The Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM) with the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), in partnership with other parts of the Department, including the Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations (OCED), Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office (HFTO), Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO), Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO), Geothermal Technologies Office (GTO), Office of Science, and the Office of Technology Transitions (OTT) intend to issue multiple funding opportunities over the next several years to support the development and commercialization of carbon dioxide removal (CDR) technologies and collectively enable the Department’s Carbon Negative Shot (CNS) target of gigaton-scale deployment for less than $100 per net metric ton (tonne) of CO2-equivalent (CO2e) within a decade.

DOE plans to design and release a series of multi-topic, multi-year funding opportunities soliciting applied research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) for CDR technologies that will be coordinated across DOE offices in order to achieve CNS objectives across CDR pathways. These funding opportunities are expected to focus on several topics responsive to both Departmental annual CDR programmatic priorities and several CDR Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) related activities. In alignment with the Department’s commitment to equity, justice, and community consultation, these topic areas incorporate Community Benefit Plan requirements to ensure projects do not have adverse impacts and do support workforce development and environmental protection. These funding opportunities include this funding opportunity announcement (FOA), which is focused on integrated pilot-scale testing of advanced CDR technologies in relevant environments.

CNS, as part of the DOE's larger Energy Earthshots Initiative, is the United States government’s first major effort in CDR and is a department-wide call for crosscutting innovation and commercialization of a wide range of CDR pathways. The challenge sets the goal of less than $100 per net tonne of CO2-equivalent removed across CDR pathways with gigaton scale potential inclusive of monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV) and durable storage by 2032. Achieving this ambitious goal is essential for the U.S. to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, and to enable the clean-up of legacy emissions thereafter. This FOA aims to support achievement of CNS objectives across CDR pathways through support for integrated pilot-scale testing of advanced CDR technologies in relevant environments.

Under the current FOA opening, applications are solicited in the following subtopics:

• AOI-1. Small Biomass Carbon Removal and Storage (BiCRS) Pilots: The objective of AOI-1 is to support integrated pilot-scale testing of BiCRS or conversion with appropriate MRV. BiCRS pilots will investigate and validate various pathways, including but not limited to: pyrolysis, gasification, combustion, conversion, burial, sinking, bioliquid injection, and alternative conversion or storage methods, such as engineered wood products and biofiber entombment. These pathways may include coproducts, such as hydrogen, liquid transportation fuels, and electricity.
• AOI-2. Small Mineralization Pilots: The objective of AOI-2 is to support integrated pilot-scale testing of enhanced mineralization technologies with appropriate MRV from enacted authorities and appropriations. Enhanced mineralization pilots will demonstrate the potential to leverage alkaline materials and accelerated weathering techniques to hasten the rate of CO2 storage in ex-situ or surficial contexts.
• AOI-3. Multi-Pathways CDR Testbed Facilities: The objective of AOI-3 is to support CDR testbed facilities suitable for evaluating, developing, and integrating multiple CDR pathways across different ecosystems, climates, and communities. Testbeds should demonstrate capacity to accommodate and enhance the testing of several CDR pathways with common infrastructure, interdisciplinary assessment, and commercialization support.

AOI-4 is anticipated to be issued under future amendments to the FOA.