The Clean Energy Demonstration Program on Current and Former Mine Land is designed to demonstrate the technical and economic viability of carrying out clean energy projects on current and former mine land. Up to five clean energy projects are to be carried out in geographically diverse regions, at least two of which shall be solar projects.

Overview

Office:

Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations

New Program:

Yes

Funding amount:

$500,000,000

Funding Mechanism:

Grant, Cooperative Agreement, or Other

Recipients:

Will be stipulated in competitive solicitation

Period of Availability:

Available through 2026

More Information

Eligible Uses

The term “clean energy project” ​means a project that demonstrates one or more of the following technologies:​

  • Solar
  • Micro-grids​
  • Geothermal​
  • Direct air capture​
  • Fossil-fueled electricity generation with carbon ​capture, utilization, and sequestration
  • Energy storage, including pumped storage hydropower and ​compressed air storage
  • Advanced nuclear technologies

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In selecting clean energy projects for participation in the program, the Secretary shall prioritize clean energy projects that will—​

  • be carried out in a location where the greatest number of jobs can be created from the successful demonstration of the clean energy project;
  • provide the greatest net impact in avoiding or reducing greenhouse gas emissions;​
  • provide the greatest domestic job creation (both directly and indirectly) during the implementation of the clean energy project;​
  • provide the greatest job creation and economic development in the vicinity of the clean energy project, particularly—​in economically distressed areas; and ​with respect to dislocated workers who were previously employed in manufacturing, coal power plants, or coal mining;​
  • have the greatest potential for technological innovation and commercial deployment; ​
  • have the lowest levelized cost of generated or stored energy;​
  • have the lowest rate of greenhouse gas emissions per unit of electricity generated or stored; and​
  • have the shortest project time from permitting to completion.​

Program Announcements

Next Milestone

Estimated application opening date, CY 2023.

More Resources

OCED held three public workshops to provide a detailed overview of the Clean Energy Demonstration Program on Current and Former Mine Land (CEML), collect feedback from stakeholders on drivers, challenges, and potential impacts of mine land demonstrations, and offer a forum for stakeholder networking in preparation for the funding opportunity announcement.

Follow the links below to view the video recordings from OCED’s CEML Virtual Workshop:

View the OCED CEML Workshop Slides

OCED News 

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