Saudi Aramco DAC Initiatives for 2025: Key Projects, Strategies and Partnerships

Aramco’s DAC Pivot: From Exploration to Execution

Saudi Aramco is aggressively accelerating its Direct Air Capture (DAC) strategy, transitioning from a period of cautious exploration and small-scale piloting to one of active execution and significant capital deployment. This shift underscores a strategic pivot to build a comprehensive carbon management ecosystem, integrating nascent DAC technologies with large-scale infrastructure for carbon storage. By analyzing activities across two distinct periods, a clear pattern emerges: Aramco is moving beyond theoretical applications and is now constructing the physical and financial framework to make DAC a meaningful part of its 2050 net-zero ambitions.

From Exploration to Execution: Aramco’s Evolving DAC Strategy

Between 2021 and 2024, Aramco’s approach to DAC was characterized by foundational, exploratory steps. The strategy centered on establishing initial partnerships and proving technological viability at a minimal scale. Key actions included the 2023 announcement with Siemens Energy to develop a small DAC test unit and the 2024 commissioning of that pilot. The commercial applications discussed were largely conceptual, such as using captured CO2 for lower-carbon synthetic fuels. Partnerships formed during this time, like the MoUs with Spiritus and Rondo Energy in May 2024, were to *explore* opportunities rather than execute them.

The period from January 2025 to today marks a significant inflection point, shifting from exploration to execution and scaling. This change is best exemplified by the official launch of the 12-ton-per-year DAC pilot with Siemens Energy in March 2025, turning a commissioned asset into an active research platform for next-generation materials. More critically, Aramco’s focus broadened to include the entire carbon management value chain. The company moved beyond DAC in isolation by awarding a $1.5 billion EPC contract to Larsen & Toubro for a massive carbon capture and storage (CCS) hub in Jubail. This move provides a tangible, large-scale destination for captured CO2, solving a key logistical hurdle for future DAC projects. This variety—spanning active R&D, venture investments, and massive infrastructure development—signals that Aramco now views DAC not as a standalone experiment but as an integrated component of a broader, operational decarbonization system. The new opportunity lies in leveraging this integrated infrastructure to attract other technology partners and industrial emitters, establishing the Jubail hub as a regional anchor for the carbon economy.

Strategic Capital: Seeding and Scaling the DAC Ecosystem

Aramco’s investment strategy, primarily executed through its venture arm, has evolved from participatory funding to leading strategic rounds aimed at accelerating technology deployment. Early investments laid the groundwork, while recent capital injections are clearly intended to bring promising technologies to scale, particularly within Saudi Arabia.

Table: Aramco’s Strategic Investments in Carbon Removal

A Deepening Web of Alliances: From MOUs to EPC Contracts

Aramco’s partnership strategy has matured from non-binding agreements to definitive, large-scale commercial contracts. This evolution reflects growing confidence in the carbon capture space and a clear intent to build, rather than just study, the necessary infrastructure. The partnerships now encompass technology development, project execution, and full value-chain integration.

Table: Aramco’s Key Carbon Capture and DAC Partnerships

Expanding the Map: From Domestic Hubs to a Global Innovation Network

Between 2021 and 2024, Aramco’s DAC activities were geographically concentrated within Saudi Arabia. The development of the DAC test unit with Siemens Energy in Dhahran and the feasibility study with KAPSARC and Climeworks were squarely focused on validating the technology within the Kingdom. This domestic focus was strategic, aiming to build local capabilities and leverage national resources.

In 2025, the geographic strategy has become decidedly dual-pronged, combining domestic industrialization with international technology sourcing. While Saudi Arabia remains the epicenter of large-scale deployment—evidenced by the Dhahran pilot launch and the massive Jubail CCS hub—Aramco is now actively investing in projects abroad to tap into global innovation. The investment in Ucaneo to build a DAC demonstration plant in Germany is a clear example of this outward-looking approach. This move not only provides access to European technology and expertise but also diversifies Aramco’s portfolio beyond its home turf. Similarly, the investment in US-based Spiritus is explicitly aimed at bringing its technology to Saudi Arabia. This reveals a sophisticated strategy: use Saudi Arabia as the large-scale deployment ground while using its venture arm to scout and secure leading-edge technologies from established innovation hubs in North America and Europe. This expansion introduces new cross-border project management risks but is essential for staying at the forefront of DAC technology.

From Test Benches to Infrastructure: A Leap in Technology Maturity

The maturity of Aramco’s DAC and related carbon capture portfolio has advanced rapidly, moving from bench-scale validation toward commercial-scale enablement.

