Funding Opportunities

The National Landscape of High-Impact Crosscutting Opportunities for Next Generation Harsh Environment Materials (HEMs) and Manufacturing Process Research, Development, and Demonstration identifies the highest impact investment opportunities for high-performance materials designed for harsh service environments. Advanced, high-performance HEM components with extended life and higher reliability are needed to achieve energy efficiency gains, emissions reductions, and lowered overall costs through improvements in electric energy production/conversion, energy storage, and energy utilization technologies.

The purpose of this RFI is to solicit feedback from industry, academia, research laboratories, government agencies, and other stakeholders to ensure AMMTO’s technology assessments within this space are optimally positioned to allow investments that address the major opportunities and challenges.

This is solely a request for information and not a Notice of funding Opportunity (NOFO). AMMTO is not accepting applications.

The Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies Office (AMMTO) supports the development of a globally competitive U.S. energy industrial base that drives supply chain resiliency and energy security through materials and manufacturing innovation. The development of circular supply chains that enable efficient use of materials through reuse, repair, remanufacture, and recycling is important toward accomplishing these goals. Efforts to achieve a robust and competitive manufacturing sector through innovation in circular supply chains cannot be successful without: (1) a comprehensive understanding of the landscape of technical and non-technical factors that could impact the adoption of emerging technologies and (2) strong connections across the circularity field to accelerate innovations from R&D-scale to commercial practice. This NOFO seeks to establish a new accelerator which will address this need through the development of a comprehensive technical and market analysis portfolio and stakeholder engagement activities.

The Accelerator’s analysis portfolio will establish a comprehensive understanding of both technical and non-technical factors impacting the adoption of emerging technologies for circular supply chains. Technical factors of interest include the state of emerging technologies in terms of performance and cost metrics. Awareness of these technical factors requires strong understanding of the R&D landscape as well as the state of industrial practice. Non-technical factors of interest include market conditions, supply chain dynamics, policy and regulatory landscape, workforce readiness, infrastructure capabilities, among others. These non-technical market factors may be region-specific and would be critical to inform a systems-level perspective of potential barriers and pathways to widespread commercial adoption. The Accelerator will leverage understanding of technical and non-technical factors to analyze market opportunity within specific product and material market segments. This will identify specific early adopter markets and sequential pathways to more broadly scale the deployment of emerging technologies for greater impact. Opportunities to leverage advancements in emerging technologies and market tools (e.g., standards, offtake agreements, verification frameworks, data systems, etc.) across product and material segments will also be identified.

The Accelerator’s stakeholder engagement activities will cultivate a range of stakeholders that are critical to both supporting the analysis portfolio and to facilitating the coordination needed for technology adoption for circular supply chains. These stakeholder engagement activities will strengthen relationships with industry members to support increased sharing of data and best practices as there are many synergistic technology needs across different product and material segments. These programs will enable enhanced diffusion of advancements in emerging technologies, business models and market tools throughout the circularity field. Most importantly, these stakeholder engagement activities will establish and cultivate relationships between potential performer groups that will strengthen the innovation ecosystem needed to deliver on other funded programs focused on building circular supply chain technologies.

Please see the full NOFO in the DOCUMENTS section below.

Questions regarding the NOFO must be submitted to Circularity.NOFO.FY25@ee.doe.gov.

Please note: In the event that an application experiences technical difficulties with a submission, the applicant should contact the eXCHANGE helpdesk at EERE-ExchangeSupport@hq.doe.gov.

Amendment 000001 - The FOA has been amended in sections I.B. and Appendix H.

Significant RD&D is required to reach the goal of affordable, low-carbon Intensity transportation fuels and chemical products. The RD&D activities to be funded under this FOA will support the government-wide approach to addressing the climate crisis by driving innovation and deployment of clean energy technologies.

The 2024 Regional Resource Hubs for Purpose-Grown Energy Crops FOA supports the focus of the BETO Renewable Carbon Resources Program in developing strategies and supporting technology development to reduce the cost, improve the quality, increase the quantity, and maximize the environmental benefits of using renewable carbon resources. The FOA addresses enabling the mobilization of low carbon intensity purpose-grown energy crops across varied agronomic and geographic landscapes through the generation of data and research findings. The FOA seeks applications that will support resource mobilization, including improvements to quality, yield, cost, mechanization of propagation/planting systems, pest management, carbon intensity reduction, ecosystem services, and more from the cultivation of purpose-grown energy crops. Data generated over the course of four to ten years will be used to improve modeling projections, adapt crops and/or crop management strategies to address varying climates, understand variations in soil and belowground carbon storage, quantify ecosystem services, and reduce the carbon intensity for specified purpose-grown energy crop systems. There is a single Topic Area in this FOA with four Subtopic Areas, each focusing on different feedstock categories.

