US DOE sends Congress 2007 spending decisions with new priorities

Washington (Platts)--16Mar2007

The US Department of Energy on Friday sent Congress a $23.6 billion
fiscal 2007 spending plan, which included substantial increases over fiscal
2006 levels for nuclear power, coal research and energy efficiency.

DOE sent the plan to Congress Friday as required under the fiscal 2007
joint funding resolution signed by President Bush February 15.

The resolution gave DOE broad discretion to spend money as officials
there saw fit and they used that discretion to bump up spending for
presidential priorities and energy needs that have come to the fore since DOE
asked for the money in February 2006, said acting Under Secretary Dennis
Spurgeon, who also runs the agency's nuclear energy office.

The plan includes "an investment in our future and a continued
commitment" to advancing Bush's energy initiatives, Spurgeon said.

The budget is about the same as it was in fiscal 2006, and $650 million
less than DOE requested for 2008.

The plan includes $1.5 billion for energy efficiency and renewable energy
following Congress' mandate to beef up spending in that area; $302.6 million
for nuclear research and development; and $425.7 million for coal R & D, all
substantial increases over DOE's original fiscal 2007 spending request.

It also includes $167.5 million for the president's Global Nuclear Energy
Partnership initiative; and provides $15 million for oil and gas research,
even though DOE proposed to eliminate the program entirely initially.

DOE asked initially for $74 million in fiscal 2007 for carbon
sequestration, but chose on its own to bump that up to $100 million, which
Spurgeon said "reflects the importance that is being placed on being able to
adopt the technology."

--Daniel Whitten, daniel_whitten@platts.com