Carbonfree Chemicals

What Carbonfree Chemicals does

CarbonFree Chemicals (CarbonFree Chemical Holdings LLC) is a San Antonio, Texas-based industrial chemistry company that develops and deploys carbon capture and mineralization technology platforms for converting industrial CO2 emissions into salable chemicals. The company operates two core process platforms: SkyMine®, in commercial operation since 2016 and designed to capture CO2 from cement kiln flue gas for conversion into sodium bicarbonate and chlor-alkali co-products (HCl, NaOH, NaOCl), and SkyCycle™, a second-generation platform that captures CO2 from harder streams such as steel blast furnace gas and converts it into precipitated calcium carbonate (PCC) sold under the endurocal® brand. The underlying technology portfolio is supported by 90 issued patents across approximately 50 countries and 17 years of R&D.

The commercial model is build-own-operate (BOO): CarbonFree invests capital to construct capture plants at industrial host sites, retains ownership of the assets, and generates revenue from chemical sales rather than from government 45Q tax credits. Pricing is anchored on PCC at $300-$1,000 per ton, and the company claims a cost structure that enables profitable operation without subsidy capture. Revenue mechanics therefore depend on a combination of long-duration industrial offtake agreements (e.g., a 20-year definitive agreement with U.S. Steel at Gary Works, expected 2026 operations and approximately 50,000 metric tons of CO2 per year), regional distribution partnerships (notably the Univar Solutions LOI for North America), and EPC delivery partnerships (Fluor, Hitachi Zosen Inova, BayoTech, TETRA). Investors include Fortistar, BP Ventures, Braemar Energy Ventures, Apollo Investment Corporation, Berg & Berg, and Husky Partners, providing a balance of strategic and financial capital typical of an early-commercial industrial technology company.

The customer base targets hard-to-abate industrial emitters across cement, steel, refining, glass, hydrogen production and energy-from-waste (EfW) operations. Named counterparties and partners include U.S. Steel, bp (including BP Ventures as an investor since approximately 2014), Univar Solutions, Fluor, Hitachi Zosen Inova, BayoTech, TETRA, and Fortistar. According to company material, CarbonFree was named a TIME Top GreenTech Company for 2025 in both the Global and Americas categories. The current operating footprint consists of one commercial plant (SkyMine) with the first SkyCycle commercial plant under development at U.S. Steel's Gary Works for 2026 operations, indicating a growth-stage company transitioning from R&D and first-of-a-kind deployment to multi-plant roll-out.

Name

Carbonfree Chemicals

Legal name

CarbonFree Chemical Holdings LLC

Website

https://carbonfree.cc

Company type

Private

Founded year

2006

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

CarbonFree Chemicals develops carbon mineralization technology that captures industrial CO2 emissions from cement, steel and other hard-to-abate sectors and converts them into salable chemicals including calcium carbonate and sodium bicarbonate under a build-own-operate commercial model serving heavy industrial hosts.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Carbon Capture and Utilization

NAICS

Chemical Manufacturing (325), Other Basic Inorganic Chemical Manufacturing (325180)

SIC

Industrial Inorganic Chemicals (2810), Miscellaneous Chemical Products (2890)

akta.pro primary industry

CO₂‑to‑Chemicals (C1/C2+ chemicals: formic acid, CO, syngas, ethylene/propylene pathways) (EUABAIAC)

Keywords

• Carbon capture technology
• Carbon mineralization process
• Industrial chemicals production
• Emissions management solutions
• Precipitated calcium carbonate

Headquarters

HQ city

San Antonio

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Operations, Supply Chain, Personnel, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Chemical Product Sales: CarbonFree operates as a chemical producer, selling sodium bicarbonate, calcium carbonate (endurocal®, SkyPure™), hydrochloric acid, sodium hydroxide, and sodium hypochlorite produced from captured CO2. The company sells directly to industrial customers and through distribution partners like Univar Solutions.
2. Technology Licensing and Plant Deployment: Build-own-operate model where CarbonFree invests capital to build carbon capture plants at industrial host sites. Generates revenue through chemical sales while providing carbon capture as a service to emitters. Profitable CCU operations enable capital deployment without requiring emitter investment.
3. Scope 3 Emission Reduction Services: Enables manufacturers to reduce Scope 3 emissions by sourcing carbon-negative chemicals, creating value for customers seeking sustainable ingredients and low-carbon supply chains.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

CarbonFree Chemicals captures CO2 emissions from industrial point sources (cement, steel, refineries, glass, hydrogen, waste incineration) and converts the captured carbon into marketable chemicals—primarily precipitated calcium carbonate (PCC), sodium bicarbonate, hydrochloric acid, sodium hydroxide, and sodium hypochlorite—through its proprietary SkyMine® and SkyCycle™ carbon mineralization technologies. The company deploys build-own-operate capture plants on customer sites and sells the resulting chemical products directly and through distribution partners.

