Argonne to receive $13 million for infrastructure upgrades

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ARGONNE, Ill. (March 23, 2009) – The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory announced today that it will receive $13.1 million in funds from President Obama's American Reinvestment and Recovery Act for improvements to its electrical infrastructure that will permit an eventual upgrade of the laboratory's central campus.

Argonne said it also will receive an undetermined amount of money to replenish original equipment and acquire new tools for its Center for Nanoscale Materials.

The funds are part of $1.2 billion announced by Secretary of Energy Steven Chu today from funding allocated under the Recovery Act to DOE's Office of Science. The funds will support an array of Office of Science-sponsored construction, laboratory infrastructure and research projects across the nation. The secretary made the announcement during a visit to Brookhaven National Laboratory in Upton, N.Y.

“Leadership in science remains vital to America's economic prosperity, energy security and global competitiveness,” said Secretary Chu. “These projects not only provide critically needed short-term economic relief but also represent a strategic investment in our nation's future. They will create thousands of jobs and breathe new life into many local economies, while helping to accelerate new technology development, renew our scientific and engineering workforce and modernize our nation's scientific infrastructure.”

The funding announced today will permit Argonne to replace major electrical switches and equipment, a first step toward modernization of the laboratory's central campus, and for research in computational and energy sciences.

The Argonne allocation is part of $1.2 billion that Secretary Chu announced is being disbursed now in the first installment of a total of $1.6 billion allocated to the DOE Office of Science by Congress under the Recovery Act legislation. Officials are working on details remaining to enable approval and release of the balance of $371 million.

DOE's news release is available at www.energy.gov.

Argonne National Laboratory seeks solutions to pressing national problems in science and technology. The nation's first national laboratory, Argonne conducts leading-edge basic and applied scientific research in virtually every scientific discipline. Argonne researchers work closely with researchers from hundreds of companies, universities, and federal, state and municipal agencies to help them solve their specific problems, advance America 's scientific leadership and prepare the nation for a better future. With employees from more than 60 nations, Argonne is managed by UChicago Argonne, LLC for the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science.

For more information, please contact Steve McGregor (630/252-5580 or media@anl.gov) at Argonne.

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