The United Airlines Ventures (UAV) Sustainable Flight Fund has made an equity investment in the direct air capture (DAC) solution developed by carbon dioxide removal (CDR) company Heirloom.
The aviation company has also entered an agreement with Heirloom in which it secures itself the right to purchase up to 500,000 tons of CDR, which will go towards the production of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) or will be permanently stored underground.
This is the first DAC investment of the UAV Sustainable Flight Fund—a pioneering investment mechanism that backs developers of aviation decarbonization solutions by leveraging support from cross-industry businesses.
For Heirloom, this investment follows a recent Series B funding round, which the company successfully closed at $150 million.
Heirloom has gained market traction with its DAC technology that removes atmospheric carbon dioxide with the help of limestone, accelerating the natural process of carbon mineralization to permanently store the captured CO2 underground.
This low-cost CDR approach has the potential for scaling to climate-relevant capacities, positioning it as a meaningful tool in reaching net-zero efforts.
As an aviation company, United is pursuing the goal of reaching net-zero emissions by 2050.
This partnership with Heirloom is expected to not only result in impactful CDR, but to also contribute to the decarbonization of the airline industry, a notably hard-to-abate sector, by enabling the production of SAF which would result in lowered jet fuel consumption.
Relevant: New Study Looks Into The Role Of DAC Technology In Sustainable Aviation
In the long run, as the SAF production sector develops, this collaboration will address the increasing demand for DAC while simultaneously tackling the critical issue of residual atmospheric carbon emissions.
Heirloom CEO Shashank Samala commented, “By utilizing DAC as a dual-pronged tool that can both greatly reduce CO2 emissions from aviation fuel and remove residual emissions, we are charting a true path to Net Zero aviation.”
Andrew Chang, head of United Airlines Ventures, explained that the technology developed by Heirloom aligns directly with their objective of investing in profitable solutions, offering a scalable and commercially viable approach that complements United’s commitment to net-zero by 2050.
Read more: Drax And Pathway Energy Announce First In Series Of New US SAF Plants
