Bill Gates Promises $1.5B to Climate Change Projects if Congress Does This

If Congress passes its infrastructure bill, tech mogul Bill Gates has promised he would pledge a whopping $1.5 billion for climate change projects.

The Microsoft co-founder said on Thursday that his climate investment fund would pledge $1.5 billion for projects to combat climate change if Congress passes the infrastructure plan.

The Senate’s $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill would provide the Department of Energy with $25 billion for climate-focused demonstration projects.

The bill hasn’t yet passed through the House.

Gates’ fund is run by the firm Breakthrough Energy and would spend the $1.5 billion over three years on initiatives to lower greenhouse gas emissions.

“If the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act becomes law, this collaboration will not only send us on a more durable path to net zero, but will create both immediate and long-term jobs in communities across the country,” Gates said.

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., has said she won’t hold a vote on the infrastructure bill until the Senate passes a $3.5 trillion spending bill.

It could take months for Congress to approve both plans and if the bill doesn’t pass, Breakthrough would likely move the funding to projects in Europe and Asia, according to a WSJ interview with Gates.

“These investments will unlock new technologies to position the U.S. as a global leader of the clean energy economy — creating good-paying jobs for all kinds of workers in all pockets of the country,” said Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm.

According to Granholm, the private sector is prepared to “lead the fight to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and achieve a net-zero economy by 2050.”

Disclaimer: We have no position in any of the companies mentioned and have not been compensated for this article.