The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has announced the termination of 321 financial awards that supported 223 projects, resulting in an estimated savings of $7.56 billion for taxpayers. The DOE stated that a detailed review found these projects did not sufficiently advance national energy needs, were not economically viable, and would not provide a positive return on taxpayer investment.
The canceled awards originated from several DOE offices, including Clean Energy Demonstrations, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Grid Deployment, Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains, Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy, and Fossil Energy.
“On day one, the Energy Department began the critical task of reviewing billions of dollars in financial awards, many rushed through in the final months of the Biden administration with inadequate documentation by any reasonable business standard,” Secretary Wright said. “President Trump promised to protect taxpayer dollars and expand America’s supply of affordable, reliable, and secure energy. Today’s cancellation’s deliver on that commitment. Rest assured, the Energy Department will continue reviewing awards to ensure that every dollar works for the American people.”
According to DOE data, 26% of the terminated awards were granted between Election Day and Inauguration Day. These particular awards had a combined value exceeding $3.1 billion.
In May 2025, Secretary Wright issued a memorandum titled “Ensuring Responsibility for Financial Assistance,” which set new guidelines for evaluating financial awards. The policy allowed program offices to request further information from awardees and mandated case-by-case reviews to prevent waste and protect both taxpayer funds and national security interests.
Following this process, DOE concluded that none of the affected projects met standards related to economic benefit or energy security required for continued funding.
As specified in the memorandum, recipients have 30 days to appeal termination decisions. Some have already started this process.
