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CO280 CDR: A year defined by multi-megatonne contracts, project milestones, and global leadership
VANCOUVER, B.C., Jan. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — CO280 Solutions Inc. (CO280), a leading developer of carbon dioxide removal (CDR) projects headquartered in Vancouver, B.C., has been named on Cleantech Group’s 2026 Global Cleantech 100. This annual list recognizes companies poised to deliver market-ready climate solutions that advance a cleaner, more resilient global future.
For the 17th edition, Cleantech Group collaborated with over 75 leading investors, corporates, and innovation experts to identify CO280 as one of the most promising companies in cleantech with 10+ projects in development and 4.3+ million tonnes of permanent CDR contracted to date.
2025 Year in Review: How CO280 accelerated the development of durable CDR at scale
CO280 retrofits pulp and paper mills with modular carbon capture units to capture and permanently store biogenic CO2, delivering a method of high-quality, affordable, and scalable CDR called bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS). Its partnership model boosts pulp and paper industry profitability by generating a new revenue stream, helping to protect forestry jobs in rural areas across North America.
Here is CO280’s 2025 Year in Review:
- 4.3+ Million Tonnes of Total CDR Contracted: Over the past year, CO280 has accelerated pulp and paper BECCS at the multi-megatonne scale—contracting over 4 million tonnes with the market’s leading buyers. At over 4.3 million total tonnes contracted to date, CO280 is one of the top five global suppliers of carbon removal by tonnes sold according to cdr.fyi.
- 10+ Projects in Development: The pulp and paper industry in North America produces over 100 million tonnes of biogenic CO2 annually. CO280 is developing more than 10 carbon capture and removal projects in partnership with North America’s leading pulp and paper companies. Altogether, these projects stand to deliver up to 7 million tonnes per annum of durable CDR.
- 4 Projects in Pre-FEED and FEED: Four CO280 projects have reached the Pre-FEED and FEED stages with anticipated FID from 2026 to 2028. The projects are located at pulp and paper mills located in the U.S. Gulf Coast and Canada, and the resulting CDR credits will be sold to buyers in the voluntary carbon market.
- 1 Successful CDR Field Pilot: Together with SLB Capturi, a leading provider of carbon capture technology, CO280 conducted a carbon capture field pilot in the U.S. Gulf Coast to test the real-world performance of liquid amine carbon capture on biogenic CO2 from pulp and paper mills. The pilot successfully met or exceeded all key performance indicators, from carbon capture rate efficiency to energy consumption, and validated that the technology is ready today for commercial-scale deployment at pulp and paper mills.
- 2X Team Growth: To support the development and deployment of pulp and paper BECCS at scale, CO280 has doubled its team across projects, finance, commercial, and engineering—and is continuing to hire for new positions that will make the global mandate for permanent, high-quality CDR a reality.
Cleantech 100: Unlocking new value across climate and industry
Integration with existing industries and infrastructure is unlocking new, scalable revenue across the cleantech ecosystem. From domestic manufacturing to AI, decarbonization coupled with innovation is set to eliminate supply chain vulnerabilities, strengthen domestic capacity, and accelerate economic benefits.
“This year’s Global Cleantech 100 reflects a market in transition—one that is becoming more disciplined, more discerning, and ultimately more resilient,” said Richard Youngman, CEO at Cleantech Group. “While the adjustment phase has been painful for some parts of the ecosystem, we are also witnessing remarkable bursts of innovation responding to new sources of demand, from AI-driven power needs to critical materials security.”
Across industries like power, materials, paper, and water, cleantech solutions are expanding production capacity and mitigating risk—all while safeguarding jobs in manufacturing. In the U.S. alone, retrofitting pulp and paper mills to capture and sequester biogenic CO2 is a multi-billion-dollar market opportunity for the U.S. forest products industry, which represents approximately 5% of U.S. manufacturing GDP. The pulp and paper industry directly employs over 930,000 workers and supports millions of indirect jobs in rural communities.
“By retrofitting mills to capture and sequester biogenic CO2, we’re delivering millions of tonnes of durable CDR to our customers and transforming the economics of the pulp and paper industry,” said Jonathan Rhone, Co-Founder and CEO of CO280. “CO280 has the potential to invest billions of dollars in a critical North American industry—and help secure jobs for forestry workers for decades to come.”
Looking ahead, cleantech solutions like CO280 CDR will continue to advance systems integration, market development, and business innovation to create scalable, repeatable climate solutions for lasting impact.
“The 2026 Global Cleantech 100 arrives at a pivotal moment,” said Anthony DeOrsey, Research Manager at Cleantech Group. “Around the world, governments and industries are no longer innovating for efficiency alone—they are innovating for durability. This year’s honorees reflect that shift.”
To learn more about how CO280 is leading permanent CDR development in North America, join Co-Founders Jonathan Rhone and Natalie Khtikian at the 2026 Cleantech Forum North America.
About CO280
CO280 is a leading developer of projects that produce high-quality, permanent, and affordable carbon dioxide removal (CDR). In partnership with pulp and paper companies, CO280 is working to capture and store millions of tonnes of biogenic CO2 annually to bring the highest-integrity CDR credits to the market while revitalizing the forest products industry. To learn more, visit: www.co280.com.
About Cleantech Group
Cleantech® Group is the human intelligence authority on global cleantech innovation. By blending our intelligence, proprietary data, and the global network we’ve cultivated for more than 20 years, we deliver insights you can trust and guidance you can act on.