The Carbon to Sea Initiative has launched two 2026 Open Calls designed to advance the scientific, technical and practical understanding of Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement (OAE) as a potential carbon dioxide removal and climate mitigation approach.

OAE works by adding alkaline materials to seawater to increase its capacity to absorb and store atmospheric CO₂. According to the RFP, the field is still at an early foundational stage: research and field trials have advanced understanding, but there remains a need for significantly stronger evidence on safety, carbon-removal efficacy, verification and the ability to scale responsibly.

The two calls address complementary questions:

• Open Call 1: How can real-world field research generate the evidence needed to understand OAE safety, efficacy and scaling?
• Open Call 2: How can researchers resolve two critical scientific and technical questions around sediment-related carbon-removal efficiency and the availability and viability of alkalinity sources? 

OPEN CALL 1 — GLOBAL OAE FIELD RESEARCH NETWORK

Purpose

The Global OAE Field Research Network aims to create a network of permitted, reusable field research sites that can generate a stronger evidence base from real-world OAE conditions.

The Network is intended to bring researchers and organisations together to share knowledge, compare results across locations and improve understanding of how OAE may perform across different physical, biological and biogeochemical environments.

The RFP emphasises that laboratory, modelling, mesocosm and small-scale research have provided important insights, but there remains a significant gap in real-world observations and field evidence.

Field Research Priorities

Applicants are encouraged to develop sites and research programmes addressing multiple priorities.

1. Environmental Impacts & Field-Based Decision-Making

Research should help identify:

• Environmental risks and benefits.
• Relevant drivers and thresholds.
• Effects across different ocean conditions.
• Effects of dosage levels, feedstocks and deployment contexts.
• Improved field monitoring approaches for siting, scaling and engineering decisions. 

2. Measurement, Reporting & Verification (MRV)

Projects should help:

• Identify sources of uncertainty in carbon-removal efficiency.
• Quantify and reduce MRV uncertainty.
• Develop combinations of measurements, models and tools that improve MRV quality and affordability. 

3. Dispersal Engineering & Industry Integration

Projects may:

• Field-test promising OAE pathways.
• Demonstrate dispersal configurations.
• Explore industry integrations.
• Balance engineering practicality, retention, environmental safety and monitoring clarity. 

4. Governance & Community Engagement

Research programmes should work with:

• Regulators to clarify permitting pathways.
• Communities and rights holders.
• Stakeholders involved in responsible research and science communication. 

Out of Scope

Open Call 1 does not support proposals that focus solely on:

• Laboratory research.
• Mesocosm research.
• Modelling.

A field research component is required.

FOUR GRANT TYPES UNDER OPEN CALL 1

1A — Field Site Exploration Grants

Purpose

For early-stage exploration of potentially suitable locations for OAE research.

Projects should:

• Evaluate the scientific potential of a site.
• Bring together local partners.
• Assess community and political interest.
• Test whether the site could support valuable OAE research. 

Who Should Apply?

The call identifies:

• Organisations.
• Scientists.
• Community members.
• Stewards of relevant ocean infrastructure.

Applicants should have a strong hypothesis and a plan involving appropriate scientific, community, regulatory and technical partners.

Expected Outcomes

• Scientific value proposition for the site.
• Vetted OAE field-site location.
• Inventory of existing data, assets and infrastructure.
• Understanding of permitting feasibility and requirements.
• Coalition of interested partners. 

Funding

USD 30,000–100,000

1B — Field Site Development Grants

Purpose

For promising sites that have progressed beyond initial exploration and are ready to be developed into research-ready locations.

Support can include:

• Physical research infrastructure.
• Baseline characterisation.
• Dispersal engineering.
• Research design.
• Feedstock composition and ecotoxicology work.
• Site characterisation.
• Modelling and measurement capabilities.
• Permitting. 

Who Should Apply?

Project leaders who can demonstrate:

• A strong scientific value proposition.
• A sound development strategy.
• Understanding of scientific research operations.
• Permitting expertise. 

