A carbon technologies company in Calgary has partnered with the University of Calgary to aid groups aiming to acquire the prestigious XPrize.

Tesla Inc. manager and billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk is supplying up an unparalleled $100 million US for XPrize Carbon Elimination — a 4-yr world-wide competitiveness to find a way to pull carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere or oceans and lock it away permanently.

Eighteen months into the XPrize levels of competition, the top 15 teams will receive $1 million though 25 college student scholarships value $200,000 each and every will be dispersed to the competing scholar groups.

Subsequent that, the grand prize winner will get $50 million, whilst the 2nd area holder will get $20 million and $10 million will go to the 3rd spot holder.

Kevin Krausert is the CEO of Calgary-primarily based carbon know-how enterprise Avatar Innovations. (John Ulan)

On Wednesday, XPrize, Avatar Innovations and the U of C introduced options to start the Avatar Carbon Removal Accelerator in Calgary.

They say the software-primarily based system will give teams that are fascinated in winning the prize accessibility to workspace in the Strength Transition Centre in downtown Calgary. It’s set to open Oct. 1.

Teams will also have possibilities to collaborate with energy industry stakeholders, in addition to researchers in the U of C’s labs and screening services. 

“Any international enterprise that thinks they have a remedy for carbon removing would be eligible to apply to the application, [and] usually talking, this will be emerging systems,” claimed Kevin Krausert, the CEO of Avatar Improvements, on the Wednesday edition of the Calgary Eyeopener.

“They will be having the possibility to be doing the job in partnership with some of the largest energy businesses in the planet … [and] they’ll also have accessibility to University of Calgary’s earth-primary labs.”

Really serious technology

The software options to operate with 10 to 12 teams that will be evaluated by what Krausert explained as a “strong” selection committee.

The accelerator is also staying supported by electricity corporations that include things like Suncor, Enbridge, Shell Canada, Imperial and Cenovus Strength.

It hopes to bring highly inspired players to create and deliver investment to Calgary’s carbon know-how sector, Krausert reported.

And though firms absolutely can function toward the XPrize on their individual, Krausert claimed the accelerator will help to supply the sources frequently needed by emerging tech businesses to past the length of the XPrize and access industrial scale.

“To deliver to the table serious technological innovation, a know-how roadmap — as perfectly as, you know, opportunity associates that have the horsepower and the scale of a Shell or a Suncor — really bolsters their likelihood for success,” Krausert claimed.

In accordance to Krausert, initiatives like the accelerator also aid to carve out a area for Calgary on the carbon engineering map, which, he reported, is projected to come to be a multi-trillion dollar sector by 2050.

“We have a good ecosystem at the College of Calgary, and with the energy marketplace here, to definitely bolster the admissions for this XPrize, and foundation them appropriate here,” Krausert said.

“[And] to truly develop a world major sector … in partnership with gurus.”

Facts on admission standards for the Avatar Carbon Removing Accelerator, and applications for the system, can be identified on the internet.


With information from The Associated Push and the Calgary Eyeopener.