1PointFive, the Direct Air Capture (DAC)-focused subsidiary of energy giant Occidental (Oxy), announced today an agreement today with telecommunications company AT&T for the purchase of carbon dioxide removal (CDR) credits from 1PointFIve’s Texas-based DAC facility, STRATOS.

DAC technology, listed by the IEA as a key carbon removal option in the transition to a net-zero energy system, extracts CO2 directly from the atmosphere for use as a raw material or permanently removed when combined with storage. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), scenarios that limit warming to 1.5°C include carbon dioxide removal methods scaling to billions of tons of removal annually over the coming decades, with DAC positioned to potentially account for a significant portion of the total.

1PointFive is currently constructing STRATOS in Ector County Texas, which it expects to be the largest DAC facility in the world to date, designed to capture 500,000 tonnes of CO2 per year when fully operational.

According to the companies, the new agreement forms part of AT&T’s commitment to reduce become carbon neutral in its global operations by 2035. AT&T announced the goal in 2020, outlining a series of initiatives the company will pursue to achieve its target, including accelerating energy efficiency, virtualizing network functions and entering into renewable energy power purchase agreements, as well as investing in carbon offsets to address emissions that cannot be eliminated.

Michael Avery, President and General Manager of 1PointFive, said:

“AT&T’s carbon removal credit purchase is another proof point of the vital role that Direct Air Capture can play in providing a high-integrity and durable solution to help organizations address their emissions.”

In addition to the new purchase agreement, 1PointFive also announced that it has joined the Connected Climate Initiative (CCI), AT&T’s collaborative project aimed at helping businesses reduce 1 billion metric tons of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2035 through broadband-enabled climate solutions.

Shannon Carroll, AVP of Global Environmental Sustainability at AT&T, said:

“As we work towards achieving our Gigaton goal, we know that we need to find ways that AT&T connectivity can enable game-changing solutions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions at scale. Together with 1PointFive, we’re committed to driving adoption of high-impact, innovative technologies like DAC to help address climate change.”