by Congratulations to the algae projects that were part of the Department of Energy’s recently announced financing for efforts to accelerate the production of sustainable biofuels. ABO members on the list include Global Algae Innovations and MicroBio Engineering Inc.
Read more about the awards here.
More funding is on the way, and is set to be competitively distributed by federal agencies in the next fiscal year. Late in 2022 Congress passed legislation appropriating funds to nearly every corner of the government, and they did not leave out programs that can advance algae & seaweed research and technology development.
For the Department of Energy (DOE) alone, the Algae Biomass Organization advocated for millions in continued support. This kind of technology development includes new science, but also accelerates projects that can get algae & seaweed production to commercial operations.
The recent appropriations bill included for the DOE:
- $40 million allocated to DOE’s Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) for algae technology and commercialization R&D. There is also programmatic language directing DOE to address “research challenges to maximize use of atmospheric” CO2 in the context of eliminating the need to co-locate algal production facilities with power plants.
- For DOE, Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM), $10M is appropriated for R&D of carbon utilization using algal systems. This is $2 million more than was dedicated in previous funding legislation.
These are great results for continued research and commercialization efforts. With a coordinated effort we can make algae and seaweed a sought-after solution for markets that need sustainability, performance and cost improvements.
ABO will continue our efforts to advocate in Congress and elsewhere for this kind of research.
Need help learning about federal funding opportunities for algae and seaweed? Reach out to ABO! Our membership is a network of professionals with insight into upcoming opportunities, the application process, partnership coordination and more.
