A massive new facility called Mammoth has been constructed on Iceland’s volcanic plains to directly capture carbon dioxide (CO₂) from the atmosphere. Climeworks, the business that runs it, explain their objective is to remove CO₂ from the atmosphere, safely store it underground, and add another tool to the global decarbonization and climate change mitigation effort.
Mammoth is ten times larger than Orca, the first plant of this kind, which opened in 2021. Both use direct air capture technology, which involves drawing in ambient air, removing CO₂, and preventing the planet from warming any further. T
o run, they rely on geothermal energy, that’s very abundant in Iceland thanks to its volcanic activity. This facility, located close to Reykjavik, has become known as a real-world test site for innovative climate solutions and a symbol of sustainability.
How this “giant lung” works
The 72 modules that make up the plant work as artificial lungs, forcing air through filters that capture carbon dioxide (CO₂) through the use of large fans. The gas is then mixed with water and pumped into basalt-rich subterranean layers. In less than two years, it reacts with the rock there and becomes stone. The CO₂ is nearly permanently locked away in this type of mineral storage.
When the filters are filled, heat from geothermal energy is used to warm them and release the CO₂ in a concentrated form. Capture, heat, release, and store is a cycle that is repeated thousands of times. The filters’ durability helps cut down on energy and material waste. It is still expensive at the moment (between 600 and 1,000 dollars per ton of CO₂), but every new plant, like Mammoth, contributes to cost reduction and increased efficiency.
According to scientists in the Reykjavik region, the cost per ton will decrease over the next ten years with more investment and experience. As part of a larger decarbonization strategy, the technology is intended to support other actions, like reducing emissions, increasing the use of renewable energy sources, and altering consumption and transportation patterns.
Iceland as a test site for climate change
Iceland and its basalt-rich volcanic ground make the mineral storage of carbon dioxide (CO₂) easier and faster, and its geothermal energy produces low-carbon electricity. For this reason, a lot of countries and companies are keeping an eye on what happens there as a potential model.
With actual machinery and bad weather conditions, the Mammoth project demonstrates how direct air capture can function outside of a laboratory. It also makes it simpler for researchers to understand how this technology fits into the local economy and landscape. A plant like this one operating close to Reykjavik sends a strong message that action is happening, not just promises, at a time when climate change is the most talked-about topic in the world.
From problem to part of the solution
Mammoth is evidence that technology can assist humanity in moving from contributing to the problem to solving it. As long as it is powered by geothermal energy and planned with long-term sustainability in mind, this Climeworks facility shows that direct air capture can be a useful tool by absorbing carbon dioxide (CO₂) from the air and converting it into rock through basalt and mineral storage.
Although its capability by itself cannot alter the planet’s trajectory, it does open the way for initiatives of this kind elsewhere. Besides, other countries are adding to it already: in Norway, they are injecting CO₂ at the bottom of the North Sea to keep it out of the atmosphere.
The global impact of these new solutions could increase quickly if more countries combine environmental engineering, climate innovation, and political will.