Trump administration cancels billions for chemical decarbonization

The US Department of Energy (DOE) is canceling billions of dollars in awards intended to reduce industrial carbon emissions, and it is proposing major cuts to programs focused on decarbonization. Clean technology proponents warn that the moves may slow adoption of methods that reduce pollution and could undercut the country’s status as a clean technology leader.The canceled awards include an Eastman Chemical plastics recycling plant, ExxonMobil’s switch to hydrogen fuel at a Texas refinery, an Orsted low-carbon methanol facility, a project by LanzaTech and Technip Energies for low-carbon ethylene, Sublime Systems’ low-carbon cement plant, a collaboration between Via Separations and Nippon Dynawave Packaging to cut emissions in paper production, and several plans to use carbon capture technologies. The DOE says the projects aen’t economically viable and wouldn’t provide a good return on investment. The awards had been issued by the DOE’s Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations (OCED) during the Joe Biden administration. In a budget request for the DOE released May 30, the Donald J. Trump administration proposes eliminating funding for OCED and making major cuts to other offices focused on decarbonization. Notably, the request proposes zeroing out the budget for the Office of Technology Commercialization, which researches ways to commercialize clean technologies. The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, responsible for managing the network of national laboratories, could face a 74% cut. The Advanced Research Projects Agency–Energy, which supports commercialization of clean technologies, could see a 57% budget reduction.Several chemical projects funded by OCED have been spared, including