Newcastle, 16 January 2024 – As part of the Australia-Austria Industrial Decarbonisation Demonstration Partnership Program, RHI Magnesita, MCi Carbon (MCi), the Austrian Institute of Technology (AIT), and the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) will receive funding for the CCUPScale project, for which Newcastle based cleantech startup MCi Carbon will receive AUD $3.29m. The funding is provided by the Austrian Climate and Energy Fund, supported by the Austrian Ministry for Climate Action, and the Australian Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW). This project aims to further develop MCi Carbon’s mineral carbonation technology and support RHI Magnesita’s plans to build the world’s first CCU plant in the refractory industry in Hochfilzen, Austria.
Technological milestones for a CO2-negative future
Since 2023, RHI Magnesita, the global leader in the refractory industry, has invested millions of dollars into the innovative Carbon Capture and Utilisation (CCU) technology developed by the Australian cleantech MCi Carbon. This technology aims to transform the refractory industry and neutralise CO2 emissions. With the AUD $3.29m in funding, key advancements such as raw material analyses, pre-demonstration trials, low carbon product development, process engineering for scaling, and industrial integrations can now be pursued. This marks a decisive step toward the construction of the world’s first CCU pilot plant for the refractory industry in Hochfilzen, Austria, which is planned to be operational at RHI Magnesita’s facility in 2028.
The plant will capture, convert, and utilise 50,000 tons of CO2 annually to produce CO2-negative mineral value-added products. These new materials could be used in building materials, such as cement, and other products for the circular economy.
RHI Magnesita plans to deploy MCi Carbon’s CCU technology to significantly reduce its Scope 1 emissions. “This funding approval shows that we are on the right track with this project. For industries with unavoidable emissions like ours, CO2 capture is currently the only viable path to achieve net-zero by 2050. However, we go one step further by not only capturing CO2 but also converting it into products that provide solutions for us and other hard-to-decarbonise sectors, such as the cement industry,” explained Constantin Beelitz, Regional President Europe, CIS & Türkiye at RHI Magnesita.
“MCi Carbon is committed to advancing innovative, scalable solutions for decarbonising the world’s most challenging industries. RHI Magnesita is an excellent partner, investor and customer,” said Marcus Dawe, Founder and CEO of MCi Carbon.
Bernd Vogl, Managing Director of the Climate and Energy Fund: “Carbon capture and utilisation is a topic we have been addressing in our research programs for several years. By doing so, we support the domestic industry in building expertise and swiftly implementing corresponding solutions. With this project, RHI Magnesita is pioneering in Austria, and we are very proud to contribute to the realization of the pilot plant.”
Decarbonisation requires international collaboration
Austria’s Climate Minister Leonore Gewessler also emphasised the importance of the project:
“This project demonstrates how innovation and international collaboration can help us achieve our climate goals. Initiatives like CCUpScale allow us to accelerate the transformation to a climate-neutral industry while advancing global solutions for CO2 utilisation.“
Australia’s Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen also flagged the importance of international collaboration to drive innovation:
“Projects like this deepen and expand our international bilateral efforts to reduce embedded carbon and we value the collaboration with our Austrian partners to support innovative decarbonisation technologies and solutions. Projects such as CCUpScale will deliver real, tangible progress—reducing emissions at their source, cutting embedded carbon in our buildings, and demonstrating the value of these innovative projects”.
The ’CCUpscale Project’ was awarded Most Outstanding Project – Austria at the Mission Innovation award ceremony at COP29 in Baku which both Ministers attended late last year.
About RHI Magnesita
RHI Magnesita is the leading global supplier of high-grade refractory products, systems and solutions which are critical for high-temperature processes exceeding 1,200°C in a wide range of industries, including steel, cement, non-ferrous metals and glass. With a vertically integrated value chain, from raw materials to refractory products and full performance-based solutions, RHI Magnesita serves customers around the world, with over 20,000 employees in 67 main production sites (including raw material sites), 12 recycling facilities and more than 70 sales offices. RHI Magnesita intends to leverage its leadership in terms of revenue, scale, product portfolio and diversified geographic presence to target strategically those countries and regions benefitting from more dynamic economic growth prospects.
The Group is listed within the Equity Shares (Commercial Companies) category ("ESCC") of the Official List of the London Stock Exchange (symbol: RHIM) and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 index, with a secondary listing on the Vienna Stock Exchange (Wiener Börse). For more information please visit: www.rhimagnesita.com
About MCi Carbon
MCi Carbon (MCi) is a world-leading and award-winning Australian clean technology company currently scaling a mineral carbonation platform to capture and transform carbon dioxide (CO2) into building products and other valuable materials for the circular carbon economy.
MCi Carbon has a technical headquarters in Newcastle, a global reference pilot plant at the Newcastle Institute of Energy and Resources (NIER) and is currently constructing Australia’s carbon capture and utilisation flagship, Myrtle. This facility will be one of the world’s first mineral carbonation demonstration plants and will assist in validating MCi’s technology.
MCi Carbon featured at the Australia Pavilion at COP28, with Myrtle announced as the Mission Innovation Net-Zero Industries Awards 2023 National Winner - Australia in the Outstanding Projects category. Recently awarded the Circular Transition Award at the 34th National Banksia Sustainability Awards and the NSW Clean Technology Award, in 2021 MCi won first prize at the Clean Energy Start-up Pitch Battle at COP26 in Glasgow. Other global accolades include the 2018 Resource Innovator of the Year Award at the New Materials Summit in Berlin and being featured at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, building momentum as a global brand and a leader in carbon capture and utilisation (CCU).
Recently featured in Financial Times, Bloomberg, Forbes, SBS World News and the Australian Financial Review, MCi Founder & CEO Marcus Dawe and Co-Founder & COO Sophia Hamblin Wang were named in the Top 100 Australian Green Power Players, published in The Australian. For more information, please visit mcicarbon.com.
Media Inquiries and Interviews
Todd McHenry, Head of Communications
[email protected]
+61 422 488 512
