How did John identify and approach the research problem?  

Direct carbon removal is a necessary and urgent requirement for society to combat global warming. In 2022 the IPCC wrote: “The deployment of carbon dioxide removals to counterbalance hard-to-abate emissions is unavoidable if net zero…emissions are to be achieved”. The UK in particular is a key partner in the development of direct carbon capture as it has 1/3 of the storage capacity of Europe in the North Sea and has a supportive regulatory environment. How should Climeworks, a key start up in the direct carbon capture (DAC) landscape, approach the UK market? 

Project Scope and Aim:

The scope of the project was to undertake a comprehensive literature review of the UK governmental approach to DAC, including parliamentary hearings, consultations and concurrent conferences and associated events, to build a picture of the stakeholder landscape for DAC in the UK. 

The project scope included an analysis of the key stakeholders and policy levers in the developing DAC ecosystem in the UK to indicate at what stage the UK market was for engineered GGR deployment.

What findings did the research at Climeworks yield?  

John analysed the UK’s policy landscape and market readiness for direct air capture (DAC). DAC removes CO2 directly from the air so that it can be stored deep underground, where it mineralizes through a natural process and transforms into rock.  He undertook a comprehensive literature review of the UK governmental approach to DAC, including parliamentary hearings, consultations and concurrent conferences and associated events, to build a picture of the stakeholder landscape for DAC in the UK. 

Key Recommendations:

The recommendation is that the UK is at the early stage of developing DAC with an opportunity to influence and guide the development of the industry to play an important role in the UK meeting its agreed de-carbonisation goals by 2030 & 2050. Climeworks can approach this in a number of exciting ways spanning government, academia, civil society and convening expert groups. 

What was the impact of the research outputs for Climeworks? 

John’s stakeholder and policy landscape mapping is now being directly referenced and used in high profile meetings between Climeworks and the UK government as well as other influential players in the direct air capture space.

Notable Outputs and Impact: 

A stakeholder and policy landscape map is now being directly referenced and used by key stakeholders in the direct air capture space, both government and businesses.

Sustainable Development Goals Targeted:

SDG9: Industry, Innovation & Infrastructure

SDG13: Climate Action