The Topic Area in this FOA seeks to address the following R&D needs:

Topic Area 1: Purpose-Grown Energy Crops

The objective this Topic Area is to fund projects that will enable the mobilization of low carbon intensity purpose-grown energy crops across varied agronomic and geographic landscapes through the generation of data and research findings. Each application selected from this FOA will become a member of the larger Regional Biomass Resource Hub Initiative (RBRH) that will work together with BETO’s established Regional Resource Hub Initiative Coordinator, Idaho National Laboratory (INL), to coordinate experimental plans, report data, and collectively achieve the FOA and Initiative objectives. Each submitted application must specify only one of the following Subtopic Areas.

Subtopic Area 1a. Algae

The objective of Subtopic Area 1a is to support projects that seek to cultivate and harvest as much algae from their given system(s) as possible each year for at least three years. The deliberate cultivation of algae with non-potable water, including all types of microalgae, cyanobacteria, and macroalgae, and algae grown to treat wastewaters is of interest.

Subtopic Area 1b: Herbaceous Energy Crops

Subtopic Area 1b is centered on enhancing the mobilization of low-carbon intensity herbaceous energy crops across varied agronomic landscapes. For the purposes of Subtopic Area 1b, “herbaceous energy crops” is defined as perennial plants and grasses that live for more than two years and are harvested annually after taking two to three years to reach full productivity. Examples of herbaceous energy crops include, but are not limited to, switchgrass, miscanthus, high-biomass sorghum, wheatgrass, and energycane.

Subtopic Area 1c: Intermediate Energy Crops

For the purposes of Subtopic Area 1c, “intermediate energy crops” are defined as crops planted between the harvest of a main crop and sowing of the next crop. Typically grown for environmental benefits such as increasing soil carbon or reducing nutrient leaching and soil erosion, intermediate energy crops have the additional potential to be harvested for conversion into low carbon intensity fuels and products.

Subtopic Area 1d: Short-Rotation Woody Crops

Subtopic Area 1d is focused on enhancing the mobilization of short-rotation woody crops across various geographic landscapes by performing regional field trials to examine long term yield and sustainability. For the purposes of Subtopic Area 1d, “short-rotation woody crops” is defined as fast-growing trees that are harvested within five to eight years of planting. Such trees include, but may not be limited to, species such as, hybrid poplar and shrub willow.

Please note: Due to INL’s role as Initiative Coordinator and involvement in FOA strategy discussions, INL is not eligible to apply for funding as a Prime Recipient under the FOA and may not be proposed as a Subrecipient on another entity’s application. Any application that includes INL as a Prime Recipient or Subrecipient will be deemed ineligible, non-responsive, and will not be further considered.

Please see the full FOA document in the Documents section below.

Questions regarding the FOA must be submitted to FY24RRHCropsFOA@ee.doe.gov.

The required Concept Paper due date for this FOA is 3/14/2024 at 5PM ET. The Full Application due date for this FOA is 06/13/2024 at 5PM ET.

As stated in the Notice of Intent (search DE-FOA-0003233 in XCHANGE), a Teaming Partner List has been compiled to encourage collaboration and facilitate the formation of new project teams. Visit: TPL-0000037: Teaming Partner List for FOA DE-FOA-0003209 Regional Resource Hubs for Purpose-Grown Energy Crops.

The eXCHANGE system is currently designed to enforce hard deadlines for Concept Paper and Full Application submissions. The APPLY and SUBMIT buttons automatically disable at the defined submission deadlines. The intention of this design is to consistently enforce a standard deadline for all applicants.

Applicants that experience issues with submissions PRIOR to the FOA Deadline: In the event that an Applicant experiences technical difficulties with a submission, the Applicant should contact the eXCHANGE helpdesk for assistance (exchangehelp@hq.doe.gov). The eXCHANGE helpdesk and/or the EERE eXCHANGE System Administrators (eXCHANGE@ee.doe.gov) will assist the Applicant in resolving all issues.

