Climate Politics
Manchin Spurs US Reversal on Carbon Capture Funding in Win for Big Oil
- Funding will go to projects that produce fossil fuels
- DOE pivots on policy after Manchin, senators send letter
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The Biden administration has reversed course on a carbon capture funding program to allow oil production following an intervention by senators including Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema, handing a win to the fossil fuel industry.
The Department of Energy on Tuesday announced $3.7 billion of funding to back projects that remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, which have long been considered key technologies needed to reach net-zero goals. But in a policy pivot, the programs now open the door to the use of taxpayer dollars to fund carbon capture projects that produce fossil fuels through a process known as enhanced oil recovery, or EOR.