Jan 22 (Reuters) - The White House said President Donald

Trump's order this week pausing the disbursement of funds

appropriated under his predecessor's signature climate and

infrastructure laws mainly applies to programs that discourage

fossil fuel development or boost electric vehicles.

As part of a flurry of executive orders hours after taking

office on Monday, Trump ordered government agencies to pause

funds flowing from the Inflation Reduction Act and the

Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.

The White House Office of Management and Budget clarified in

a memo, dated Tuesday, that Trump's order only applies to funds

that contravene a list of stated policy aims, which include

encouraging more energy production on federal lands and

eliminating support for EVs. Funds going to other programs, like

bridges, transit and highways, won't be affected.

It is unclear whether the order puts much funds at risk.

Biden's administration had said prior to Trump's

inauguration on Monday that the vast majority of grants for

clean energy programs appropriated under the IRA, for example,

had already been obligated and were protected, with just $11

billion outstanding.

The bulk of the IRA's support for clean energy and EVs,

meanwhile, derives from tax credits that can only be revoked

with an act of Congress.

Robert Moczulewski, a director at tax advisory Baker Tilly,

said Trump's order could face legal hurdles if it delays any

significant funding.

"Pausing funding already appropriated by Congress may prompt

legal challenges, though the administration can impose interim

review processes," he said.

The order requires U.S. agencies to consult OMB before

disbursing the money.

The impact on lithium mining projects, which support EV

battery production, meanwhile, is unclear.

The Biden administration had finalized loans for several

U.S. critical minerals projects in its final months, including a

$2.26 billion debt package for Lithium Americas ( LAC ) and

nearly $1 billion for ioneer.

Those loans are final and cannot be altered, according to

two industry sources and an administration source familiar with

the loan terms. Representatives for Vancouver-based Lithium

Americas ( LAC ) and Australia-based ioneer were not immediately

available to comment.

Loans for other U.S. critical minerals projects that were

not finalized before Biden left office could be vulnerable. That

list includes 24 projects seeking a total of $45 billion,

according to Energy Department data.