The USA's coal lobby has accused the country's government of hypocrisy over clean coal technology development after funding for the planned $1.65 billion FutureGen project was withdrawn.
The US Department of Energy (DOE) said that it would not provide the $1 billion in stimulus funding that it had committed to the project in western Illinois. The FutureGen partners responded by saying they would have to cancel the project, according to Associated Press.
The American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity (ACCCE), a pro-coal action group, said that the decision to pull funding showed the Obama administration's hypocrisy on clean coal policy. "Although the administration leaned heavily on FutureGen technologies to justify its flawed New Source Performance Standards rule, President Obama has now cut the project off altogether - demonstrating his hypocrisy towards the American people and his bias against advanced clean coal technologies," said Laura Sheehan, senior vice president for communications at ACCCE.
"President Obama and his federal agencies are clearly opposed to advancing carbon capture and storage technology, despite repeated assurances."
According to Associated Press, the DOE concluded that the project couldn't meet a September deadline for using the stimulus funds. The federal department has so far spent $116.5 million on the power plant and $86 million on the underground storage site.
Private companies have spent $25 million on the project and the state of Illinois has spent $9 million.
The project envisioned converting an existing power plant with oxy-combustion technology and storing captured carbon dioxide in underground rock formations.
Last September the FutureGen project reached a major milestone when the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued permits for underground carbon storage.
Sian Crampsie
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