Applicants that experience issues with submissions that result in a late submission: In the event that an Applicant experiences technical difficulties with a submission that results in a late submission, the Applicant should contact the eXCHANGE helpdesk for assistance (exchangehelp@hq.doe.gov). The eXCHANGE helpdesk and/or the EERE eXCHANGE System Administrators (eXCHANGE@ee.doe.gov) will assist the Applicant in resolving all issues (including finalizing the submission on behalf of, and with the Applicant's concurrence). DOE will only accept late applications when the Applicant has a) encountered technical difficulties beyond their control; b) has contacted the eXCHANGE helpdesk for assistance; and c) has submitted the application through eXCHANGE within 24 hours of the FOA's posted deadline.

The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) intends to issue, on behalf of the Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO), a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) entitled “Regional Resource Hubs for Purpose-Grown Energy Crops”.

If issued, this FOA will support the Bioenergy Technologies Office’s research and development (R&D) priorities in the area of Renewable Carbon Resources (RCR). The RCR subprogram develops science and engineering-based strategies and technologies to cost-effectively transform renewable carbon resources into high-quality, environmentally sustainable, conversion-ready feedstocks for biofuels and bioproducts. These strategies and technologies are designed to improve the efficiency, sustainability, and reliability of feedstock production, harvesting or collection, storage, preprocessing, and transportation, and identify the key feedstock quality and operational variables for conversion performance.

Developing a domestic supply chain of purpose-grown energy crops is critical to decarbonizing the U.S. transportation and industrial sectors and can contribute to decarbonization of adjacent sectors of the economy, such as the agricultural and power sector. The Regional Resource Hubs for Purpose-Grown Energy Crops FOA will address the U.S. National Blueprint for Transportation Decarbonization by funding high-impact R&D focused on mobilizing low carbon intensity, purpose-grown energy crops. These crops will support the Clean Fuels and Products Shot™ and contribute to the 2050 sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) production targets of the SAF Grand Challenge. In order to verify greenhouse gas benefits and encourage grower adoption and deployment, long-term yield and sustainability of production crop varieties need to be demonstrated along with the agricultural and silvicultural practices that can provide low carbon intensity feedstocks for the production of renewable fuels and products.

It is anticipated that the FOA may include the following Area of Interest:

Area of Interest (AOI) 1: Purpose-Grown Energy Crops

The goal of this AOI will be to demonstrate the long-term yield and sustainability of purpose-grown energy crops across varied agronomic and geographic landscapes that will accelerate feedstock supply chain development through the generation of data for use by analysts, policy makers, and industry. Verification and validation of the effectiveness of improved agronomic practices on reducing the carbon intensity of biomass resources across multiple regions, feedstock types, and growing seasons will also be essential to meet the 85% GHG emission reduction goal of the Clean Fuels and Products Shot™ compared to fossil-based sources by 2035. Feedstocks of interest include, but are not limited to, algae (microalgae, macroalgae, and cyanobacteria), herbaceous crops (switchgrass, miscanthus, energy cane, sweet sorghum, and high-biomass sorghum), short-rotation woody crops (hybrid poplars and shrub willows), and intermediate crops (carinata, pennycress, and camelina). Each application selected from this FOA will become a member of the Regional Biomass Resource Hub Initiative that will work together with DOE’s established Regional Biomass Resource Hub Initiative Coordinator, Idaho National Laboratory (INL), to coordinate experimental plans, report data, and collectively achieve the FOA objectives. Selected projects will be mapped to a Regional Biomass Resource Hub (RBRH) based on the proposed feedstock(s) and region(s) included in their application.

Please note: Due to INL’s role as Initiative Coordinator and involvement in FOA strategy discussions, INL is not eligible to apply for funding as a Prime Recipient under the FOA and may not be proposed as a Subrecipient on another entity’s application. Any application that includes INL as a Prime Recipient or Subrecipient will be deemed ineligible, non-responsive, and will not be further considered.

This Notice is issued so that interested parties are aware of the EERE’s intention to issue this FOA in the near term. All of the information contained in this Notice is subject to change. EERE will not respond to questions concerning this Notice. Once the FOA has been released, EERE will provide an avenue for potential Applicants to submit questions.

EERE plans to issue the FOA in or around January 2024 via the EERE eXCHANGE website https://eere-eXCHANGE.energy.gov/. If Applicants wish to receive official notifications and information from EERE regarding this FOA, they should register in EERE eXCHANGE. When the FOA is released, applications will be accepted only through EERE eXCHANGE.

