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Department of Energy cuts funds for Beta Technologies, UVM projects

A small white aircraft in a well-lit large building
Beta Technologies
/
Courtesy
The electric aircraft manufacturer Beta Technologies is based in South Burlington. Federal records show the Department of Energy canceled a roughly $1.8 million grant that would have gone toward developing technology to recharge batteries in environments with “little or no electric infrastructure.”

The U.S. Department of Energy on Wednesday announced it is terminating funding for more than 200 projects nationwide that support the deployment of renewable energy and other climate goals, including in Vermont.

Congressional Democrats released a list of affected projects that includes two in Vermont — one at Beta Technologies and one at the University of Vermont.

In a press release, the Trump administration said the move will save approximately $7.5 billion.

The cuts were spread across 16 states, and Vermont and New Hampshire were the only two affected that have Republican governors.

Federal records indicate the University of Vermont grant was for roughly $3.4 million to study “place-based renewable power generation” and develop a program to help communities make decisions about where to get their energy.

South Burlington-based Beta Technologies had a roughly $1.8 million grant canceled. Federal records show it was to develop technology to recharge batteries in “austere” environments with “little or no electric infrastructure.”

Neither entity was immediately available for comment.

This story will be updated.

Abagael is Vermont Public's climate and environment reporter, focusing on the energy transition and how the climate crisis is impacting Vermonters — and Vermont’s landscape.

Abagael joined Vermont Public in 2020. Previously, she was the assistant editor at Vermont Sports and Vermont Ski + Ride magazines. She covered dairy and agriculture for The Addison Independent and got her start covering land use, water and the Los Angeles Aqueduct for The Sheet: News, Views & Culture of the Eastern Sierra in Mammoth Lakes, Ca.