Ex situ enhanced mineralisation (ESEM) is a durable carbon dioxide removal (CDR) approach that reacts COâ‚‚ with alkaline industrial residues to form stable carbonates while producing usable materials. Drawing on recent analysis from Saudi Arabia, this paper assesses the technical potential and policy implications of ESEM within the Circular Carbon Economy framework. The findings indicate that industrial residues such as steel slag, cement kiln dust, red mud, and phosphogypsum could collectively sequester up to 9.6 Mt COâ‚‚ per year by 2060. While smaller in scale than geological storage, ESEM provides a verifiable, permanent, and industrially integrated removal option. For the United Kingdom, lower feedstock availability is offset by strong policy, market, and innovation frameworks. The paper concludes that a UK-wide assessment of ESEM potential, supported by targeted R&D under the Greenhouse Gas Removal (GGR) Programme, is needed to address technical barriers, improve technology readiness, and reduce costs.
