Clean Hydrogen Works has taken ExxonMobil to court, accusing the oil giant of turning control of a critical carbon dioxide pipeline network into a competitive weapon.
In a lawsuit filed in a Texas business court, the startup alleges Exxon derailed its Gulf Coast blue ammonia project by directing Denbury Carbon Solutions — a company Exxon acquired in 2023 for $4.9 billion — to scrap agreements vital to carbon capture and storage operations.
The case, now unfolding in Harris County, reads like an industrial chess match where the board is a 1,000-kilometer CO₂ pipeline network and the stakes stretch into the billions.
Pipeline Access at the Center of the Dispute
According to court filings, Clean Hydrogen Works (CHW) had secured access to Denbury’s extensive carbon dioxide pipeline system, infrastructure deemed essential for capturing and transporting emissions from its planned ammonia production facility.
The startup had partnered with Denbury to build a spur line linking its Ascension Clean Energy site in central Louisiana to the main CO₂ trunk line. Denbury had invested $20 million in the project and agreed to provide transportation and storage services.
But after Exxon’s $4.9 billion acquisition of Denbury in 2023, CHW claims the arrangement unraveled.
The lawsuit alleges that Exxon instructed Denbury to terminate key agreements and demand repayment of its $20 million investment. In February 2025, Denbury allegedly accused CHW of delays and sought a full refund — moves CHW contends were designed not to address performance concerns, but to destabilize a rival.
“Everything changed” after the acquisition, the company asserts in its second amended petition.
