Brilliant Planet is unlocking the power of algae as an affordable method of permanently and quantifiably sequestering carbon at the gigaton scale. The company’s innovative process enables vast quantities of microalgae to grow in open-air pond-based systems on coastal desert land. This is achieved without using fresh water, by harnessing a natural process that contributes to the health of oceans and air.
Since 2013, Brilliant Planet has grown from a three-square-meter experiment on the shores of St Helena, South Africa, to a thirty thousand square meter production facility with the world’s largest algae growth pond in the coastal desert of Morocco.
We’re different from conventional algae systems. We don’t scale up an artificial test tube with artificial seawater and pumped in carbon dioxide. Our nature-based system scales down the ocean to use natural seawater, nutrients and CO2. This natural process deacidifies seawater, enhancing local ecosystems and also enables paradigm-shifting levels of affordability.
Reducing emissions is the most important step we can take. However, the carbon that has been and will be released must also be removed from the atmosphere if we are to have a chance of limiting global warming to 1.5°c.
Algae have the scale to make a meaningful difference: seasonal ocean blooms can transform thousands of square kilometers in a matter of days. By replicating these blooms year-round, prime desert areas have the ability to sequester carbon at the gigaton scale.
Following eight years of pioneering R&D and three years of pilot operations we are now developing a scalable production platform that can be deployed worldwide.
Algae are found on every continent on earth. We can work on any coast, from Chile to Morocco to Namibia to Australia. We have chosen to operate at coastal deserts because these vast areas allow for maximum additionality: we create biological productivity where almost none existed before. By operating in deserts we also bring economic opportunity to underserved areas without disrupting any other land uses. We search through thousands of strains of local algae to find the most effective strains and we never use genetic modification.
By using the latest advances in sensor technologies, high-frequency satellite monitoring and industrial automation we can cater to the needs of our algae with unprecedented accuracy.
Machine-learning driven digital twins provides a paradigm shifting level of optimisation, enabling us to truly harness nature's potential.
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