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BlackRock Inc., the world’s largest asset manager and led by one of the oil and gas industry’s most controversial critics, is investing $550 million in a direct air capture (DAC) project with Occidental Petroleum.

Dubbed STRATOS, the joint venture (JV) development in Ector County, Texas, is designed to capture up to 500,000 tonnes of CO2 per year, making it the world’s largest DAC facility, according to a joint statement from the companies Nov. 7. Construction is about 30% complete; commercial operations are expected to begin mid-2025.

“BlackRock is proud to partner with global energy leader Occidental to help build the world’s largest direct air carbon capture facility in Texas,” said Larry Fink, chairman and CEO at BlackRock, in the release with Occidental CEO Vicki Hollub.

“Occidental’s technical expertise brings unprecedented scale to this cutting-edge decarbonization technology,” Fink said.

BlackRock reported more than $9 trillion in assets under management as of September 2023. The firm is making the STRATOS investment through a fund managed by its diversified infrastructure business to form the JV with Occidental’s subsidiary 1PointFive, which will own STRATOS.

“This joint venture demonstrates that direct air capture is becoming an investable technology, and BlackRock’s commitment in STRATOS underscores its importance and potential for the world,” Hollub said in the release.

“We believe that BlackRock’s expertise across global markets and industries makes them the ideal partner to help further industrial-scale direct air capture.”

Kirkland & Ellis advised BlackRock on the investment. White & Case advised Occidental.