TNC Releases New White Paper on Direct Air Capture Challenges and Opportunities in Wyoming

The Wyoming Chapter of The Nature Conservancy (TNC) recently released a new white paper that explores Direct Air Capture (DAC) in Wyoming and how the industry could benefit the state’s economy and long-term position in the carbon management sector. The recently published paper titled “Direct Air Capture in Wyoming: Barriers, Opportunities, and Lessons from Project Bison” highlights the challenges and opportunities for DAC in Wyoming and offers recommendations for private industry, policymakers and agencies interested in fostering a new addition to the state’s energy economy.

“Wyoming’s natural resources and existing carbon management economy make the state a high-value location to deploy technological carbon removal projects,” said Justin Loyka, Energy Program director at TNC in Wyoming and co-author of the white paper.

DAC is a form of carbon removal that extracts carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere for permanent storage underground or industrial use. The DAC industry is convergent and mutually supportive of other carbon management projects that are already growing in Wyoming. Within the last decade, Wyoming has emerged as a leader in carbon management due to its supportive policy environment and has already undertaken the arduous steps of developing a regulatory framework. Federal tax incentives, such as the 45Q tax credit for carbon capture and storage, have further accelerated investment and innovation in the sector. The state has vast areas with world-class geology for permanent sequestration of carbon, existing infrastructure that includes extensive CO₂ pipelines and a workforce of oil and gas professionals with the highly technical skills necessary for carbon management.

“While recent shifts in federal tax policy have created headwinds for some emerging technologies, the 45Q tax credit for carbon capture remains a stable and valuable incentive,” said Monika Leininger, director of external affairs for TNC in Wyoming and co-author of the white paper. “Continued support of this credit is instrumental in advancing projects that strengthen rural economies, including those across Wyoming.”

While evaluating the federal and state policy environment, the white paper also takes a look at the abandoned Project Bison and the reasons it failed to reach completion and presents subsequent recommendations to overcome these challenges.

Key highlights from the white paper include:

• Wyoming is positioned to be a leader in DAC development due to its energy expertise, regulatory environment and geology conducive to permanent CO₂ storage.

• Known challenges of accessing clean energy continue and are exacerbated by factors like utility interconnection timelines and data center competition.

• DAC companies developing low-energy demand technology would be well-positioned in Wyoming as sequestration capacity outpaces demand and the energy picture continues to be challenging.

• The opportunity to locate a project in proximity to a sequestration hub to share the costs of sequestration across several carbon sources is a boon for a nascent industry like DAC.

• Strategic action by the state—whether through tax structures, market-based incentives or changes to electricity regulatory structure—could help Wyoming capitalize on its advantages while fostering community acceptance and long-term economic viability.

This white paper is the latest resource from TNC that offers guidance toward a prosperous energy future for Wyoming.

To read the full report and explore more insights on DAC in Wyoming, visit nature.org/WYDAC.