In mid-September, Nairobi-based climate startup, Flux, sold carbon removal credits worth US$370 each to the Milkywire Climate Transformation Fund through the CYNK platform.
- •Flux, which was established a year ago, uses crushed silicate rocks such as basalt to absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere in a process called Enhanced Rock Weathering (ERW).
- •These rocks are spread on an open farm and after dissolving in rainwater, it not only expels carbon dioxide from the atmosphere but also improves soil fertility.
- •The Climate Transformation Fund will by the end of the year pay out US$13 million to more than 45 climate projects globally as part of its commitment to supporting innovations combating climate change.
“We are incredibly proud to be selected by Milkywire and Klarna for this pre-purchase, and become the first suppliers of ERW in Africa. This selection is further proof that the highest quality Carbon Dioxide Removal can happen in Africa, where the co-benefits are felt the most,” Sam Davies, CEO of Flux, said at the time.
Milkywire said that it received about 1,000 proposals from climate-techs globally, acknowledging the brilliance and innovative core in each of them. Flux’s solution emerged as one of the most impactful, with research stating that the ERW technique could offset 2 billion metric tons of carbon annually.
“We shortlisted around a third to submit an extended application, assessing them against our selection criteria and taking input from our advisory group. We are not just looking for high-quality projects, but also to catalyze as much change as possible, identifying where our funds are most impactful,” Milkywire said in a statement.
Plans are underway to test the technique on a larger scale to evaluate its efficacy in reducing carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere. This will substantially supplement other efforts to save the earth from global warming.
Flux is set to experiment its solution in Nigeria and Cameroon after signing MoUs.