U.S. Department of Energy Announces $52.5 Million to Catalyze Commercial Carbon Dioxide Removal Technology
August 12, 2024

Funding from President Biden’s Investing in America agenda will drive technology innovation and commercialization to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions

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.

VVC – Strategic Exit of Gloria Copper Project in Mexico

November 18, 2025
TORONTO, Nov. 18, 2025 - VVC Exploration Corporation, dba VVC Resources ("VVC" or the "Company") (TSX-V: VVC; OTC: VVCVF) announces that, after a project review, it has strategically restructured its mining projects in Mexico. This project review encompassed multiple considerations, including ongoing maintenance costs, permitting authorizations, political climate, safety, upside potential and financeability of each project and probability of achieving the projects potential. After this review, the Company has decided to: Exit the Gloria Copper Project located near Samalayuca, State of Chihuahua, Mexico. This long-standing project of the Company is expensive to maintain and is in an area that has become more politically volatile with uncertain safety. The geological potential of the project is not in question, but the ability to achieve that potential is unclear. Focus all mining exploration activity on the Cumeral Gold Project. Cumeral is the Company’s highly prospective gold project in north central Sonora Mexico. This project, while not as advanced as the Gloria Copper Project, has a huge upside potential. It is in an area where there is strong local support for the project and a higher likelihood of permitting and implementation success. The Cumeral Gold Project is a 1,665-hectare property in northern Sonora near Imuris which exhibits quartz-vein–hosted gold in a detachment-fault/orogenic setting with a documented NNW–SSE mineralized trend of ~4 km. Historical work reported that ~36% of 407 grab/chip samples assayed 0.1–10 g/t Au; soil surveys outlined additional anomalies (47 samples >0.020 ppm Au); and air-track drilling intersected broad, near-surface intervals of 0.21–0.44 g/t Au over 6–26 m in key target areas. The Company will continue activities on the Cumeral Gold Project. Rationale and Next Steps The Company’s decision reflects consideration of cost discipline, safety and risk management. The exit from the Gloria Copper Project will reduce future cash outlays for care, maintenance, and permitting at amid uncertainty over permit viability and broader political conditions in Chihuahua State. Capital and management resources will be reallocated to the Cumeral Gold Project exploration, and to development of the Company’s helium/natural gas project in the Central Kansas Uplift (CKU) Project where existing infrastructure and near-term activities offer a clearer path to execution. « There are opportunity costs in every project, » said Jim Culver, CEO. « Exiting the Gloria Copper Project will allow the Company to concentrate resources on projects with an obvious direct and timely route to advancing development while maintaining discipline on risk and spending. » About VVC Resources VVC engages in the exploration, development, and management of natural resources - specializing in scarce and increasingly valuable materials needed to meet the growing, high-tech demands of industries such as manufacturing, technology, medicine, space travel, and the expanding green economy. Our portfolio includes a diverse set of multi-asset high-growth projects, comprising: Helium & industrial gas production in western U.S.; Gold & associated metals operations in northern Mexico; and Strategic investments in carbon sequestration and other green energy technologies. VVC is a Canada-based, publicly-traded company on the TSXV (TSX-V:VVC). To learn more, visit our website at: www.vvcresources.com. Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. 
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VVC – Purchase of Ithaca 1-17 Well and 5 Mile Pipeline

October 9, 2025
TORONTO, Oct. 09, 2025 - VVC Exploration Corporation, dba VVC Resources ("VVC" or the "Company") (TSX-V: VVC; OTC: VVCVF) announces that Plateau Helium Corporation ("PHC"), a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company, has completed the purchase of the Ithaca 1-17 well together with approximately five miles of associated pipeline located in Rush county, Kansas in a prolific helium, gas and oil area known as the Central Kansas Uplift (CKU). The acquisition was initiated in April 2025 and PHC took possession in July 2025. As previously disclosed in our May 30, June 26 and September 2025 MD&As, PHC has a 50% operating interest in the well. The CKU Project targets helium-rich natural gas within multiple stacked reservoirs in Rush and Pawnee Counties, Kansas, where PHC has now assembled a meaningful lease position, acquired one producing property (Ithaca 1-17) and associated gas gathering system, and identified multiple development well locations. The acquisition of an existing gas gathering system serves to lower initial development cost while expediting the time needed to commence gas/helium sales and provide cashflow. « Building on a producing asset while securing midstream capacity is a practical way to de-risk our development program in the CKU, » said Bill Kerrigan, President of VVC and PHC. « The Ithaca 1-17 well and pipeline give us a backbone to bring wells online more efficiently. » About VVC Resources VVC engages in the exploration, development, and management of natural resources - specializing in scarce and increasingly valuable materials needed to meet the growing, high-tech demands of industries such as manufacturing, technology, medicine, space travel, and the expanding green economy. Our portfolio includes a diverse set of multi-asset, high-growth projects, comprising: Helium & industrial gas production in western U.S.; Gold & associated metals operations in northern Mexico; and Strategic investments in carbon sequestration and other green energy technologies. VVC is a Canada-based, publicly-traded company on the TSXV (TSX-V:VVC). To learn more, visit our website at: www.vvcresources.com.  Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
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