DE-FOA-0002777 Request for Information (RFI) BIL Section 41001 Energy Storage Demonstration Projects

Subject: Long-Duration Energy Storage for Everyone, Everywhere (ESEE) RFI

Please see the full RFI document in the Documents section below.

The purpose of this RFI is to solicit feedback from industry, academia, research laboratories, government agencies, and other stakeholders on issues related to sec. 41001 of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), which appropriated $505 million “to advance energy storage systems toward widespread commercial deployment by lowering the costs and increasing the duration of energy storage resources.” The RFI lays out a proposed structure for three provisions within Sec. 41001 in line with a strategy for energy storage technology commercialization.

The intent of this RFI is to obtain public input regarding DOE’s proposed implementation possibilities of the energy storage demonstration programs and crosscutting issues related to the energy storage demonstration landscape:

Category 1: BIL 41001 Energy Storage Program-Specific Requirements and Implementation Strategy

Category1A: Long-Duration Demonstration Initiative

Category 1B: Energy Storage Demonstration Projects

Category 1C: Energy Storage Pilot Grant Program

Category 1D: Rapid Operational Validation Initiative (ROVI)

Category 2: BIL 41001 Energy Storage Program Crosscutting Topics

Category 2A: Storage Technology Opportunity Readiness Evaluation (STORE)

Category 2B: BIL Provision, Requirements, and Proposed Implementation

Category 3: Employment: Expanding Union Jobs and Effective Workforce Development

Category 4: Equity, Environmental and Energy Justice (EEEJ) Priorities

Category 5: Additional Input

This is solely a request for information and not a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA). EERE is not accepting applications.

Responses to this RFI must be submitted electronically to EnergyStorage41001RFI@ee.doe.gov no later than 5:00pm (ET) on June 16, 2022, with subject line “BIL 41001 RFI response.” Responses must be provided as attachments to an email. It is recommended that attachments with file sizes exceeding 25MB be compressed (i.e., zipped) to ensure message delivery. Responses must be provided as a Microsoft Word (.docx) attachment to the email, and no more than 20 pages in length, 12 point font, 1-inch margins. Only electronic responses will be accepted.

Please see the full RFI document in the Documents section below.

Modification 00003 - See the Modification table in the FOA. Changes from modification 00003 are highlighted in blue.

Modification 00002 - See the Modification table in the FOA. Changes from modification 00002 are highlighted in green.

Modification 00001 - See the Modification table in the FOA. Changes from modification 00001 are highlighted in yellow

The Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) works across the solar energy technology spectrum with the goal of improving the affordability, reliability, and performance of solar technologies on the grid. Ensuring that more Americans can benefit from the declining costs of solar is one of SETO's primary goals, which support early-stage research, development, and demonstration of solar technologies. Achieving SETO's priorities across the solar energy technology landscape requires sustained, multifaceted innovation. With this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA), the office intends to fund high-impact, early-stage research in the following areas:

Topic Area 1: Photovoltaics Hardware Research

*Topic Area 2: Integrated Thermal Energy STorage and Brayton Cycle (Integrated TESTBED) (Applications must be submitted under DE-TA2-0002243.)

Topic Area 3: Solar Energy Evolution and Diffusion Studies 3 (SEEDS 3)

Topic Area 4: SETO Incubator Tier 2: Innovation in Manufacturing

Topic Area 5: Systems Integration

Topic Area 6: Agricultural Solar: Opportunities, Innovative Models, and Novel System Designs

Topic Area 7: Artificial Intelligence Applications in Solar Energy with Emphasis on Machine Learning

*Topic Area 8: Small Innovative Projects in Solar (SIPS): PV and CSP (Applications must be submitted under DE-TA8-0002243.)

Informational webinars:

February 12, 2020, at 2 PM Eastern Standard Time / 12 PM Mountain Standard Time

This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is being issued by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) Building Technologies Office (BTO). BTO’s overall goal is to improve the energy productivity of buildings without sacrificing occupant comfort or product performance. The goal is to use energy more productively and efficiently, not simply to use less energy. Progress towards achieving this goal will make building energy costs more affordable to the benefit of American families and businesses.

