WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM) today announced up to $52.5 million, made available through President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, to advance carbon dioxide removal technologies that reduce legacy carbon dioxide (CO₂) pollution by removing it directly from the atmosphere to counter-balance emissions from hard-to-abate sectors, such as aviation and shipping. 

Carbon dioxide removal is a key component for achieving the Biden-Harris Administration’s historic climate and clean energy agenda. The American-Made Commercial Direct Air Capture Pilot Prize, funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, will support the development and deployment of direct air capture pilot projects that have demonstrated commercial readiness. This will help advance the industry, create meaningful and well-paying jobs, increase private investment, and help deliver the benefits of climate investments to the communities that host clean energy projects.

“Achieving our ambitious climate goals requires the rapid scale-up of carbon dioxide removal technologies,” said Brad Crabtree, Assistant Secretary of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management. “Today DOE is launching the Commercial Direct Air Capture Pilot Prize—the latest in a suite of programs that provide groundbreaking support to help de-risk and demonstrate commercial viability of direct air capture technology with the ultimate goal of industry deployment.” 

Commercial Direct Air Capture Pilot Prize Now Accepting Applications

The Commercial Direct Air Capture Pilot Prize supports technology developers that design, build, commission, and operate innovative direct air capture pilot facilities capable of capturing at least 500 tonnes of atmospheric carbon dioxide per year. 

The prize will provide up to $52.5 million to participants as they successfully achieve design, development, and deployment milestones over the course of four phases: Concept, Engineer, Permit, and Operate. Winning teams will be eligible to win up to $12 million each for successfully navigating the phases and ultimately operating a pilot direct air capture system for at least 2,000 hours. Competitors will also demonstrate their potential to contribute to, or participate in, the Regional Direct Air Capture Hubs program. This Bipartisan Infrastructure Law program will develop four domestic direct air capture hubs that will each demonstrate a direct air capture technology or suite of technologies at a commercial scale, with the potential for capturing at least 1 million tonnes of CO₂ annually.

Private entities (for- or non-profits); non-federal government entities such as states, counties, Tribes, and municipalities; and academic institutions that meet requirements are eligible to apply for the Commercial Direct Air Capture Pilot Prize. 

Phase 1 of the Commercial Direct Air Capture Pilot Prize is currently accepting applications through February 7, 2025. 

DOE’s Direct Air Capture Prizes

The American-Made Direct Air Capture Prizes, sponsored by FECM and administered by DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory, support direct air capture technology advancement for decarbonization with a focus on incorporating environmental justice, community benefits planning and engagement, equity, and workforce development. This group of prizes consists of separate but related competitions that work together to advance the full suite of carbon dioxide removal technologies from ideas to market-ready, scalable, and impactful commercialization.

The Commercial Direct Air Capture Prize will offer up to $100 million in prizes and technical assistance through two competition tracks: the Commercial Direct Air Capture Pilot Prize announced today, and the Carbon Dioxide Removal Purchase Pilot Prize, launched September 2023. DOE recently announced 24 semifinalists to receive a total of $1.2 million under the first phase of the Carbon Dioxide Removal Purchase Pilot Prize.

The prize suite also includes the Pre-Commercial Energy Program for Innovation Clusters Prize and Pre-Commercial Technology Prize, both launched in March 2023. 

Learn more about the Commercial Direct Air Capture Prize on the American-Made Challenges website. View the Commercial Direct Air Capture Pilot Prize Track Official Prize Rules and follow updates on upcoming information webinars and other resources on the prize’s HeroX page.

FECM minimizes environmental and climate impacts of fossil fuels and industrial processes while working to achieve net-zero emissions across the U.S. economy. Priority areas of technology work include carbon capture, carbon conversion, carbon dioxide removal, carbon dioxide transport and storage, hydrogen production with carbon management, methane emissions reduction, and critical minerals production. To learn more, visit the FECM website, sign up for FECM news announcements, and visit the National Energy Technology Laboratory website.