As I write this, I’m sipping on a soda water – a luxury our friends Down Under don’t have right now. Due to a perfect storm of climate change, political unrest, and literal accidents, Australia and New Zealand are experiencing a carbon dioxide shortage. This translates to a noticeable dearth of pop cans on supermarket shelves; or, as they would call them “fizzy drinks.” Photos of empty racks are circulating in the news and on social media: Think early COVID, where instead of toilet paper and baker’s yeast, it’s flats of Diet Coke.
“At the recent Gasworld European CO2 Summit 2024 in Austria, Content Director Rob Cockerill reflected on the new dynamics sweeping the international CO2 market. ‘Does that mean another CO2 crisis is coming? It’s potentially going to happen.’ […]
‘For the supply chain, the challenges are competition for sources. You’ve got a lot of traditional sources supplying emerging markets, that are moving out of Western Europe and North America to lower-cost energy environments, and then there is carbon capture and sequestration which is also competing for those sources.’
Alongside traditional demand driven by the food and beverage industry are some interesting emerging applications, such as e-fuels, sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) and green concrete, which Carson said has the potential to be ‘gigantic.’”
Major CO2 supplier BOC has chimed in, telling Australia’s ABC News that it’s working to re-establish the supply chain, but prioritizing delivery for medical, water treatment, and safety first. Here’s hoping this isn’t the first sign of complete social collapse, and our antipodean amigos will soon have their fizzy drink supply restored – in time for (their) winter!