DOE Clean-Energy Loan and R&D Programs: Hollowed Out
The Trump administration has partially executed Project 2025's blueprint by restructuring $83 billion in Biden-era DOE loans (January 2026), cancelling 24 OCED awards worth $3.7 billion (May 2025), and reportedly eliminating ARPA-E and other R&D programs. The Loan Programs Office (LPO) has not been fully eliminated but is being redirected toward fossil-fuel 'energy dominance' projects, while the Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations (OCED) has been gutted through award cancellations. ARPA-E's elimination is claimed by Senator Lujan in a July 2025 letter but no official action has been confirmed. The Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) extrastatutory renewable-energy goals remain on the chopping block but have not yet been rescinded.
Project 2025's assault on DOE clean-energy programs is not a hypothetical — it is a staged dismantling already in progress. The administration has zeroed out the Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations by cancelling $3.7 billion in awards, effectively killing the IRA's flagship demonstration program. It has restructured $83 billion in LPO commitments to favor fossil fuels, shifting the program from a climate bridge to a subsidy for the very industries driving the crisis. ARPA-E, the agency that birthed breakthroughs from grid-scale batteries to advanced nuclear, is reportedly on the chopping block — which would gut the pipeline of technologies the private sector won't touch.
This is not 'fiscal prudence.' It's a deliberate strategy to starve the clean-energy transition of capital, kill demonstration projects that de-risk private investment, and steer taxpayer money toward fossil fuels. The result is a slower, costlier transition, more stranded assets, and more pollution in the communities that can least afford it. The LPO is not being eliminated — it is being weaponized for 'energy dominance,' which is a euphemism for doubling down on the fuels that cause the crisis.
An alternative grounded in rapid decarbonization and environmental justice would: (1) Restore LPO's original mission as a bridge to bankability for breakthrough clean-energy projects, with clear guardrails excluding fossil fuels; (2) Reinstate the 24 cancelled OCED awards and expand the program to prioritize community-led demonstration projects in frontline communities; (3) Protect ARPA-E from elimination and double its funding to $1.4 billion, using its flexible authority to de-risk technologies that directly serve environmental justice and energy equity goals; (4) Restore FEMP's renewable-energy goals as a procurement driver for federal clean-energy demand. These actions would accelerate deployment, lower costs, and ensure the benefits of the transition flow to those historically harmed by pollution.
Rollback path — how this gets undone
This action has already been implemented. These are the concrete levers that could reverse it.
- Rescind all executive orders and DOE guidance halting LPO loans and restructuring Biden-era commitments President must issue a new EO directing DOE to reinstate the LPO's full statutory authority under 1703, ATVM, and 1706; reverse the January 2026 restructuring of $83B+ in loans; and appoint a LPO director committed to climate-aligned lending.
- Congressional appropriations to reinstate ARPA-E and OCED funding Congress must include explicit appropriations in the next Energy and Water Development bill to restore ARPA-E to at least $700 million (FY2023 request level) and restore OCED's cancelled awards; Senate confirmation of a new ARPA-E director required.
- Administrative action to re-establish OCED award agreements DOE Secretary must reopen competition for the 24 cancelled OCED awards, restore conditional commitments, and issue new funding opportunity announcements for demonstration projects aligned with IRA and BIL goals.
- Executive order reinstating FEMP extrastatutory renewable energy goals President should issue a new EO requiring all federal agencies to procure 100% carbon-free electricity by 2030, restoring the Obama-era executive actions that FEMP implemented.
Original source — excerpted
project2025 Project 2025 ch. 13: EPA (pp 416-418)"— 383 — Department of Energy and Related Commissions Personnel By drawing resources from across the DOE, the OCED has already grown to 70 personnel in six months. If OCED is eliminated, those positions can be eliminated. If OCED is reduced, its personnel can be reduced to fit its scope. LOAN PROGRAM OFFICE (LPO) Mission/Overview “LPO’s mission is to finance next-generation U.S. energy infrastructure,” serve “as a bridge to bankability for breakthrough projects and technologies,” and “de-risk[] them at early stages of investment so they can be developed at commercial scale and achieve market acceptance.” 55 The Biden Administration directed the program to subsidize the Administration’s “net zero” energy tran - sition away from conventional fuels by 2050 and to promote union jobs and domestic supply chains. 56 The LPO coordinates with the U.S. Treasury Federal Financing Bank and is organized into seven divisions: Outreach and Business Development, Origination, Portfolio Management, Risk Management, Technical and Project Management, Legal, and Management and Operation. Its loan programs were originally designed as temporary programs but have since been amended and expande…"