Occidental Petroleum is building Stratos, a direct air capture plant in the Permian Basin of Texas, designed to pull 500,000 metric tons of CO2 from the atmosphere each year. The facility uses modular air contactors and chemical sorbents licensed from Carbon Engineering, combined with Occidental's experience in subsurface injection. Once operational, the captured CO2 will be stored underground or sold to corporate buyers like Airbus for carbon removal credits. Stratos is one of the largest DAC projects in development, but it still faces significant hurdles. The technology is energy-intensive and expensive per ton compared to reducing emissions at the source. Construction timelines, supply chains, and evolving regulations for carbon storage add execution risk. The plant's modular design is a practical strength, allowing for incremental scaling and future upgrades without rebuilding the entire facility.
