The US Department of Energy (DOE) has announced USD890m in federal funding for projects that demonstrate the viability of carbon capture technologies, as reported by Reuters on December 15. The projects selected for awards include the carbon capture and storage (CCS) systems deployed in two natural gas power plants located in Yuba City, California and Baytown, Texas, as well as a coal-fired power plant in North Dakota. The carbon dioxide (CO2) emitted from these power plants will be captured and transported for permanent sequestration, with the potential to collectively reduce annual emissions by 7.75 million tons.

These awards are part of the DOE’s Carbon Capture Demonstration Projects Program, which will invest USD2.5bn to accelerate the demonstration and deployment of carbon management technologies. Launched in 2022, the program focuses on integrated carbon capture, transport, and storage technologies and infrastructure that can be replicated and applied at fossil energy power plants and major industrial sources of CO2. Notably, the program is funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed in 2021, which earmarked approximately USD6.5bn over five years for carbon management projects. The DOE deems CCS a crucial tool to abate emissions from the power sector, which is responsible for more than a quarter of US carbon emissions. According to DOE estimates, it requires capturing and storing 400 million to 1.8 billion tons of CO2 from emissions sources annually by 2050 to achieve America’s net-zero emissions target.

Sources:

https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/us-awards-up-890-million-carbon-capture-projects-gas-coal-plants-2023-12-14/

https://www.energy.gov/oced/articles/oced-selects-three-projects-ca-nd-and-tx-reduce-harmful-carbon-pollution-create-new

https://www.esgtoday.com/u-s-grants-890-million-for-carbon-capture-projects-at-coal-and-gas-power-plants/