Expected Outcomes

• Robust baseline data.
• Scientific infrastructure for future fieldwork.
• Near-field and regional models.
• Permit for alkalinity dosing.
• Informed community support. 

Funding

USD 500,000–1 million

1C — Field Research Grants

Purpose

For research-ready field sites to conduct active OAE field research.

Projects should conduct in-situ scientific research and demonstration addressing OAE:

• Safety.
• Efficacy.
• Potential scalability. 

Activities may include:

• Generating or acquiring alkalinity.
• Dosing alkalinity.
• Monitoring environmental effects.
• Measuring and modelling results.
• Publishing findings. 

Who Should Apply?

Field-site owners or operators with:

• Permits, pending permits or another licence to operate.
• Necessary infrastructure.
• Demonstrated support for conducting an active OAE trial. 

Expected Outcomes

• Published research on important OAE questions.
• Open datasets and cross-site comparisons.
• Operational, technical and engineering learnings.
• Improved regulatory capacity and oversight.
• Public engagement, education and participation. 

Funding

USD 500,000–1 million

1D — Network Participation Grants

Purpose

These grants support researchers and project developers that already have completed or fully funded OAE trials and want to strengthen their participation in the international research network.

The objective is to improve:

• Knowledge sharing.
• Data sharing.
• Collaboration.
• Adoption of field-wide standards. 

Who Should Apply?

• Scientists at academic institutions.
• Non-profits.
• Research centres.
• OAE project developers.

Applicants should have completed OAE research or secured funding for an upcoming trial.

Expected Outcomes

• Documented lessons from previous trials.
• Field data structured for comparison through Data Commons.
• A more interconnected international OAE research community. 

Funding

USD 20,000

GLOBAL OAE FIELD RESEARCH NETWORK

All successful grant recipients from Open Call 1 become members of the Global OAE Field Research Network.

Network Benefits

Members receive:

• Best-practice exchange with functional experts across engineering, research, regulation and community engagement.
• Connections to global OAE research priorities.
• Greater visibility within the international OAE research community.
• Input into emerging global standards.
• Ad-hoc Carbon to Sea support for field research planning and execution.
• Increased visibility into future funding opportunities. 

Network Commitments

Recipients must:

• Designate a network representative.
• Participate in approximately quarterly virtual collaboration forums and annual in-person forums.
• Provide research updates.
• Host network researchers/delegates for site visits.
• Share best practices and lessons.
• Adopt emerging standards.
• Upload data and metadata to open-access repositories.
• Provide annual written updates. 

OPEN CALL 2 — TARGETED RESEARCH & INNOVATION

Open Call 2 addresses two high-priority questions identified by Carbon to Sea:

Trust

Can the amount of net carbon removed be accurately quantified when natural processes such as sediment alkalinity cycling are taken into account?

Supply

Can OAE obtain a sufficiently safe, low-carbon, efficient and affordable source of alkalinity to reach meaningful scale?

The call therefore has two grant categories.

2A — SEDIMENT ADDITIONALITY GRANTS

Purpose

These grants investigate how OAE interacts with natural sediment alkalinity flux and what that means for carbon-removal efficiency.

Marine sediments are an important natural source of alkalinity, but the magnitude and direction of sediment alkalinity fluxes remain poorly constrained. The research is intended to improve the ability to identify and quantify potential OAE-related efficiency losses or gains.

Priority Research Questions

Research may address:

• Drivers of sediment alkalinity flux.
• Effects of OAE on natural alkalinity flux.
• Potential suppression, displacement or enhancement of alkalinity.
• Secondary precipitation risks.
• Differences between carbonate-rich, organic-rich and silicate-rich sediments.
• Coastal-setting variability.
• Bioturbation and benthic-community effects.
• Porewater diagenesis.
• Integration of sediment processes into oceanographic and biogeochemical models. 

Who Should Apply?

