US battery and carbon capture projects slated for cuts on DOE list
By Valerie Volcovici and Nichola Groom
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Department of Energy is weighing cuts to billions of dollars in funding for projects meant to demonstrate nascent energy storage and carbon capture, according to a list seen by Reuters.
Rescinding funding for the projects would represent a major blow to promising new carbon-emission cutting technologies that rely heavily on government support because most traditional private sector investors consider them too risky.
Among the projects marked “cut” on the list of over two dozen funded by the DOE’s Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations are four carbon capture pilot projects that were awarded a total of $309 million last year, and three later-stage demonstration projects in California, Texas and North Dakota that received $890 million for integrated carbon capture, transport, and storage technologies.
Jessie Stolark, executive director of the Carbon Capture Coalition trade group, said in an interview,
All of our members are making the case that these are critically important projects so to pull back at this moment in time is catastrophic,
Some projects are beginning to run test wells or start construction, Stolark added.
The list also showed planned funding cuts for six of nine long-duration battery storage projects. The companies involved were awarded $350 million to develop technology that would help utilities and grid operators integrate renewable energy sources like solar and wind by storing the power they produce for longer periods of time.
Among the projects marked “cut” on the list of over two dozen funded by the DOE’s Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations are four carbon capture pilot projects that were awarded a total of $309 million last year, and three later-stage demonstration projects in California, Texas and North Dakota that received $890 million for integrated carbon capture, transport, and storage technologies.
Jessie Stolark, executive director of the Carbon Capture Coalition trade group, said in an interview,
All of our members are making the case that these are critically important projects so to pull back at this moment in time is catastrophic,
Some projects are beginning to run test wells or start construction, Stolark added.
The list also showed planned funding cuts for six of nine long-duration battery storage projects. The companies involved were awarded $350 million to develop technology that would help utilities and grid operators integrate renewable energy sources like solar and wind by storing the power they produce for longer periods of time.
They include projects by power sector giants including NextEra, which was granted up to $49 million to put zinc-bromide batteries at solar and wind facilities in three states, and Westinghouse, which was awarded up to $50 million for a pumped thermal storage system in Alaska.
Others affected include startups like Smartville and ReJoule, which repurpose used electric vehicle batteries, and New York-based Urban Electric Power, which has developed a zinc manganese dioxide battery.
Zora Chung, co-founder of California-based ReJoule, said in an email,
We are actively working to communicate the importance of our work to Energy Secretary Chris Wright and are engaging with our congressional representatives to ensure continued support for energy innovation,
“Given the broad importance of domestic energy resilience and advanced battery technology, we believe this is an issue of national interest that transcends party lines.”
The Department of Energy did not immediately respond to a request for comment. NextEra and Westinghouse also did not respond to requests for comment. Urban Electric Power declined to comment.
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US battery and carbon capture projects slated for cuts on DOE list, source
