44.01 gains notable endorsement from Google

Carbon mineralisation company 44.01, recently featured in  Zero Carbon Academy's recent Cleantech Top 50 has secured a significant commercial endorsement from buyers including Google, and Stripe.

44.01 has signed a $11.7 million carbon removal agreement through Frontier, with notable buyers including Google, Stripe, Shopify, and H&M Group. The deal covers the permanent removal of 20,932 tonnes of CO₂ between 2028 and 2031, and marks Frontier’s first purchase of carbon removal using in-situ mineralisation. The agreement represents a significant vote of confidence in 44.01's technology and its potential to provide permanent CO₂ storage at scale[i].

Founded in Oman in 2020, 44.01 has developed a technology that accelerates a naturally occurring geological process. Rather than storing captured carbon dioxide as a compressed gas, the company dissolves CO₂ in water before injecting it into magnesium-rich peridotite rock formations. Over time, the CO₂ reacts with the rock and is converted into stable carbonate minerals, effectively turning carbon into stone.

The process typically takes between 1-3 years and offers a potentially attractive alternative to conventional storage. By permanently mineralising the carbon, the approach reduces concerns around long-term leakage and could help unlock carbon storage opportunities in locations where traditional storage infrastructure is unavailable or uneconomic.

“This agreement marks an important step for 44.01: moving our technology from demonstration to commercial deployment,” Talal Hasan, CEO of 44.01, commented. “Frontier and its buyers are backing a fundamentally different approach to permanent carbon removal, turning captured CO₂ into rock. Our focus is now on delivering at commercial scale, continuously improving performance and driving down costs, so that more customers can benefit from this technology.”

The agreement will help 44.01 transition from pilot projects to continuous commercial-scale operations, generating valuable data on injection rates, mineralisation performance, water requirements and costs. The resulting operational data will help determine whether carbon mineralisation can scale commercially.

While relatively modest in scale, the agreement signals growing confidence in mineralisation as a long-term carbon storage pathway. However, while much of the attention surrounding carbon removal has focused on capture technologies, storage remains a critical bottleneck. A growing pipeline of captured carbon will require equally scalable storage solutions, creating demand for technologies that can permanently lock away CO₂ with a high degree of certainty.

According to Frontier, reactive rock formations suitable for mineralisation could support more than five billion tonnes of annual CO₂ storage globally, highlighting the significant opportunity if the technology can be successfully scaled.

Another piece of Google's climate strategy

The deal also reflects Google's increasingly active role in supporting emerging climate solutions. Recent ZCA coverage has explored the company's $15 billion investment in Finnish AI infrastructure[ii], as well as wider efforts by big technology firms to secure low-carbon energy supplies[iii]. As AI deployment accelerates, companies are investing not only in clean electricity generation but also in carbon management solutions.

The 44.01 agreement suggests that permanent carbon removal is becoming an increasingly important part of that strategy.

References

[i] 4401.earth/blog/frontier-backs-44-01-to-take-in-situ-co-mineralisation-to-commercial-scale

[ii] Google commits $15 billion to AI and digital infrastructure expansion in Finland

[iii] Big tech is turning to nuclear to power the AI boom

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