The U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations has issued a notice of intent to fund up to $1.8 billion for the design, construction, and operation of mid- and large-scale commercial direct air capture facilities and infrastructure scaling platforms.
This funding supports a broad range of promising direct air capture (DAC) technologies on their path to commercialization and deployment that can spur the growth of additional DAC Hubs, DOE said.
The funding is part of the Regional DAC Hubs program.
DAC is a process that separates CO2 from the air. The separated CO2 can then be safely and permanently stored deep underground or converted into useful carbon-containing products like concrete that prevent its release back into the atmosphere.
The anticipated funding "aims to provide potential applicants with flexible and comprehensive pathways to spur the development of commercial DAC facilities, including DAC facilities at mid- to large-scale along with supporting infrastructure, and expand to Regional DAC Hubs," DOE said on Sept. 20.
OCED, in collaboration with the DOE Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management, intends to offer funding in recurring openings across multiple years due to the rapidly advancing DAC field. "This intentional flexibility in funding provides more opportunities to benefit from the latest generations of DAC technology and ensure the funding supports the highest-impact projects," DOE said.
OCED anticipates offering funding in the following three topic areas:
- Topic Area 1: Funding 1-3 infrastructure scaling platforms, or host sites, to provide DAC developers with a place to build and operate facilities with access to clean energy and shared CO2 post-capture processing. Maximum of $250 million for a single project.
- Topic Area 2: Funding 4-8 mid-scale commercial DAC facilities with a capture capacity between 2,000 and 25,000 tons of CO2 per year. Maximum of $50 million for a single project.
- Topic Area 3: Funding 2-6 large-scale commercial DAC facilities with a minimum capture capacity of 25,000 tons of CO2 per year. Maximum of $600 million for a single project.
Projects in all topic areas will require a 50% minimum non-federal cost share.
In addition to funding for large-scale facilities, the anticipated funding would also support the development of Regional DAC Hubs by providing the DAC industry with more comprehensive support as it continues to commercialize new technologies, DOE noted.
"Funding for mid-scale capture facilities and complementary infrastructure platforms is a critical step to help earlier stage developers prove out their technology and business model before advancing to larger-scale demonstrations. While the majority of the program’s funding is envisioned for larger-scale facilities, the funding for mid-scale facilities and supporting platforms is planned to fill this critical gap by increasing the likelihood of success and impact of the anticipated four Regional DAC Hubs."
OCED anticipates that the funding solicitation will be released in the winter of 2024. Potential applicants may wish to register for the informational webinar on October 10, 2024 here.
OCED is also planning to hold an in-person Industry Day in November to facilitate partnerships among eligible applicant teams. Learn more and register for the upcoming Industry Day here. Visit the OCED website to learn more about upcoming engagement opportunities related to the NOI.
In August 2023, under the Regional DAC Hubs program’s first funding opportunity announcement, DOE announced the selection of 21 projects for award negotiations, including two Regional DAC Hubs in Louisiana and Texas.
The additional 19 projects, managed by DOE’s Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management, received funding for earlier stages of project development, including feasibility assessments and front-end engineering and design studies to assess viability of future DAC Hub demonstrations.
