Coca-Cola backs Airhive’s direct air capture tech in 1000-tonne pilot

Airhive has announced the close of its first investment round, which will support the delivery of one of the largest direct air capture (DAC) pilots in the world. 

Founded in 2022 in the UK, Airhive is developing a low-cost, energy-efficient and rapidly scalable technology to capture carbon from the atmosphere.

 The pre-seed investment was co-led by AP Ventures and Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP), the world's largest bottler of Coca-Cola, with participation from US-based Collaborative Fund and angel investors. 

Airhive's patent-pending process utilises "fluidised bed" technology to capture carbon from the air. 

Fluidised beds are commonly used in industry for applications such as mineral processing, and drying foods and medication, and Airhive optimises this proven, low-cost industrial technology to capture carbon dioxide from the air rapidly, capturing over 99 per cent of carbon dioxide from air that passes through the central vessel in less than 0.1 seconds. 

By optimising existing technology, Airhive slashes the costs traditionally associated with developing and deploying DAC, reducing a critical barrier to scaling. The captured carbon can be stored permanently or used for decarbonisation of industrial processes. 

The funding from the pre-seed round will support Airhive's technology development and the delivery of its second commercial pilot, which will be deployed this year.

Through this project, CCEP will pilot using Airhive's 1,000 tonne DAC system on one of its sites, capturing atmospheric carbon dioxide to replace fossil fuel-derived carbon dioxide in its carbonated drinks. This move aligns with CCEP's aim to reduce absolute emissions across its value chain by 30 per cent by 2030 and to achieve net-zero emissions by 2040.  

Each of Airhive's 2024 commercial pilots will have the capacity to capture 1,000 tonnes of atmospheric carbon dioxide annually. 

According to Rory Brown, co-founder and CEO of Airhive:

 "With this new funding and these partnerships, we are one step closer to realising our ambitions of helping businesses deliver on their net zero commitment more affordably, whether through high-integrity carbon credits or sourcing low-cost air-captured CO2 to decarbonise their production."

Andrew Hinkly, Managing Partner at AP Ventures, shared: 

"We eagerly anticipate collaborating with the Airhive team, alongside our fellow investors, as the company swiftly expands and advances its technology and product offerings."

Matthijs Kostelijk, Director at Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, said:

 "Carbonation transforms ordinary liquids into the exciting drinks we sell worldwide. The science behind those bubbles is important for creating our drinks and could also offer an interesting new avenue to boost decarbonisation.

We're always looking for new and exciting technologies that could fast-track our progress—I'm excited to see where this project takes us."   

In February, Airhive commenced testing its first pilot system at Teesside University's Net Zero Industry Innovation Centre through a collaboration supported by Innovate UK. This pilot, which has a 60-tonne annual capture capacity, will be fully operational in June 2024. 

Lead image: Airhive. Photo: uncredited.