WASHINGTON, D.C. — As part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced up to $475 million in funding for five projects in Arizona, Kentucky, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia to accelerate clean energy deployment on current and former mine land. This funding—made possible by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law—will support a variety of diverse, locally-driven clean energy projects that can be replicated in current and former mining communities across the country. The projects are expected to expand local and regional workforce partnerships and generate local tax revenues, supporting essential public services and spurring new economic opportunities in communities that have helped power the nation for generations. Today’s announcement will help strengthen America’s energy security and ensure the nation’s mining communities continue to play a vital role in our energy economy—reinforcing the Biden-Harris Administration’s deep commitment to building an inclusive and equitable clean energy future that creates healthier, more resilient communities.
“President Biden believes that the communities that have powered our nation for the past 100 years should power our nation for the next 100 years,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. “Thanks to the President’s Investing in America agenda, DOE is helping deploy clean energy solutions on current and former mine land across the country—supporting jobs and economic development in the areas hit hardest by our evolving energy landscape.”
In line with President Biden’s Justice40 Initiative, these projects will advance energy and environmental justice and help ensure the benefits of the clean energy transition flow directly to impacted communities. The projects announced today will accelerate clean energy solutions that are critical to reducing pollution, creating healthier communities, and meeting the Biden-Harris Administration’s ambitious clean energy and climate goals.
Accelerating Clean Energy Deployment in America’s Mining Communities
The selected projects cover a range of clean energy technologies, from solar, microgrids, and pumped storage hydropower to geothermal and battery energy storage systems. Three projects are on former Appalachian coal mines, which supports economic revitalization and workforce development on land that is no longer viable for industrial purposes. In the West, two projects seek to displace fossil-fuel use by ramping up net-zero mining operations and providing the critical materials needed for a robust, domestic, clean energy supply chain. These projects are expected to create more than 3,000 good-paying construction and operations jobs.
The five projects selected for award negotiation include:
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Copper Recovery to Support America’s Domestic Energy Supply Chain (Graham and Greenlee Counties, Arizona) – This project seeks to deploy direct-use, geothermal, clean heat combined with a battery energy storage system at two active copper mines in Southeast Arizona, helping decrease the mines’ reliance on onsite thermal backup generators while supporting the annual extraction of 25 million pounds of copper, a critical material, previously considered unrecoverable. This project anticipates creating 121 construction and 12 operations jobs. Freeport Minerals Corporation, the selectee, aims to continue to foster partnerships with technical colleges and high schools, with an emphasis on expanding access for students from underrepresented groups and providing scholarships for nearly 300 Native American students from 14 tribes.
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Lewis Ridge Project (Coal-to-Pumped Storage Hydropower) (Bell County, Kentucky) – This project proposes converting former coal mine land to a closed-loop, pumped-storage hydroelectric facility with the potential to dispatch up to eight hours of power when needed, such as during times of peak demand or extreme weather events. This project will support the increase of local tax revenues that have decreased steadily since the 1970s and create approximately 1,500 construction and 30 operations jobs. Rye Development serves as the selectee and plans to prioritize local hiring through partnerships with several unions and the Southeast Kentucky Community & Technical College.
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Decarbonizing Gold Mines (Elko, Humboldt and Eureka Counties, Nevada) – This project aims to develop a solar photovoltaic (PV) facility and accompanying battery energy storage system across three active gold mines in Nevada. By shifting to clean energy, this project could demonstrate a replicable way for the mining industry to reach net-zero operations, while meeting growing demands for minerals across multiple sectors—including the clean energy supply chain. Nevada Gold Mines LLC, the selectee, has committed to local hiring; offering training, mentoring and apprenticeships; and creating 300 construction jobs to support this project.