Product overview

CarbonFree Chemicals operates two distinct carbon capture technology platforms: SkyMine® (first-generation, operational since 2016) and SkyCycle™ (second-generation CCUS solution). SkyMine® captures CO2 from cement flue gas and converts it to sodium bicarbonate, while SkyCycle™ captures CO2 from various industrial sources and converts it to calcium carbonate products. The product portfolio includes endurocal® (carbon-neutral mine-free calcium carbonate), SkyPure™ (food/pharmaceutical grade), sodium bicarbonate, hydrochloric acid, sodium hydroxide, and sodium hypochlorite. The company also offers a build-own-operate model for deploying SkyCycle technology at industrial facilities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• endurocal: World's first carbon-neutral, mine-free calcium carbonate product produced using CarbonFree's SkyCycle technology from industrial waste gases and steel slag. Targets food, pharmaceutical, and industrial markets with up to 99% purity.
• SkyPure
• SkyMine
• SkyCycle

Products and services

• SkyCycle™ Second-generation modular, scalable CCUS technology that captures carbon emissions from hard-to-abate industrial sources (steel, cement, refining, glass, hydrogen, energy from waste) and converts them into carbon-neutral calcium carbonate (PCC), intended for industrial facility operators seeking decarbonization solutions.
• SkyMine® First-generation industrial-scale carbon mineralization facility operating since 2016 in San Antonio, Texas, capturing up to 50,000 metric tons of CO2 per year from cement flue gas and transforming it into sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) for industrial buyers.
• endurocal® World's first carbon-neutral, mine-free calcium carbonate produced using SkyCycle™ technology from industrial waste gases and steel slag, achieving up to 99% purity and intended for food, pharmaceutical, paint, paper, plastics, and industrial applications.
• SkyPure™ Food and pharmaceutical-grade calcium carbonate derived from captured carbon dioxide, offering superior brightness and whiteness for quality-sensitive applications in food, pharmaceutical, and consumer goods manufacturing.
• Sodium Bicarbonate Technical-grade sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) produced from captured CO2 at the SkyMine plant, intended for use in coatings, ink, plastic, rubber, and leather products, also sold via Amazon for smaller-volume industrial and consumer buyers.
• Hydrochloric Acid Industrial-grade hydrochloric acid (HCl) produced as a co-product of the carbon capture and mineralization process, intended for industrial metal pickling, cleaning products, and water treatment applications.
• Sodium Hydroxide Industrial-grade sodium hydroxide (caustic soda, lye) produced as part of CarbonFree's chlor-alkali chemical output, intended for metal processing and electroplating applications.
• Sodium Hypochlorite Sodium hypochlorite (bleach) produced as part of CarbonFree's chlor-alkali chemical output, used as a disinfectant, bleaching agent, source of available chlorine, and deodorizer.

Quantifiable outcome

• 50,000 metric tons of CO2 captured per plant annually, equivalent to ~12,000 passenger vehicle emissions
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and secondary.

