The US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM) will allocate $127.5 million in federal funding to support the development of carbon dioxide (CO2) capture, removal, and conversion test centers at cement manufacturing facilities and power plants.
To achieve the goal of a net-zero emissions economy by 2050 the US needs rapid and responsible advancement of technologies that capture CO2 emissions from industrial operations and power generation, as well as the removal of CO2 directly from the atmosphere. However, the high energy and capital costs associated with current carbon capture systems present a significant barrier to widespread deployment. This initiative aims to establish test centres that will facilitate cost-effective research and evaluation of carbon capture, removal, and conversion technologies in industrial and utility settings.
This funding opportunity announcement (FOA) focuses on three key areas- setting up a carbon capture, removal, and conversion test center at an electric generating unit; enabling capital improvements at existing carbon capture test facilities; and carbon capture, removal, and setting of conversion technology test centre at a cement manufacturing facility.
Projects selected under this funding opportunity will support testing facilities that advance technologies for capturing and converting CO₂ from utility and industrial sources or removing CO2 from the atmosphere. This research is expected to enable more economical and environmentally sustainable carbon management solutions.
“Carbon capture and storage is one of our critical pathways for significantly reducing domestic and global carbon dioxide emissions. Investments in test centres will help reduce costs, minimise environmental risks, scale up carbon capture, removal, and conversion processes to commercial scale, and ultimately help reduce carbon pollution,” said Brad Crabtree, Assistant Secretary of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management.