US awards record $6 billion to back industrial emissions reduction projects
investing.comBy Andrea Shalal and David Shepardson
WASHINGTON (Reuters) — The U.S. Energy Department on Monday announced $6 billion in federal funding to subsidize 33 industrial projects in 20 states to cut carbon emissions, saying the investment would support well-paying union jobs and boost U.S. competitiveness.
Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm will unveil the awards during a visit to a Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF) Steel Corp facility in Middletown, Ohio, which will receive up to $500 million to install two new electric arc furnaces and hydrogen-based technology to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 1 million tons.
Granholm said the initiative, the single largest industrial decarbonization investment in U.S. history, would leverage a total of $20 billion, including the companies' share of the costs. Together, the projects are expected to eliminate 14 million metric tons of pollution each year, equivalent to taking some 3 million gas-powered vehicles off the road, she said.
The Portland Cement Association, an industry group, said the funding «is a welcome acknowledgement from the government that America’s cement manufacturers are taking ambitious and significant steps toward reaching carbon neutrality.»
Manufacturing of construction materials is a significant source of global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. Production of cement, the main ingredient of concrete, accounted for 7% of global CO2 emissions in 2019, the International Energy Agency estimates.
The awards come as President Joe Biden's 2024 reelection campaign kicks into high gear, with the Democratic president and other key officials traveling to battleground political states to tout the administration's economic policies and job creation.
Granholm said the projects would
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