Spiritus, a New Mexico-based direct air capture startup, has signed letters of intent with three US oil and gas producers to provide CO2 for enhanced oil recovery (EOR). The company says it is expanding beyond carbon capture to meet customer demand, with CEO Charles Cadieu noting they will go where the customer pull is. The deals signal a practical revenue path for DAC technology while raising questions about net climate impact when CO2 is used to extract more oil. For carbon market observers, this is a notable shift. DAC companies typically rely on voluntary carbon removal credits or government subsidies. EOR provides an existing commercial market for CO2, but it also complicates the climate story because the CO2 is injected into reservoirs, not permanently stored in the way most carbon removal advocates expect. The company is broadening its offerings, and the details of these LOIs will matter for how the carbon accounting works and whether any of the CO2 is actually stored long-term.
