Direct air capture startup Spiritus is shifting its business model. The company was founded to remove CO2 from the atmosphere and store it underground. Now it plans to sell captured CO2 to oil and gas producers for enhanced oil recovery. Spiritus has signed letters of intent with three producers and could supply more than 3 million tons of CO2 annually, enough to support over 70 million barrels of additional oil production. The pivot comes as US federal funding cuts and corporate climate retreat squeeze clean-tech startups. Spiritus CEO Charles Cadieu said the deals could support 70 million barrels. But the move raises a key question: when captured CO2 is used to extract more oil, is that carbon removal or simply a new supply chain for fossil fuel production?
