DOE announces coal technology funding

The U.S. Department of Energy has announced the availability of $50 million in funding for projects targeting the design, construction and operation of two large scale pilot plants for the improvement of coal powered systems. The pilot plants must address improved performance, efficiency, emission reduction and the cost of electricity. The plants must use domestic U.S. coal, or fuels derived from domestic coal, DOE says.

Applicants must commit to share at least 20 percent of the project cost and have already demonstrated success in a small-scale pilot project.

The funding will be disbursed in three phases. Phase one will support preliminary cost estimating, planning and the assembly of environmental information for selected projects. Projects then selected to progress to phase two will complete front-end engineering design and conduct the process required under the National Environmental Policy Act. Then DOE will choose at least two finalist projects to proceed to the construction and operation of the large-scale pilot facilities.

At this point, DOE is seeking applications for phase one. However, applicants must also offer preliminary plans for carrying out phases two and three.

- ALAN BAILEY