Researchers, laboratories or scientific consortia with capabilities to investigate:

• Sediment types.
• Sediment alkalinity flux.
• Alkalinity perturbation.
• Porewater diagenesis.
• Bioturbation.
• Sediment modelling and parameterisation. 

Out of Scope

Localised studies involving highly unique sediments or circumstances that are difficult to extrapolate to broader ocean environments are not in scope.

Expected Outcomes

Projects should generate:

• Open-access findings.
• Stronger mechanistic understanding of sediment-related OAE effects.
• Parameters for site selection, monitoring and modelling.
• Evidence contributing to consensus on sediment-related alkalinity impacts in OAE assessments. 

Funding

USD 500,000 total

2B — ALKALINITY INNOVATION GRANTS

Purpose

These grants address the supply side of OAE, supporting innovation that improves the availability, performance and viability of alkalinity sources.

The choice of alkalinity source affects:

• OAE efficiency.
• Ecological safety.
• Permitting complexity.
• Carbon accounting.
• Operational logistics. 

Priority Areas

Projects may investigate:

• New methods for sourcing, processing or producing alkaline materials.
• Improved material performance, efficiency or dissolution.
• Thermochemical approaches.
• Electrochemical approaches.
• Material-science approaches.
• Faster-dissolving, higher-performance alkaline feedstocks.
• Lower-carbon processing.
• Waste-stream or by-product upcycling.
• Improved procurement and transportation.
• Improved techno-economic and life-cycle efficiency.
• Screening tools for new or hybrid materials.
• Lab-to-field extrapolation models.
• Compositional fingerprinting for safety, traceability and field-readiness. 

Who Should Apply?

The call identifies:

• Researchers.
• Laboratories.
• Companies.
• Organisations.
• Scientific consortia.

Applicants should have a demonstrated understanding of and capability to address the relevant strategic knowledge gaps.

Out of Scope

The RFP excludes projects focused on:

• Environmental testing of existing alkalinity sources.
• Dispersal engineering of existing alkalinity sources.
• New sensors specifically intended for in-field monitoring. 

Expected Outcomes

Projects should contribute to:

• Open-access research and development findings.
• Better understanding of novel alkaline materials.
• Improved readiness for advanced laboratory or field testing.
• Improved techno-economic and life-cycle viability.
• Shared standards/frameworks for evaluating and comparing alkalinity sources. 

Funding

USD 500,000 total

DATA, ENVIRONMENTAL & RESEARCH PRACTICES

Applicants must follow the OAE Data Management Protocol and, where relevant, the OAE Environmental Impact Monitoring Framework.

Carbon to Sea also encourages applicants to consult relevant best-practice guidance covering:

• OAE research.
• Tribal and Indigenous engagement.
• Community engagement in marine carbon dioxide removal research. 

GEOGRAPHIC SCOPE

Global

Open Call 1 is explicitly structured around creating a Global OAE Field Research Network, with the goal of building a portfolio of sites that varies across regions, physical and biogeochemical settings, deployment pathways, industries, community-benefit structures and permitting regimes.

The call does not specify a restricted list of eligible countries for either open call.

KEY APPLICANT CONSIDERATIONS

The two Open Calls target different levels of readiness:

Open Call 1A: Early exploration of a potential OAE field site.

Open Call 1B: Development of a promising site towards research readiness.

Open Call 1C: Active field research at a permitted or permit-pending site.

Open Call 1D: Participation in the global network for existing or already-funded/completed OAE research.

Open Call 2A: Research into sediment alkalinity flux and OAE carbon-removal efficiency.

Open Call 2B: Innovation in alkalinity sourcing, processing and production.

This means applicants should select the grant type that corresponds to the actual maturity and nature of their OAE work, rather than applying to the highest-value category simply because it offers more funding.

APPLICATION PROCESS

Interested parties must submit a pre-proposal by 30 September 2026.

Selected applicants will subsequently be invited to submit full proposals in October 2026.

Applicants are directed to the Application Guidance for the detailed submission requirements. 

Click HERE to visit the official website.