[WASHINGTON, DC] – U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today applauded the announcement by the Secretary of Energy, Steven Chu, that the Department of Energy has signed final cooperative agreements with the FutureGen Industrial Alliance and Ameren Energy Resources. These agreements formally commit $1 billion in Recovery Act funding to build FutureGen 2.0 in Illinois. The FutureGen 2.0 project will help to position the United States as a leader in innovative technologies for reducing carbon emissions from existing coal-fired power plants.

“If there was any remaining question as to whether FutureGen is really coming to Illinois, today we have the answer,” said Durbin. “Soon, we will announce a process to evaluate the more than two dozen Illinois communities that have expressed interest in hosting the sequestration, research and training facilities for FutureGen 2.0. I thank President Obama and Secretary Chu for their leadership on this project and for putting Illinois at the forefront of cutting-edge technology that will improve the environment and create good-paying jobs.”