DOE awarding $428 million to fund clean energy projects in coal communities

The Department of Energy is investing $428 million in projects to accelerate clean energy manufacturing in coal communities across the United States.

The projects, located in communities with de-commissioned coal facilities, were selected by DOE’s Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains (MESC) to address critical energy supply chain vulnerabilities, the DOE says.

Five of the projects will be either in or adjacent to disadvantaged communities. The projects are expected to leverage over $500 million in private sector investment into small- and medium-manufacturers and create over 1,900 jobs.

“The transition to America’s clean energy future is being shaped by communities filled with the valuable talent and experience that comes from powering our country for decades,” says U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm. “By leveraging the know-how and skillset of the former coal workforce, we are strengthening our national security while helping advance forward-facing technologies and revitalize communities across the nation.”

The global market for clean energy and carbon reduction technologies is expected to reach a minimum of $23 trillion by 2030, according to the DOE.

The 14 projects will address five key supply chains: grid components, batteries, low-carbon materials, clean power generation and energy efficiency products.

Awards include:

$87 million to Mainspring Energy in Coraopolis, Pennsylvania to establish a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility near Pittsburgh to produce 1,000 linear generators that can run on any gaseous fuel and change fuels without any hardware changes. The facility is expected to create 600 operations positions, offering above-average pay, benefits and growth opportunities.

$52.6 million to Terra CO2 Holdings in Magna, Utah to establish a new manufacturing facility to produce an innovative high-performing supplementary cementitious material (SCM), a 70% lower emission and cost-effective replacement for traditional ordinary Portland cement. This project is expected to create 61 new jobs with wages and benefits above the 75th percentile compared to national averages and train and upskill up to 144 people from underrepresented populations.

$37 million selection to Urban Mining Industries in Indiantown, Florida and Baltimore to develop manufacturing plants that will convert landfill-bound recycled glass into a ground glass pozzolan, which is used to replace up to 50% of carbon-intensive cement in concrete mixes. The replacement material can drastically reduce embodied emissions while increasing resistance to road salts and increasing reflective properties, the DOE says. The project is expected to create 20 new skilled jobs with high-paying hourly wages at each site.

$28.2 million to TS Conductor in Erie, Michigan to establish U.S.-based manufacturing of high voltage direct current (HVDC) conductors and other advanced conductors that enable a secure and resilient clean grid. The new factory will create 425 construction jobs and 162 operating jobs with wages above the local prevailing rate.

$24.9 million to Anthro Energy in Louisville to retrofit a facility to enable the domestic production of advanced electrolyte for use in Lithium-ion battery cells in electric vehicles, defense applications, and consumer electronics. The project will create an estimated 115 permanent high-quality jobs.

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