BC Nickel Project to Trap CO2, Pioneering Carbon-Negative Mining

VANCOUVER, BC – January 14, 2026

A landmark agreement signed this month aims to turn one of Canada's largest undeveloped nickel deposits into a massive carbon sink. Vancouver-based Arca Climate Technologies Inc. has secured a 10-year exclusive deal with Giga Metals Corporation to deploy its innovative technology at the Turnagain Nickel Project in northern British Columbia. The partnership pioneers a new model for the resource sector, seeking to permanently remove up to 220 million tonnes of atmospheric carbon dioxide by transforming mine waste into stable rock.

From Mine Waste to Climate Asset

The core of the initiative lies in tackling one of the mining industry's most significant environmental liabilities: the vast quantities of waste rock and tailings generated during extraction. Giga Metals estimates that its Turnagain Project will produce approximately 1.3 billion tonnes of ultramafic material over its lifespan. Traditionally, this material is stored in large piles, representing a long-term management challenge.

However, this waste contains a hidden climate-fighting potential. Ultramafic rock, rich in minerals like serpentine, naturally reacts with carbon dioxide in the air in a process called carbon mineralization. This geochemical reaction permanently locks CO2 into a solid, stable carbonate mineral, effectively turning it back into stone. The challenge has always been the speed; under natural conditions, this process can take centuries or millennia.

This is where Arca's technology intervenes. Founded on two decades of research at the University of British Columbia, the company has developed methods to dramatically accelerate this natural process. Arca's "Industrial Mineralization" approach uses a portfolio of patented technologies to activate the minerals in the mine waste, making them far more reactive to atmospheric CO2. One key method involves using microwaves to alter the mineral's structure, increasing its carbon-capturing capacity by as much as 20 times. This process also carries the co-benefit of destroying harmful asbestos fibers that can be present in such rock formations.

Once activated, the material can be managed on-site using autonomous rovers that churn and till the surface of tailings piles. This "Smart Churning" continuously exposes fresh, reactive material to the air, maximizing the rate and volume of carbon dioxide removal.

Validated Science Meets Commercial Scale

While the concept of using mine waste for carbon capture has been explored for years, Arca’s approach moves beyond theory with a track record of independent validation and commercial deployment. The company's scientific foundation was laid by co-founder Dr. Greg Dipple, whose pioneering work at UBC demonstrated the feasibility of accelerating mineralization.

This scientific rigor has translated into significant real-world milestones. Arca’s methodology for measuring and verifying its carbon removals was recently validated against the stringent ISO 14064-2 standard by DNV, a global leader in assurance services. This third-party verification is crucial for building trust and credibility in the burgeoning carbon removal market.

Furthermore, the technology has been proven in the field. In 2025, Arca completed a successful 18-month pilot project at BHP's Mt. Keith Nickel West mine in Western Australia, the first of its kind at an active mine site. The project demonstrated a significant acceleration in carbon mineralization, validating the technology's effectiveness in a real-world operational setting. This success, combined with recognition as a finalist in the prestigious XPRIZE Carbon Removal competition, has bolstered the company's standing.

The market has taken notice. In late 2025, Arca signed a major offtake agreement with Microsoft to deliver nearly 300,000 tonnes of permanent carbon removal over the next decade, a powerful signal of commercial demand for high-durability, verifiable climate solutions.

A New Blueprint for Critical Minerals

The partnership between Giga Metals and Arca arrives at a critical moment for Canada. The federal government's 2022 Critical Minerals Strategy has identified nickel as essential for the global energy transition, primarily for its use in electric vehicle batteries. The strategy aims to make Canada a global supplier of choice, supported by new policies and funds like the Critical Minerals Sovereign Fund.

This project directly addresses the inherent tension in that goal: how to ramp up resource extraction while simultaneously meeting ambitious climate targets. By integrating permanent carbon removal directly into the mining lifecycle, the partnership offers a potential blueprint for a "new mining paradigm," as Arca CEO Paul Needham described it.

"By pairing critical minerals development with permanent carbon dioxide removal, Giga Metals and Arca will demonstrate a new mining paradigm with enhanced project economics and broader societal benefit,” Needham stated.

For Giga Metals, a company advancing a project jointly owned with Mitsubishi Corporation, the collaboration offers a powerful enhancement to its environmental, social, and governance (ESG) credentials. In an era where investors and regulators place increasing emphasis on sustainability, demonstrating a pathway to carbon-negative operations could provide a significant competitive advantage.

“We are pleased to formalize our arrangement to allow both companies to focus on what they do best: produce nickel concentrate with high ESG credentials, and maximize the permanent sequestration of carbon dioxide," said Scott Lendrum, CEO of Giga Metals. He noted that the companies' principals have been collaborating on the concept for over a decade, highlighting the long-term vision behind the agreement.

The Road Ahead for Turnagain

Under the 10-year exclusive agreement signed on January 9, Arca will now begin a comprehensive evaluation of the Turnagain site. This will involve detailed sampling of the ultramafic waste rock, laboratory analysis, and pilot-scale testing to tailor its technology to the specific mineralogy of the deposit. The companies will also conduct techno-economic studies to map out the financial and operational framework for a full-scale deployment once mining commences.

The Turnagain Project itself is one of the world's few significant undeveloped sulphide nickel and cobalt resources, making it a strategic asset in the future supply chain for clean energy technologies. The potential to valorize its 1.3 billion tonnes of waste rock could fundamentally alter the project's economics. Revenue from the sale of high-quality carbon removal credits, like those sold to Microsoft, could create a new income stream, offsetting operational costs and improving the project's overall financial viability.

This model of waste valorization could have profound implications for heavy industries worldwide. If successful at scale, the approach being pioneered in British Columbia could be replicated at mines and industrial sites globally, turning legacy environmental liabilities into active tools for climate change mitigation and creating a circular economy model where the byproducts of extraction become a key part of the solution.