RMI – Energy. Transformed.Mining and Carbon Dioxide RemovalAugust 2026A responsible path forward for mine operators, policymakers, and other key stakeholders1RMI – Energy. Transformed.Authors: Cara MaesanoKunal KhandelwalEvvan MortonDaniel PikeContributors:Charithea Charalambous, RMI; Kyle Clark-Sutton, RMI; François de Rochette, RMI; Elizabeth Healy, RMI; Rudy Kahsar, RMI; Kaveer Phillip, RMI; Annina Sartor, RMI; Isabel Wood, RMI; and Eli Weaver, RMI; Liam Bullock, IGME-CSIC; Bart de Baere, WSP; Paolo Natali; Rhys Savage; Noah Shannon, ND Shannon & Associates; and Katherine Vaz Gomes, Carbon Direct,Reviewers:Roger D. Aines, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory; Ram Amar, Rewind; Eli Cain, Carbon Removal Alliance; James Campbell, Heriot-Watt University; Dana Cartwright; Greg Dipple, Arca; Carson Fong, Carbon Removal Canada; Spyros Foteinis, Heriot-Watt University; Anu Khan, Carbon Removal Standards Initiative; Frauke Kracke, Stripe; Laura Lammers, Travertine; Stephen A. Lang; Alexander Makela, Carbon Gap; Alexandre Marty; Thomas Mills, Mati Carbon; Evangelos Mouchos, Mine Environment Management Ltd., University of Bristol; Paul Needham, Arca; Patrick Orenstein, ZeroEx; Carlos Paulo, WSP; Ian Power, Trent University; Usman Rahim, South32; Luke Rondel, Karbonetiq; William Savage, Mine Environment Management Ltd.; Zivi Schaffer, Agnico Eagle; Nicolas Sdez, Pronoe; Amine Tahiri; and Connor Charles Turvey.Contacts: Daniel Pike, dpike@rmi.orgAuthors and Acknowledgements2Copyrights and Citation:Cara Maesano, Kunal Khandelwal, Evvan Morton, Daniel Pike, Mining and Carbon Dioxide Removal: A Responsible Path Forward for Mine Operators, Policymakers, and other Key Stakeholders, RMI, 2026, https://rmi.org/resources/mining-and-carbon-dioxide-removal/.RMI values collaboration and aims to accelerate the energy transition through sharing knowledge and insights. We therefore allow interested parties to reference, share, and cite our work through the Creative Commons CC BY-SA 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/.All photos from iStock unless otherwise noted.Acknowledgements:This report was made possible through the support of the Grantham Foundation for the Protection of the Environment and the Climate Pathfinders Foundation. It also benefitted greatly from the work of the Mining CDR Working Group co-hosted by Isometric, RMI, and WSP, input from the Advancing CDR in Mining workshop at London Climate Action Week co-hosted by Anglo American, CDR2030, and RMI, and the work of all the CDR suppliers who are developing and deploying solutions with and for mine operators. RMI – Energy. Transformed.Contents31. Executive Summary88. Environmental and Social Considerations642. Introduction and Framing129. Siting Considerations733. Mining Carbon Removal and Storage Pathways and their Emissions Mitigation Potential1910. Mining CDR Hubs774. The Business Case for Mining CDR2711. A Responsible Path Forward: Recommendations815. Landscape of Mining CDR Activity44Appendices 6. Providing Feedstock for Geochemical CDR48Appendix 1: Technical Appendix857. Quantification and Measurement Considerations56Appendix 2: Market and Regulatory Drivers116RMI – Energy. Transformed.Glossary (1 of 4) – Mining Carbon Dioxide Removal TerminologyAdditionality: A key principle for determining whether a specific project, or the climate benefits claimed from that project, would have occurred outside of dedicated funding or support, e.g., dedicated carbon credit purchases.Biogenic CDR: Biogenic CDR approaches use naturally-occurring biogenic carbon fixation mechanisms to capture CO₂ from the atmosphere.Carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS): The process of capturing CO2 either from the atmosphere or from a point-source (see point-source emissions below) and either using the CO2 as feedstock, storing it temporarily or permanently in products, or storing it permanently in geological reservoirs. In some cases, this process may result in re-release of carbon to the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide removal (CDR): Per the IPCC, CDR is any human-induced activity that removes CO2 from the atmosphere to be stored in either geologic, terrestrial or marine reservoirs, or else in durable products, on timescales of decades to millennia. Carbon mineralization (also known as mineral carbonation): A process where CO₂ reacts with minerals to form stable, solid carbonate compounds, effectively sequestering carbon.Counterfactual: An alternate case in which no action, or a different action, was taken. Counterfactuals are assessed to understand the extent to which an activity may count as "Additional" (see "Additionality"). Downstream losses (in a CDR context): The reduction in the amount of CO₂ sequestered due to inefficiencies or any physical, chemical, or biological losses during the transportation or storage steps.Durable CDR: Carbon removal that results in long-term CO2 storage, e.g., greater than 100 years. Enhanced rock weathering: A CDR approach that ...
