The fight against climate change has entered a new phase: removing carbon, not just reducing it.
At the foot of Iceland’s volcanoes, Climeworks has built Orca — the world’s first commercial direct air capture (DAC) plant. Using renewable geothermal power, it captures carbon dioxide directly from ambient air and stores it permanently underground in mineral form.

Here’s how it works: fans draw in air through special filters that selectively bind CO₂ molecules. Once the filters are saturated, heat from geothermal energy releases the captured CO₂, which is then mixed with water and injected into basalt rock formations. Within two years, the gas reacts with the minerals and crystallizes into solid carbonate — effectively turning emissions into stone.

Each Orca unit captures up to 4,000 tons of CO₂ annually, with larger systems like “Mammoth” expected to reach ten times that capacity. Unlike traditional carbon offsetting, this process is measurable, verifiable, and permanent. The company issues certified carbon removal credits to organizations committed to achieving true net zero.

Beyond technology, Climeworks represents a shift in mindset. Rather than treating carbon as waste, it treats it as a resource to be managed. The scalability of modular DAC units means installations can be placed near renewable energy sources around the globe — from deserts to hydro-rich regions — wherever clean power is available.

While still expensive today, costs are expected to fall sharply as production scales. Governments, including the U.S. and EU, are now funding DAC hubs as part of their climate strategies. Climeworks stands as a pioneer, proving that carbon removal can be industrialized responsibly and transparently.

By turning invisible pollution into solid rock, Iceland is showing the world what “negative emissions” really means — not an abstract promise, but a physical, permanent solution buried beneath our feet.