Climeworks, global leader in carbon removal via direct air capture, and the LEGO Group, one of the world's leading manufacturers of play materials, entered a 9-year agreement to permanently remove CO₂ from the air. The USD 2.4M agreement means carbon removal will become part of the broad portfolio of initiatives the LEGO Group is putting in place to accelerate towards net zero in line with climate science (IPCC) and industry guidance (SBTi). KIRKBI also signed a USD 405,000 long-term agreement to secure Climeworks’ high-quality carbon removal services. 

A healthy planet for children to inherit 

Annette Stube, Chief Sustainability Officer at the LEGO Group, commented: “We want children to inherit a healthy planet – and we’re determined to play our part in making that happen. To succeed we must take action to drive systemic change. We were the first large toy company to announce a science-based emissions reduction target in 2020 and we want to continue to lead the way in finding innovative solutions for the challenges we face. This is why we are working with innovators like Climeworks – their technology, as part of a varied programme of initiatives, can help us and society as a whole realise the net-zero future that is needed to protect our planet for generations to come.”  

Acting today for a better tomorrow 

Climeworks verifiably removes CO₂ from the air and helps companies to address their hard-to-abate CO₂ emissions. Long-term agreements such as the ones closed by the LEGO Group and KIRKBI represent a key enabler for Climeworks to accelerate its path to remove CO₂ at megaton and, ultimately, gigaton scale by 2050. 

“In addition to our ongoing efforts to reduce own emissions, we want to explore and support impactful climate solutions that have the potential to permanently remove and sequester hard to abate greenhouse gas emissions. Through our long-term partnership with Climeworks, we hope to be a part of scaling a promising and innovative technology that can make a difference in tackling climate change,” says Michael Skou, KIRKBI’s Head of Strategy and Sustainability. 

The high-quality removals purchased by the LEGO Group and KIRKBI show the importance of so-called beyond value chain mitigation, which the SBTi encourages businesses to deliver upon in its most recent guidance. 

Climeworks can meet the growing demand as it expands rapidly and will soon launch its second, large-scale direct air capture and storage facility, Mammoth, in May. Future projects are developing in the U.S. where, in 2023, all three of Climeworks’ DAC Hub projects were selected by the Department of Energy. Projects in Canada and Kenya are part of Climeworks’ international expansion as well.