Challenge

Diesel generators are built for the places where dependable power matters most: construction sites, mines, telecommunications networks and remote communities. Millions remain in operation worldwide, often because cleaner alternatives cannot yet match their reliability or fit the infrastructure already in place.

That leaves operators with a stubborn emissions problem. Large industrial facilities may have access to conventional carbon capture systems, but these can be too expensive, energy-intensive and cumbersome for smaller, distributed generators. Replacing every machine is not immediately practical. Kapture’s challenge was to reduce the emissions from equipment that industries still depend on.

Solution

Kapture designed a carbon capture system that attaches directly to an existing diesel generator, without modifying its engine or interrupting its operation. The modular equipment can be installed in under an hour by an electrician.

As exhaust passes through the system, a non-toxic chemical reacts with the carbon dioxide. Instead of producing a stream of gas that must be transported and stored underground, the process converts it into solid calcium carbonate with a reported purity of 99 per cent.

That changes what happens next. The resulting powder requires no further processing and can be incorporated into concrete, used to improve soil or supplied to manufacturers of high-end plastics. On a construction site, carbon captured from the generator could be locked into the concrete being used nearby.

Kapture reports that its system uses only 15-20 per cent of the generator’s energy to capture carbon dioxide, compared with 40 to 50 per cent for traditional systems. The company plans to generate revenue by selling or leasing its equipment, supplying the capture chemical and selling the calcium carbonate to buyers.

Impact

In 2025, a trial with Horizon Power moved Kapture’s technology out of the laboratory and into operating conditions in Western Australia.

The system captured carbon dioxide directly from a diesel generator’s exhaust, reportedly reducing emissions by up to 90 per cent. Kapture states that 45 tonnes of carbon dioxide were captured during the trials, with the system collecting hundreds of kilograms on operating days.

The carbon did not simply change location. Working with Western Australian precast concrete company Permacast, Kapture incorporated the calcium carbonate into concrete, permanently locking the captured carbon into a useful material.

For remote communities that continue to rely on diesel-generated electricity, the trial offers a potential route to lower emissions without waiting for every generator to be replaced. For industrial operators, it shows that carbon capture can be added to existing assets without major construction or prolonged downtime. Additionally, the system is modular, able to be retrofitted quickly by any electrician, increasing its scope of use.

The circular model creates a second benefit. Converting exhaust into a saleable mineral can reduce the cost barrier that has held back carbon capture. Early commercial traction includes a paid $40,000 trial with Vinci Group.

Future Outlook

Kapture is preparing for commercial deployment with early adopters in Australia. Its immediate priorities are to validate emissions reductions across more operating conditions, establish manufacturing and chemical supply chains, and secure approvals for the calcium carbonate’s use in concrete and soil.

Over the longer term, the company plans to enter Europe, South Africa, Asia and the United States, and expand into more hard-to-abate industries.

The opportunity lies not in pretending diesel will disappear tomorrow, but in acting on the emissions produced today and turning them into something that can remain safely out of the atmosphere.