WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Department of Energy has canceled more than 300 financial awards worth roughly $7.56 billion after determining that hundreds of federally backed energy projects failed to meet economic or national security standards, officials said last week.
The move follows what Energy Secretary Chris Wright called a comprehensive review of programs inherited from the previous administration, many of which he said were hastily approved and poorly documented. The terminated awards, covering 223 projects across multiple DOE offices, were issued primarily under the Biden administration’s clean energy initiatives.
“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,” Wright said. “President Trump promised to protect taxpayer dollars and expand America’s supply of affordable, reliable, and secure energy. Today’s cancellations deliver on that commitment.”
The cancellations affect projects under the Offices of Clean Energy Demonstrations, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Grid Deployment, Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains, Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy, and Fossil Energy.
According to the department, about one-quarter of the terminated awards — valued at more than $3.1 billion — were approved between Election Day 2024 and Inauguration Day 2025.
DOE said each award underwent an individualized financial and technical review to determine whether it advanced the nation’s energy goals or represented a sound investment for taxpayers. The agency concluded that the projects in question were either economically unviable, insufficiently advanced to meet energy needs, or unlikely to yield a meaningful return.
The decision follows Wright’s May 2025 memorandum, “Ensuring Responsibility for Financial Assistance,” which established a new case-by-case review process aimed at preventing waste and tightening oversight of federal funding. The policy allows DOE program offices to request additional documentation from grantees and mandates stricter standards tied to energy security, cost efficiency, and national interest.
Award recipients have 30 days to appeal their termination. DOE officials confirmed that some of the affected organizations have already begun that process.
Wright said the department will continue auditing existing grants and loans in pursuit of what he described as a leaner, results-driven energy agenda that prioritizes reliable power generation and fiscal accountability.
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