An Irish company pioneering affordable and accessible climate change technology is in the running for a prestigious £1 million global environmental grant award.
Waterford-based NEG8 Carbon has been nominated by the London-based Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys for The Earthshot Prize 2025.
The coveted global award recognises and rewards pioneering work to tackle our planet’s most urgent environmental issues.
Founded by Prince William in 2020, The Earthshot Prize was inspired by US President John F. Kennedy’s ‘Moonshot’ initiative in the 1960s, which aimed to achieve the seemingly impossible goal of landing a man on the moon within a decade. The Earthshot Prize adapts this ethos to inspire efforts to repair the planet by 2030.
NEG8 Carbon was nominated for its Electrostatic Direct Air Capture (DAC) technology that demonstrates significant advancement in lowering the costs of DAC. This progress translates into better carbon capture effectiveness and scalability, paving the way for widespread DAC adoption to remove excess carbon dioxide (CO₂) from the atmosphere to reverse climate change.
Electrostatic DAC works by drawing in air and passing it over a specifically designed sorbent system that attracts and captures CO₂. The captured CO₂ can then be permanently and safely stored underground or converted into climate-neutral carbon products, such as Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).
Ray Naughton, Co-founder, and Managing Director of NEG8 Carbon said: “To be nominated for The Earthshot Prize is a profound honour and it highlights the potential of our technology to make a difference in the fight against climate change.
“This recognition motivates us to push forward with our mission to make DAC affordable and accessible. This is also a testimony to the NEG8 Carbon team which has worked hard to take Electrostatic DAC from concept to demo scale in a short space of time.”
Each year, the prize is awarded to five winners who show meaningful impact across five key areas called ‘Earthshots’: Protect and Restore Nature; Clean our Air; Revive our Oceans; Build a Waste-Free World and Fix our Climate. The winners receive a £1 million grant to further develop their projects, along with global visibility and support from a network of experts.
The winners will be announced later in the year.
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