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- €6M Seed Round: Funding led by LocalGlobe and XAnge to scale Direct Air Capture technology.
- Pilot Plant in Kenya: First pilot plant set to be operational by end of the year, with commercial scale by 2026.
- Community Benefits: Increased energy demand, reduced electricity costs, and sustainable development for local communities.
Sirona Technologies, co-founded by a former Tesla engineer, has raised a €6 million seed round to tackle the ambitious goal of removing CO2 from the air on a massive scale. The round was co-led by LocalGlobe and XAnge, with participation from Look Up Ventures, Satgana, VOYAGERS Climate-Tech Fund, Syndicate One, and Renaud Visage. This capital infusion will enable Sirona Technologies to scale up its Direct Air Capture (DAC) technology and deploy its first pilot plant in Kenya.
Reversing Climate Change with Direct Air Capture
Direct Air Capture has evolved from a fringe idea to a key component in climate mitigation strategies. The technology aims to remove 1 trillion tons of CO2 from the atmosphere, offsetting unavoidable and historical emissions. DAC uses machines that filter atmospheric air to remove CO2, which is then injected and permanently stored in geological formations, turning into rock over two years. DAC is considered the highest standard for CO2 removal due to its scalability, permanence, and verifiability.
“The amount of CO2 we need to remove from the atmosphere is so big, it’s hard to comprehend,” said Thoralf Gutierrez, CEO and co-founder of Sirona Technologies. “If we were to plant trees, we would have to cover an area the size of Asia. With Direct Air Capture, we need to run our machines on a 150km x 150km array of solar panels, which is about 10% of the clean energy that will be built by 2050. Both will play a role, but it’s clear that forests won’t be enough.”
Rapid Product Iteration for Cost Reduction and Scalability
Sirona Technologies, drawing on principles from Tesla, focuses on rapid product iterations to reduce costs and scale faster. In their first year, they built three generations of prototypes to capture 1 ton of CO2 per year. They are now developing the next generation capable of capturing 20 times that amount by July, continually improving performance, reducing costs, and increasing scale.
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Scaling Direct Air Capture in Kenya
In partnership with local stakeholders, Sirona Technologies will deploy their machines to build the first capture plant in Kenya. The pilot plant is set to be operational by the end of the year, with a full-scale commercial plant expected by early 2026, aiming to capture 1 million tons of CO2 annually by 2030. Kenya, already a leader in clean energy with a 93% renewable energy grid, will benefit from increased energy demand, reduced electricity costs, and sustainable development for local communities.
“Direct Air Capture is an indispensable tool in our fight against climate change,” stated Gauthier Limpens, co-founder and CTO of Sirona Technologies. “Our progress so far has been phenomenal, and with the new funding, we are poised to take our technology to the next level. The pilot plant in Kenya will be a crucial step towards our goal of capturing 1 million tons of CO2 annually by 2030. The overall potential here is massive, and we are very excited to get started now while being able to benefit local communities.”