Northern Europe-based financial services company Nordea announced that it has signed a deal with Norwegian startup Inherit Carbon Solutions to remove at least 68,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, providing carbon removal credits to the bank starting next year.

This multi-year contract is the first of what the bank says will be a portfolio of agreements with companies working on carbon removal projects. Under the agreement, Inherit will implement its system to capture CO2 from a biogas plant in Denmark. Once captured, the CO2 will be liquified and transported for geological storage under the North Sea.

Nordea announced a commitment in 2021 to become a net zero bank by 2050, along with a series of interim 2030 targets including reductions in carbon emissions from lending and investment portfolios by 40-50%, reductions in internal carbon emissions by at least 50% and the achievement of net positive carbon contribution.

The firm said that by the end of 2024, it had reduced emissions from its own operations by 53% compared with 2019, and with its goal to achieve net positive carbon contribution by 2030, it aims for the amount of high-quality carbon removal credits to exceed the unabated emissions from its own operations.

Peter Sandahl, Head of Climate & Environment at Nordea said:

“This agreement is a milestone in Nordea’s new carbon removal strategy and reflects our ambition to support the scaling of high-quality carbon removal technologies. . .Through this commitment we are accelerating our operational sustainability efforts and, in addition, supporting the scaling of innovative solutions essential to reach long-term climate goals and keeping global warming within the boundaries of the Paris Agreement.”

Founded in 2021, Oslo, Norway-based Inherit captures and permanently stores CO2 released from production of renewable natural gas (RNG), which is produced from organic waste, such as agricultural, industrial, and household wastes. Unlike other carbon removal solutions, CO2 captured from RNG production doesn’t have to be separated from other materials as It is created during the production of RNG, which does not contribute to climate change and is used as a fuel in the Nordics and elsewhere. After capturing carbon from biogas plants, Inherit liquifies the CO2 and transports it for permanent geological storage.

Kaja Voss, Co-CEO of Inherit, said:

“We are excited to partner with Nordea on this groundbreaking project and to see that Nordea goes to such great lengths to accelerate the carbon removal industry. Together, we’re taking an important step towards a net zero future, and we look forward to this collaboration going forward.”