Biden-Harris Administration Awards Planning Grant for Development of Carbon-Friendly Technologies in Alaska

WASHINGTON, DC — The Biden-Harris administration, through the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA), today announced that the Alaska Tech Strategy Development Consortium in Anchorage, Alaska, was awarded a Tech Hubs Strategy Development Grant to develop a regional strategy to leverage the state’s oil-and-gas economic infrastructure, tribal sustainable natural resource management ethos, and raw resources to incubate and scale firms focused on carbon-neutral energy technologies, carbon-negative technologies, and climate-adaptation technologies.

The Alaska Tech Strategy Development Consortium, a consortium led by Cook Inlet Tribal Council, Inc., will leverage the grant to increase local coordination and planning activities to strengthen its region’s capacity to manufacture, commercialize, and deploy technologies critical to U.S. economic and national security. The Tech Hubs Program, authorized by the CHIPS and Science Act, is investing in U.S. regions and aims to transform them into globally competitive innovation centers. This consortium was selected for a grant from a competitive pool of 181 applications.

“President Biden’s Investing in America agenda is rooted in policies that will empower the United States to out-innovate and out-compete the rest of the world. Our Tech Hubs Program is fundamental to that mission and will supercharge innovation across the nation by spurring cutting-edge technological investments and creating 21st century job opportunities in people’s backyards,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. “Each of these consortia will help us ensure the industries of the future—and their good-paying jobs—start, grow, and remain in the United States.”

“These outstanding consortia exemplify place-based economic development strategies at their best: combining federal resources with regional assets, expertise, and coalitions to implement transformational opportunities,” said Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development Alejandra Y. Castillo. “As each region develops its own strategy to catalyze innovation and job creation, the entire nation grows more secure and more competitive.”

“Alaska has always been a center of innovation, from the invention of the kayak to the Trans-Alaska Pipeline. I am thrilled that the Alaska Tech Strategy Development Consortium, led by Cook Inlet Tribal Council in Anchorage, has been awarded this nearly half-million dollar grant by the Economic Development Administration to help harness our state’s innovative spirit,” said Representative Mary Peltola (AK-At Large). “This investment recognizes Alaska’s unique potential to advance crucial energy and national security technologies, and will provide more opportunities for Alaskan ideas to be tested and developed, creating jobs and economic growth. I look forward to exciting developments as this consortium helps us plan for a greener and more prosperous future."

For a full list of Tech Hubs, visit TechHubs.gov.

About the U.S. Economic Development Administration (www.eda.gov)
The mission of the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) is to lead the federal economic development agenda by promoting competitiveness and preparing the nation’s regions for growth and success in the worldwide economy. An agency within the U.S. Department of Commerce, EDA invests in communities and supports regional collaboration in order to create jobs for U.S. workers, promote American innovation, and accelerate long-term sustainable economic growth.