In the 2021–2024 period, the focus was squarely on demonstration and piloting. The commissioning of the 12-ton-per-year DAC pilot in Dhahran in 2024 was the key event, representing a tangible but very small-scale proof-of-concept. Other activities, like the Climeworks feasibility study and the MoU with Spiritus, were pre-commercial and exploratory. The technology was firmly in the R&D and early pilot phase, aimed at answering the question, “Can this work?”

Starting in 2025, the narrative shifted from demonstrating technology to building the enabling infrastructure for scaling. The official launch of the Dhahran pilot moved it from a construction project to an active R&D platform for testing next-generation materials—a crucial step in the innovation cycle. The most significant validation of market maturity, however, came with the actions around the Jubail CCS hub. The formal shareholders’ agreement with Linde and SLB and the subsequent $1.5 billion EPC contract with L&T signal a transition to commercial-scale deployment. While the DAC technology itself remains at the pilot/demonstration level (Ucaneo’s plant), Aramco is proactively building the large-scale storage infrastructure required to make future, larger DAC projects viable. This commitment to building the end-of-pipe solution before DAC technology is fully scaled indicates strong confidence that DAC will become a key carbon removal tool, justifying the massive upfront investment in supporting infrastructure.

SWOT Analysis: Aramco’s Evolving Position in Direct Air Capture

Table: SWOT Analysis of Aramco’s DAC Strategy

The Road Ahead: From Infrastructure to Integration

The data from 2025 signals that Aramco’s DAC strategy is entering a new, more tangible phase. For the year ahead, market actors should watch for three key signals. First is the progress on the Jubail CCS hub; any news on construction milestones will be a critical indicator of Aramco’s ability to deliver on its large-scale infrastructure promise. Second, expect initial findings or new partnerships emerging from the Dhahran pilot, which is now an active test bed for “next-generation” materials. This will reveal which DAC pathways Aramco is prioritizing. Finally, the first international deployments resulting from its venture investments, particularly the scaling of Spiritus’s technology in Saudi Arabia, will be the ultimate test of its “invest-then-deploy” strategy.

The momentum is clearly behind building an integrated carbon management ecosystem. The era of standalone, exploratory MoUs is giving way to concrete EPC contracts, shareholder agreements, and deployment-focused investments. Aramco is no longer just a participant in the DAC conversation; it is actively building the stadium where the game will be played.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the main change in Aramco’s Direct Air Capture (DAC) strategy in 2025?
The main change is a strategic pivot from exploration to execution. Between 2021-2024, Aramco focused on small-scale pilots and exploratory partnerships (MoUs). Starting in 2025, the company shifted to active execution by launching its pilot as a research platform, making deployment-focused venture investments, and awarding a $1.5 billion contract for a massive carbon storage hub, signaling a move to build a complete carbon management ecosystem.

Is Aramco developing its own DAC technology?
No, the text indicates that Aramco is primarily relying on external partners for core DAC technology. Its strategy involves partnering with and investing in technology developers like Siemens Energy, Spiritus, Ucaneo, and CarbonCapture Inc. Aramco’s role is to pilot, validate, and scale these external technologies within its own integrated infrastructure, such as using its Dhahran pilot to test next-generation materials from partners.

What is the significance of the Jubail Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) hub?
The Jubail CCS hub is significant because it provides the large-scale infrastructure needed to store captured CO2, solving a major logistical hurdle for future DAC projects. By investing $1.5 billion in this facility before DAC technology is fully scaled, Aramco is proactively building the end-of-pipe solution. This transforms DAC from a standalone experiment into an integrated component of a broader, operational decarbonization system and aims to establish a regional anchor for the carbon economy.

How has Aramco’s partnership strategy evolved?
Aramco’s partnership strategy has matured from non-binding agreements (MoUs) to definitive, large-scale commercial contracts. For example, an earlier MoU with Spiritus evolved into Aramco Ventures leading a $30 million funding round for deployment. Similarly, planning for the Jubail hub solidified into a formal shareholders’ agreement with Linde and SLB and a massive EPC contract with Larsen & Toubro, reflecting a clear intent to build, rather than just study, the necessary infrastructure.

How is Aramco using its venture capital arm to advance its DAC goals?
Aramco, through its venture arm, uses a sophisticated “invest-then-deploy” strategy. It makes strategic investments in promising international DAC companies like Spiritus (US) and Ucaneo (Germany) not just for financial return, but to secure and accelerate the deployment of their technologies within Saudi Arabia. This allows Aramco to tap into global innovation hubs in North America and Europe while using the Kingdom as the large-scale deployment ground.

Want strategic insights like this on your target company or market?

Build clean tech reports in minutes — not days — with real data on partnerships, commercial activities, sustainability strategies, and emerging trends.