dac powered

Oxy announces partnership to explore fusion technology in direct air capture facilities

Oxy Low Carbon Ventures says fusion technology holds the potential to supply emissions-free, continuous, on-demand energy to bolster power and heating requirements for Occidental’s large-scale DAC facilities. Photo via 1pointfive.com

Oxy Low Carbon Ventures, an investment arm of Houston-based energy giant Occidental, is teaming up with TAE Technologies to explore the use of TAE’s fusion technology at Occidental’s direct air capture (DAC) facilities.

Financial terms of the deal weren’t disclosed.

Oxy Low Carbon Ventures says fusion technology holds the potential to supply emissions-free, continuous, on-demand energy to bolster power and heating requirements for Occidental’s large-scale DAC facilities.

“Collaborating with TAE Technologies is an opportunity to build on Occidental’s portfolio of clean power sources that can provide our [DAC] facilities with reliable, emissions-free energy,” Frank Koller, vice president for power development at Oxy Low Carbon Ventures, says in a news release.

Occidental is diving headfirst into the DAC sector. The primary example of its DAC commitment is construction in West Texas of the world’s largest DAC plant through a joint venture between Occidental subsidiary 1PointFive and investment giant BlackRock. BlackRock is investing $550 million in the facility.

The project is expected to be completed in mid-2025. The facility is eventually supposed to capture up to 500,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide each year.

DAC technology pulls carbon dioxide from the atmosphere so it can be stored permanently or converted into products. While the carbon removal process sounds simple, it requires a tremendous amount of energy. That’s where fusion technology like TAE’s comes into play.

TAE’s fusion technology works by combining (or fusing) the light nuclei of elements such as hydrogen to produce energy. The energy release is managed by producing steam, which spins a turbine that drives an electric generator producing clean energy or clean heat.

Founded in 1998, Foothill Ranch, California-based TAE develops commercial fusion power for generation of clean energy.

“Oxy Low Carbon Venture’s desire for emissions-free energy makes this the perfect moment to explore the deployment of our commercial-ready power management products, while the growing demand for large-scale power generation can be served by our future fusion offerings,” says Michl Binderbauer, CEO of TAE.

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A View From HETI

Blackstone Infrastructure, an affiliate of Blackstone Inc., will acquire a major Texas electricity provider. Photo via Shutterstock

Blackstone Infrastructure, an investment giant with $600 million in assets under management, has agreed to buy publicly traded TXNM Energy in a debt-and-stock deal valued at $11.5 billion.

TXNM Energy is the parent company of Lewisville-based Texas New Mexico Power (TNMP), which supplies electricity to more than 270,000 homes and businesses throughout Texas. Its Houston-area service territory includes Alvin, Angleton, Brazoria, Dickinson, Friendswood, La Marque, League City, Sweeny, Texas City and West Columbia.

Once Blackstone Infrastructure wraps up the deal in the second half of 2026, Albuquerque, New Mexico-based TXNM will no longer be a public company. But TNMP’s headquarters will remain in Texas and its rates will continue to be set by the Public Utility Commission of Texas. TNMP was founded in 1934.

Blackstone Infrastructure is affiliated with investment powerhouse Blackstone Inc., which has $1.2 trillion in assets under management and is the world’s largest investment manager.

“TNMP has done an excellent job of meeting its customers’ growing demand for electricity and supporting the communities it serves,” Sean Klimczak, Blackstone’s global head of infrastructure, said in a news release. “We look forward to utilizing our long-term investment commitments to support TNMP as they continue on this path of high-demand growth across Texas.”

During TXNM’s fourth-quarter earnings call in February, Chairwoman and CEO Patricia Vincent-Collawn said the company’s five-year Texas capital investment plan had grown by more than $1 billion.

“Our future is so bright with these increased investment levels that we are now targeting earnings growth of 7 percent to 9 percent through 2029,” Vincent-Collawn said.

“Our financial expectations are driven by the continued expansion of grid infrastructure supporting growth and reliability in our Texas service territory,” she added.

In 2024, TXNM reported revenue of $1.96 billion, up 1.7 percent from the previous year.

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