Decarbonization projects in steel, aluminum and cement making that contribute nearly 25% greenhouse gas emissions in the US will get a boost of $6 billion in funding from the government as part of President Joe Biden’s pledge to decarbonize the U.S. economy by 2050.
The Department of Energy (DOE) on Tuesday said the Industrial Demonstrations Program will provide competitive grants to technology developers, industry, universities and others for up to 50% of the cost of projects that aim to cut emissions from industry that also includes production of chemicals, ceramics and paper.
U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said the program will help cut pollution while ensuring the competitiveness of American manufacturing.
“It’s not super-defined,” Granholm was quoted as saying at the CERAWeek conference in Houston about the program which aims to fund projects at existing and new facilities alike.
He added that the decarbonization technologies should be something “we can learn from and then have that technology be replicated and taken to scale.”
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The funding will come from the infrastructure bill President Joe Biden signed in 2021, and the Inflation Reduction Act he signed last year.
Environmental groups have praised the program but urged DOE to allocate at least 40% of the resources to facilities near communities that face environmental and social impacts from heavy industry.
“This new funding is an unmissable opportunity to modernize American primary steel manufacturing, reduce climate and health harming pollution and create jobs. Without investment today, the industry risks falling behind in the race to green steel,” Hilary Lewis, steel director at Industrious Labs, a nonprofit working on the energy transition was quoted as saying.
DOE said concept papers expressing interest in the grants are due April 21, with full applications due on Aug. 4.
Story was adapted from Reuters.
