initial sale.
Currently, the cost of extracting a ton of CO2 ranges from $680 to $820, but Octavia aims to reduce this expense to around $100. By enhancing efficiency, the company seeks to improve its profit margins while scaling its operations to capture 1,000 tons of CO2 annually.
“Scaling for us involves increasing our carbon removal efforts far beyond Project Hummingbird’s initial capacity of 1,000 tons of CO2 per year,” Freimüller explained. Looking to the future, Octavia Carbon also aspires to become an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) for DAC technology, enabling it to sell DAC machines to project developers worldwide.
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