Will President Trump’s administration continue to fund the carbon removal industry, a sector that previously enjoyed bipartisan support?

Recent signs are not encouraging.

Many of the officials who were overseeing removals work at the Department of Energy left earlier this year. A key deadline for a $35 million removals competition passed this week without an update. And one company that’s expecting funds from the DOE has cancelled a project and started laying off employees, Trellis has learned.

The changes concern two initiatives that are pillars of what was considered a bipartisan approach to boosting carbon removal under the previous administration. The larger of the two by far is the Regional Direct Air Capture Hubs program. In March of last year, contracts that could eventually exceed $1 billion were awarded to companies working to build hubs in Louisiana and Texas. The three companies behind the Louisiana hub — Battelle, Climeworks and Heirloom — received an initial award of $50 million.

Media reports have questioned whether the remaining monies will be paid. Three sources close to the matter told Reuters in March that the DOE was considering scrapping the hubs program. The department described the comments as “speculation,” but uncertainties around the funding stream appear to have impacted Heirloom, the smallest of the companies involved.

Capture departures

Founded in 2020, Heirloom captures carbon dioxide from the atmosphere by reacting the gas with calcium hydroxide, commonly known as “lime.” The company completed a $150 million investment round in December and has contracts with a United Airlines venture fund, Microsoft and others. 

One carbon capture facility planned by the company has been cancelled and multiple staff members have left over the past six months, including the manager of the cancelled project, according to an employee who left the company during that period and spoke anonymously because they remain involved in the industry. 

The former employee said that uncertainty around the future of the hubs was the reason for some of the layoffs. A review of LinkedIn profiles confirms that at least 10 technical staff have departed since December. 

Heirloom declined to comment on the cancelled project or the departure of specific staff. “As we scale our operations, Heirloom continues to adapt to meet the demands of a rapidly evolving industry,” said Scott Coriell, the company’s head of PR and content. “That includes making strategic changes to our team — letting go some employees while hiring for new roles essential to executing our priorities.”

Climeworks told Trellis that the uncertainties around the DOE funding have not resulted in any layoffs. Battelle did not return a request for comment.

Purchase prize

The second impacted initiative is a $35 million purchasing prize, announced in 2022, to be awarded to car