Chevron Invests in ION Clean Energy’s Growth, ICE-31 Carbon-Capture Technology

Chevron New Energies (CNE) led a Series A funding round that raised $45 million for a carbon-capture and removal technology company, ION Clean Energy. ION’s ICE-31 liquid amine carbon-capture technology is a post-combustion solution for hard-to-abate emissions. CNE plans to use ION’s ICE-31 solution to assist customers with CO₂ emissions and will partner with ION customers on projects to scale the ICE-31 technology.

“We have truly special solvent technology. It is capable of very high capture efficiency with low energy use while simultaneously being exceptionally resistant to degradation with virtually undetectable emissions. That combination sets us apart from the competition. This investment from Chevron is a huge testament to the hard work of our team and the potential of our technology,” said Buz Brown, ION Founder and Executive Chairman. “We appreciate their collaboration and with their investment, we expect to accelerate commercial deployment of our technology so that we can realize the kind of wide-ranging commercial and environmental impact we’ve long envisioned.”

ION’s newfound capital will allow CNE to expand its technology portfolio with conventional amine-based carbon-capture solutions while complementing its current carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) technologies. In addition to the investment, ION announced that Timothy Vail will join the company as its Chief Executive Officer. Previously, Vail was CEO of Arbor Renewable Gas and currently serves as an operating partner for OGCI Climate Investments. He was also the founder and CEO of G2X Energy.

“We continue to make progress on our goal to deliver the full value chain of CCUS as a business, and we believe ION is a part of this solution. ION has consistent proof points in technology performance, recognition from the Department of Energy, partnerships with global brands, and a strong book of business that it brings to the relationship,” said Chris Powers, VP of CCUS & Emerging with CNE. “ION’s solvent technology, combined with Chevron’s assets and capabilities, has the potential to reach numerous emitters and support our ambitions of a lower carbon future. We believe collaborations like this are essential to our efforts to grow carbon capture on a global scale.”

In late September of last year, ION entered an agreement to bring its ICE-31 solvent technology to be validated at Technology Centre Mongstad, a carbon-capture test facility, to assess the product’s performance through parametric and steady-state testing to demonstrate the solvent’s stability and minimal degradation. The validation testing was an effort from ION to boost the ICE-31 solvent’s technology readiness level (TRL) from TRL 6 to TRL 7.

"TCM is a testing ground for carbon capture technologies, and we're excited to return and further prove the performance of ICE-31," said ION Chief Technology Officer, Erik Meuleman, Ph.D. "We're excited to get back to Norway and continue our efforts to deploy ICE-31 commercially as we all work towards a shared goal of net-zero carbon emissions."