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Carbon Capture and Storage Utilization (CCSU) technologies are becoming essential in our battle against climate change. By targeting carbon dioxide emissions from industries like steel, cement, and energy, these technologies offer hope where emissions are the toughest to reduce.
So, how does CCSU work? Here’s the idea: capture CO2 at the source, then either store it underground or convert it into something useful. Think of it as turning pollution into potential. A growing number of innovative startups in the APAC region are pushing the boundaries of CCSU innovation.
Let’s look at five startups that are turning captured carbon into real-world solutions:
Year founded: 2022
Total funding raised: $15M
Latest funding round: Series A
Country: South Korea
Carbonco, born from DL E&C (a big engineering firm), offers a one-stop shop for carbon capture solutions. From designing and building carbon capture facilities to finding creative uses for captured CO2—think liquid carbonic acid and construction materials—they’ve got it all covered.
How real is it? They’ve already rolled out some of South Korea’s first commercial carbon capture plant at Boryeong Thermal Power Station, capturing up to 200 tonnes of CO2 per day. And their reach doesn’t stop there—they’re expanding globally, working on large-scale projects in places like Australia.
Collaboration is a big part of their strategy, too. Carbonco partners with global research institutes and corporations to keep pushing the boundaries of carbon capture tech. For instance, they’ve teamed up with the Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources to advance carbon mineralization and signed a deal with Saudi Arabia’s Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC) to implement carbon capture in desalination processes.
Year founded: 2020
Total funding raised: $2.5M
Latest funding round: Pre-seed
Country: New Zealand
Aspiring Materials is tackling one of the biggest challenges in carbon reduction—emissions from heavy industries like concrete, steel, and energy production. Using a clever mineralization process, they take olivine (a naturally occurring mineral) and capture CO2, converting it into a stable solid form known as carbonate.
Why does it matter? For every tonne of olivine processed, Aspiring Materials can capture up to three tonnes of CO2—carbon that’s safely locked away and can be used in fertilizers, pharmaceuticals, or even building materials.
This innovative approach has garnered international recognition, including being selected for the prestigious Bill Gates-backed Breakthrough Energy Program. So, what’s next? They’re scaling up. A pilot plant in Christchurch is on the way, expected to go live soon, taking this lab-born idea into industrial-scale action.
Year founded: 2022
Total funding raised: Undisclosed
Latest funding round: Series A
Country: China
Shenzhen-based DeCarbon Tech offers a full range of carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) technologies designed to be high-performance and cost-effective. What’s their secret sauce? Modular, intelligent systems that can be easily scaled for different industrial needs.
Why does it matter? On top of providing solutions for capturing CO2 from industrial processes, they also do Direct Air Capture (DAC)—technology that pulls CO2 straight out of the air. Their solutions help industries make the leap from emissions-heavy operations to climate-conscious production.
How did they even think of these? DeCarbon Tech was founded by a bunch of scientists and professors from Southern University of Science and Technology. They are all about transforming academic research into real-world solutions. Their modular approach helps industries scale CCSU technologies more easily.
Year founded: 2016
Total funding raised: $300k
Latest funding round: Undisclosed
Country: India
Bangalore-based CarbonCraft is turning pollution into a stylish solution with its innovative Carbon Tiles. Founded by architect Tejas Sidnal, who was inspired by biomimicry, the company has found a unique way to tackle air pollution—by transforming carbon waste into beautiful tiles for the construction industry.
Here’s how it works: CarbonCraft collects carbon waste from industrial sources and polluted air, mixes it with materials like marble chips, and then handcrafts it into high-quality tiles. Each Carbon Tile prevents around 5 kg of CO2 from being released into the atmosphere. Not only do these tiles help the environment, but they’re also crafted using traditional techniques passed down for over 200 years.
CarbonCraft’s tiles are already making an impact. They have been deployed in projects for big names, including Adidas stores, across multiple Indian cities. The company is actively working to reduce costs and bring eco-friendly construction materials into the mainstream. In doing so, it is helping create carbon-negative homes and contributing to the global fight against climate change.
Year founded: 2022
Total funding raised: Undisclosed
Latest funding round: Pre-seed
Country: Australia
The Melbourne-based startup is tackling one of the biggest hidden culprits of carbon emissions: diesel engines. They’ve developed a cool carbon capture system that retrofits onto diesel combustion engines, grabbing up to 99.5% of CO2 emissions directly from the exhaust. Their focus? Stationary diesel generators—a major part of industries like mining, remote communities, and construction, yet often overlooked in the push to reduce emissions.
Kapture’s tech uses a shell system and a proprietary "secret sauce" solvent that binds to CO2 as it passes through a filter. The result? A non-toxic byproduct that can be safely sequestered in soil, acting much like biochar to lock away carbon for good.
The startup’s already making moves with its first pilot customer, the Victorian Government, in partnership with Johns Lyng Group. They’re testing the system across diesel generator fleets used in various industries, showing that cutting emissions doesn’t always mean switching to new tech—sometimes, it’s just about making the old tech greener.
Interested in discovering more APAC companies innovating in CCSU technologies? Explore our directory of over 1,000 climate tech companies in the region: https://www.asiaclimatehub.com/