Scan the headlines, and you may think climate ambition is losing steam; climate pledges have grown quieter, and the political headwinds are real, as wars and border tariffs are on everyone’s minds. But look beneath the surface, and the story is quite different - a global industry centered on removing harmful levels of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere has been quietly building momentum, and Canada is at its centre.
The physical reality of global warming has not changed, and while it’s not in the news, companies and investors know that the problem - and the economic opportunities to solve it - has not gone away. Corporate action on durable carbon dioxide removal (CDR) hasn’t stalled; it has accelerated. According to Climefi, durable CDR tripled in 2025 compared to the previous year. While Microsoft still accounts for the vast majority of the durable CDR market, contracts grew 73% in 2025 versus 2024, even when excluding Microsoft. And the buyer pool is widening; approximately 20 first-time buyers entered the market last year, a strong signal that space is moving beyond its earliest adopters.
The delivery side tells a similar story. According to CDR.fyi, 4.4 million tonnes of durable CDR were contracted in December 2025 alone, a remarkable leap from 268,000 in November and 490,000 in October. More importantly, durable CDR crossed the one million tonnes delivered milestone, a meaningful threshold that builds the trust and track record newcomers need to enter the market with confidence. Biochar, produced through pyrolysis to convert biomass into a stable, carbon-rich material, accounted for 95% of credit issuance in 2025, making it the standout technology of the year. It wasn't the only one making history, though: 2025 also saw the first-ever credits for enhanced rock weathering and ocean alkalinity enhancement, proof that the CDR toolkit continues to broaden.
CDR is also becoming embedded in mainstream corporate climate governance. The Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi) incorporated carbon removal into its Corporate Net-Zero Standard V.2, recognizing it as the mechanism to neutralize residual emissions. Shortly after, in January 2026, the GHG Protocol released land-sector removal guidance to help companies account for and report removals in their GHG inventories.
The momentum is global, but Canada is increasingly at its epicentre. International companies are selecting Canada not by coincidence, but by strategy - as both a deployment site and an investment destination. The deal flow from late 2025 to early 2026 makes the case:
- UNDO, a UK company, signed an agreement with Microsoft to remove 28,900 tonnes of carbon dioxide by 2036 through enhanced rock weathering, deployed in Canadian farmland. (October 2025)
- Arca, a carbon removal company headquartered in Vancouver, signed an agreement with Microsoft to deliver nearly 300,000 tonnes of durable removals over 10 years through mineralization. (October 2025)
- Arca and Giga Metals signed a 10-year exclusive tailings and waste rock access agreement to explore carbon removal in the B.C. project in collaboration with the Mitsubishi Corporation. (January 2026)
- TD Bank is committed to purchasing 44,000 tonnes over 10 years from Charm Industrial, a US-based company, through a combination of biochar removals and bio oil sequestration. A portion of the credits will be sourced directly from Charm Industrial’s future Canadian operations. (January 2026)
- Climeworks announced the establishment of its Canadian headquarters in Calgary, Alberta. Reflecting the country’s renowned capacity and expertise to scale the industry. (February 2026)
- RBC purchased high-quality carbon removal credits from a river alkalinity enhancement project in the West River in Nova Scotia. The project is developed in partnership between the Nova Scotia Salmon Association and CarbonRun, which measures the project’s ability to remove carbon dioxide and deliver it to the ocean for long-term storage. (February 2026)
This is truly a national story, as Quebec is also becoming a focal point for large-scale CDR development. Deep Sky's facility in Thetford Mines has the potential to remove more than 500,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide annually, making it one of the most significant CDR projects on the continent. That kind of ambition requires regulatory foundations to match, and Quebec has been actively building them. The province's introduction of Bill 17 last month created a legal framework for underground carbon storage.
Ontario opened applications for commercial-scale geologic carbon storage projects under its own Geologic Carbon Storage Act, with the province estimating the technology could reduce emissions by five to seven million tonnes annually while creating 4,000 jobs. Combined with existing protocols in Alberta and regulations in Saskatchewan, 83% of Canadian emissions are now covered by carbon storage rules.
Alberta is also emerging as a significant node in Canada's CDR geography. Deep Sky selected Innisfail, an hour north of Calgary, as the site for the world's first carbon removal innovation and commercialization centre, Deep Sky Labs, which is designed to test up to eight direct air capture technologies simultaneously. Climeworks chose Calgary as the home for its Canadian headquarters, adding another globally recognized name to the province's growing CDR roster.
The momentum building across Canada's provinces tells a consistent national story. Each new commitment adds to a track record that makes the next one easier to close. Our research shows that 65% of companies considering CDR cite clearer regulation as the single biggest factor prompting them to act, and the regulatory picture in Canada is coming into focus.
International signals are also arriving alongside domestic ones. Last week, Canada signed the Australia-Canada Clean Energy Partnership, which includes carbon dioxide removal as a formal pillar of bilateral cooperation, placing CDR alongside established clean energy priorities at the government-to-government level. The launch of the Advance Carbon Removal Coalition (ACR) adds another credible demand signal to a growing list of coalitions and commitments driving market confidence. Most recently, the Government of Canada officially launched its call for bids for federal departments to purchase at least $10 million in credits from Canadian CDR projects, making it the only active government CDR procurement program worldwide.
The headlines may be quieter, but the work isn't. In boardrooms, on farmland and in the regulatory frameworks taking shape across the country, a durable industry is being built. CDR isn't losing momentum. In many ways, it is just getting started, and Canada is at its centre.
The Pembina Institute's CDR Centre exists to help Canada seize this moment, supporting the buyers, developers and governments building a credible, high-integrity CDR market. To learn more about our work and how to get involved, visit the CDR Centre website.
