Letter from London: Occidental’s oil-led defence of DAC
Company warns against potential withdrawal of federal funding for emerging technology as it eyes key role for CO₂ in boosting both conventional and shale oil recovery in US
Occidental has pre-sold about 70% of the credits expected to be generated by its Stratos direct air capture (DAC) project in Texas, with Microsoft and Liverpool Football Club among the big brands buying up millions of carbon removals to prove their action on decarbonisation. However, it was DAC’s role in supplying CO₂ for enhanced oil recovery (EOR) that the firm’s CEO, Vicki Hollub, was most keen to highlight, as she warned against potential moves to revoke some federal funding to one of Occidental’s projects. “The US really needs to understand that DAC needs to happen; it needs to happen for CO₂ for enhanced oil recovery,” Hollub told the Energy Intelligence Forum 2025 in London in mid-Oct
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