• Univar SolutionscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 29 October 2025Letter of Intent signed to explore marketing, distribution, and sale of endurocal® mine-free calcium carbonate to North American customers with stringent material standards. Univar Solutions, one of the largest chemical and ingredient distributors globally, will provide technical support, customer consultations, and custom formulations. Product offers food- and pharmaceutical-grade calcium carbonate up to 99% purity while helping reduce Scope 3 emissions.
• U. S. SteelflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 April 2024CarbonFree and U.S. Steel signed a definitive 20-year agreement to capture CO2 emissions from U.S. Steel's Gary Works blast furnaces in Gary, Indiana. SkyCycle technology will capture and mineralize up to 50,000 metric tons of CO2 annually into specialty-grade carbon-neutral calcium carbonate. This is the first commercial-scale carbon capture utilization plant at a steel plant in North America. Construction expected to begin summer 2024 with operations projected to begin in 2026. The partnership enables U.S. Steel to offer steel with reduced carbon footprint to automotive, appliance, and packaging industries.
• bpcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 February 2023Development agreement to collaborate on carbon capture and utilization projects using CarbonFree's SkyCycle technology at hard-to-abate industrial sites worldwide. bp ventures has been an investor in CarbonFree for nearly 10 years. Partnership aims to help bp achieve its net zero by 2050 goal while supporting industrial decarbonization.
• Hitachi Zosen Inova (HZI)secondaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 November 2021MOU signed for joint development of technologies to separate and mineralize CO2 from flue gases of energy from waste (EfW) plants. Based on CarbonFree's SkyCycle technology, the partnership aims to enable EfW plants to become carbon sinks or achieve carbon-negative status while creating marketable zero-carbon end products.
• FluorcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 29 July 2021Strategic engagement with Fluor, a leading global engineering construction company, to help manufacture CarbonFree's carbon-to-value technology for installation at industrial plants globally. Fluor will leverage its construction and engineering capabilities to determine how to best manufacture SkyCycle for larger scale and faster deployment.
• BayoTechsecondaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 July 2021Partnership to integrate carbon capture technology into hydrogen production. BayoTech's highly efficient hydrogen generators will be paired with CarbonFree's patented technology that captures CO2 and converts it into carbon-negative chemicals. Partnership aims to bring low carbon intensity hydrogen to market cost-effectively.
• Carbon to Value InitiativecoreOthers · 18 May 2021CarbonFree selected as one of 10 organizations from 130+ global applicants to join the first cohort of the Carbon to Value Initiative. Multi-year collaboration among Urban Future Lab, Greentown Labs, and Fraunhofer USA supported by NYSERDA. Provides networking with Carbontech Leadership Council members and commercialization opportunities.
• TETRA TechnologiessecondaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 May 2021MOU for collaboration on CCUS technology advancement. TETRA is a global leader in calcium chloride production and chemistry. Partnership leverages TETRA's technical expertise, chemistry know-how, production, and supply chain networks to advance SkyCycle commercialization. Companies have been collaborating since November 2020.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Omya: Privately held global leader in calcium carbonate distribution and production. Distributes calcium carbonate grades into food, pharma, and industrial applications — overlapping directly with CarbonFree's endurocal® distribution model via Univar Solutions.
• Imerys: Global specialty minerals producer with a leading calcium-carbonate franchise (including ground and precipitated grades). Directly comparable end-customers in paper, polymers, food, and pharma as CarbonFree's endurocal®/SkyPure™.
• Minerals Technologies Inc. Largest merchant producer of precipitated calcium carbonate (PCC) and a global specialty minerals incumbent. Both serve paper, plastics, paints, and similar industrial end-markets, and Minerals Technologies sets the price band that CarbonFree's economics must clear.

Direct peers

• CarbonCure Technologies: CarbonCure mineralizes captured CO2 into concrete during the mixing process, producing lower-carbon concrete. It is a direct peer to CarbonFree because both monetize CO2 by mineralizing it into a construction-input mineral and both target Scope 3 reduction by industrial adopters.
• CarbonCapture Inc. U.S. developer of point-source CO2 capture systems targeting industrial emitters (cement, power, steel). Same industrial customer targets as CarbonFree and competing for the same long-term offtake / 45Q-financed project slots.
• CarbonOrO: European CO2 mineralization company producing carbonates (e.g. CaCO3) from flue gas. Closest technology analog to CarbonFree's SkyCycle: direct flue-gas-to-carbonate mineralization without amine solvents.
• Blue Planet Systems: Blue Planet mineralizes CO2 into synthetic limestone/aggregates for concrete. Direct comparability: also a CO2-to-carbonate utilization play with infrastructure-/construction-grade outputs competing for the same industrial emitter wallet.

Emerging players

• Climeworks: Leading direct air capture developer with strong commercial offtakes and 45Q-supported economics. Competes for capital and industrial-emitter attention with CarbonFree and pursues the same net-zero demand thesis from a different capture architecture.
• Solidia Technologies: Cement and concrete CCU company using CO2 in curing/bonding, targeting the same cement-industry customer base as CarbonFree's SkyMine. Adjacent utilization pathway competing for cement-decarbonization mindshare and partnerships.
• LanzaTech: Gas-fermentation CCU company converting industrial off-gases (including CO-rich streams) into fuels and chemicals. Competes for industrial emitter partnerships and government CCU/45Q attention with a non-mineralization but adjacent chemical-output model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/CarbonfreeC
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/carbonfree-ccus

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Carbonfree Chemicals