Proposed U.S. Budget Includes $322 Million for DOE FC Programs

Fuel Cells Today, Feb 14, 2005

The U.S. Fuel Cell Council (USFCC) recently reported that President George Bush has included $322 million in the fiscal year (FY) 2006 Department of Energy (DOE) budget for fuel cell (FC) and hydrogen technology programs, representing a $20.5-million increase over the $301.5 million Congress enacted for the current fiscal year.

According to USFCC, the FC and hydrogen-related proposals in the DOE budget include $83.6 million for the Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy (EERE) Fuel Cell Technologies program, up $8.7 million from the FY 05 enacted budget; $99.1 million for the EERE Hydrogen Program, up $5.1 million from the FY 05 enacted budget; $65 million for the Office of Fossil Energy Distributed Generation Fuel Cells program, down $9.4 million from the FY 05 enacted budget; and $74.3 million for additional DOE offices, including the Office of Science hydrogen from coal and hydrogen from nuclear power programs.

"While the overall commitment is most welcome, we will seek more funds for fuel cells for distributed generation," said USFCC executive director Robert Rose. "We also hope to convince Congress to forgo the crippling earmarks that have plagued the hydrogen program for the past two years. A hydrogen energy future means a stronger U.S. economy and a safer world."

Contact: Bernadette Geyer, USFCC, phone 202-293-5500, e-mail bernie@usfcc.com.

(EIN STAFF: 2/8)