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Mineral Basin: Coal-to-Solar (Clearfield County, Pennsylvania) – This project plans to repurpose nearly 2,700 acres of former coal mining land to support the largest solar project in Pennsylvania. At 402 MW, Mineral Basin will generate enough clean energy to power more than 70,000 homes. This project will increase regional access to clean energy and fill a critical electricity-generation gap following the closure of the Homer City coal plant. The project expects to create more than 750 construction jobs and six operations jobs, while providing $1.1 million in annual tax revenue to Goshen and Girard townships, Clearfield County and the Clearfield County School District. Once operational, Mineral Basin will contribute $500 for every megawatt generated annually to Goshen and Girard townships for community improvements, for a total of more than $200,000 per year. Mineral Basin Solar Power, LLC, a subsidiary of Swift Current Energy, the selectee, plans to partner with multiple local and regional education and workforce stakeholders to increase economic mobility for citizens across a 27-county region; make significant improvements to the water quality on the Susquehanna River; and create high-demand, high-wage jobs across multiple sectors.
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A Model for Transition: Coal-to-Solar (Nicholas County, West Virginia) – This project plans to repurpose two former coal mines with a utility-scale, 250 MW solar PV system that would power approximately 39,000 West Virginia homes. These two inactive mine sites provide land and access to existing energy infrastructure that will transmit the clean, solar energy the project generates to the grid. Repurposing these previously disturbed sites for solar energy development can reduce development on sensitive natural and agricultural land, produce and deliver clean power to local communities, and lay the groundwork for a regional economic revitalization starting with the workforce. The New River Community and Technical College, Mana Group, and National Association of Counties Research Foundation plan to create a national Coal Transition Workforce Center to support and revitalize the local workforce for other opportunities in the nation’s growing clean energy economy. This project anticipates creating approximately 400 construction jobs and four operations jobs and aims to engage state labor groups and education program, curating a curriculum and identifying pathways to good-paying, clean energy jobs.
Developing clean energy projects on mine land provides an attractive economic alternative to using undisturbed natural and agricultural land. Mine land is often located near critical infrastructure that makes it suitable for clean energy development, including electric substations, transmission lines, and access to roads or railroad lines. Projects ultimately selected for award have the potential to be replicated and scaled on the millions of acres of current and former U.S. mine land. Managed by DOE’s Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations (OCED), the Clean Energy Demonstration Program on Current and Former Mine Land (CEML) will help provide the mining industry with a range of ways to decarbonize their operations and minimize environmental impacts and air pollutants, abating greenhouse gas emissions and disturbances to fragile, surrounding ecosystems. Simultaneously, replicating clean energy technologies like these on other current and former mines will help maximize local workforce development and community opportunities for generations.
Learn more about the selected projects here.
Building an Inclusive Clean Energy Future
DOE is committed to ensuring that America’s mining and traditional energy producing communities benefit from the nation’s transition to a clean energy future. This includes supporting local workforces, advancing environmental and energy justice, and fostering community engagement through the development and implementation of comprehensive Community Benefits Plans. Two selectees, as outlined in their Community Benefits Plans, have already signed agreements with local organized labor. The remaining selectees are either exploring or planning to develop project labor agreements to ensure a timely project completion with the help of skilled and diverse workers.
This program also advances President Biden’s Justice40 Initiative, which sets the goal that 40 percent of the overall benefits of certain Federal climate, clean energy, affordable and sustainable housing, and other investments flow to disadvantaged communities that are marginalized by underinvestment and overburdened by pollution. According to the Climate and Economic Justice Screening Tool (CEJST), four of the selected projects (Arizona, Nevada, Kentucky, and West Virgina) will benefit disadvantaged communities, and one project (Pennsylvania) is located near a disadvantaged community for one of its proposed sites.
As part of the Department’s commitment to transparency and engagement, OCED will also hold a series of national and project specific community virtual briefings to provide information on the selected projects, OCED’s approach to clean energy demonstrations, and opportunities for community engagement. Learn about CEML engagement opportunities and register to attend here.
Selection for award negotiations is not a commitment by DOE to issue an award or provide funding. Before funding is issued, DOE and the selectees will undergo a negotiation process, and DOE may cancel negotiations and rescind the selection for any reason during that time. If awarded, OCED will evaluate these projects through a phased approach to project management that includes “go/no-go” decision points between each project phase where DOE reviews and evaluates implementation progress, including community benefits.
OCED manages the CEML program and will provide project management oversight for the projects selected. Learn more about how OCED is supporting the Biden-Harris Administration’s whole-of-government approach in addressing the climate crisis and delivering a clean and equitable energy future for every American.