BTO research is focused on reducing energy intensity for major segments of the sector with the most opportunity for energy savings, while balancing the need to maintain occupant comfort and productivity, and product performance. This includes both new and existing buildings, both residential and commercial, including their energy-consuming and labor-saving equipment. The development of next-generation building technologies, including building materials, components, equipment, energy models and systems, is critical to increasing energy productivity in a cost-effective manner.

BTO’s Emerging Technologies (ET) program invests in the research and development to create the next-generation building technologies, tools and systems to enhance energy efficiency. The program focuses on the most energy-intensive technologies for residential buildings and in commercial buildings, where the opportunity for cost-effective energy savings is greatest. These technologies include air conditioning, space heating, water heating, lighting and sensors & controls, all of which are addressed in this FOA.

Achieving BTO’s priorities across the building technology landscape requires sustained, multifaceted innovation. With this FOA, BTO intends to fund high-impact, early-stage research in the following areas:

Topic 1: Flexible Building Technologies

Topic 2: Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) Technologies

Topic 3: Solid-State Lighting (SSL) Technologies

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Applicants that experience issues with submissions PRIOR to the FOA Deadline: In the event that an Applicant experiences technical difficulties with a submission, the Applicant should contact the eXCHANGE helpdesk for assistance (exchangehelp@hq.doe.gov). The eXCHANGE helpdesk and/or the EERE eXCHANGE System Administrators (eXCHANGE@go.doe.gov) will assist the Applicant in resolving all issues.

Applicants that experience issues with submissions that result in a late submission: In the event that an Applicant experiences technical difficulties with a submission that results in a late submission, the Applicant should contact the eXCHANGE helpdesk for assistance (exchangehelp@hq.doe.gov). The eXCHANGE helpdesk and/or the EERE eXCHANGE System Administrators (eXCHANGE@go.doe.gov) will assist the Applicant in resolving all issues (including finalizing the submission on behalf of, and with the Applicant's concurrence). DOE will only accept late applications when the Applicant has a) encountered technical difficulties beyond their control; b) has contacted the eXCHANGE helpdesk for assistance; and c) has submitted the applicant through eXCHANGE within 24 hours of the FOA's posted deadline

Modification 00003 - See the Modification table in the FOA. Changes from modification 00003 are highlighted in blue.

Modification 00002 - See the Modification table in the FOA. Changes from modification 00002 are highlighted in green.

Modification 00001 - See the Modification table in the FOA. Changes from modification 00001 are highlighted in yellow.

The Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) works across the solar energy technology spectrum with the goal of improving the affordability, reliability, and performance of solar technologies on the grid. Ensuring that more Americans can benefit from the declining costs of solar is one of SETO's primary goals, which support early-stage research, development, and demonstration of solar technologies. Achieving SETO's priorities across the solar energy technology landscape requires sustained, multifaceted innovation. With this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA), the office intends to fund high-impact, early-stage research in the following areas:

Topic Area 1: Photovoltaics Research and Development

Topic Area 2: Concentrating Solar-Thermal Power Research and Development

Topic Area 3: Balance of Systems Soft Costs Reduction

Topic Area 4: Innovations in Manufacturing: Hardware Incubator

Topic Area 5: Advanced Solar Systems Integration Technologies

Teaming Partner List: See “Teaming Partner List Instructions” under the Documents Section for more information about the SETO teaming partner list.

Links to the recorded webinars are below. The password for each webinar is Setofoa2019. The recordings must be viewed in a browser other than Internet Explorer.

SETO FY 2019 FUNDING OPPORTUNITY - OVERVIEW

Topic Area 1- PHOTOVOLTAICS

Topic Area 2 - CONCENTRATING SOLAR POWER - Due to an unfortunate technical error, the CSP webinar recording and webinar transcript will not be posted on Exchange. See the Documents section below for a copy of the CSP presentation slides.

Topic Area 3 - SOFT COSTS

Topic Area 4 - INNOVATIONS IN MANUFACTURING

Topic Area 5 - SYSTEMS INTEGRATION

Applicants should note that the SAM registration and renewal process has been updated recently and now requires applicants to mail a notarized letter to the SAM processing office in London, KY. The letter must formally identify an Entity Administrator for each applicant. This additional step can result in longer processing times.

For questions and answers, please refer to the FOA Q and A spreadsheet under Documents.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy’s (EERE) Technology-to-Market (T2M) team is issuing a Request for Information (RFI) DE-FOA-0001669. The purpose of this RFI is to gain public input on how T2M can best facilitate a more efficient clean energy innovation ecosystem in the U.S. by leveraging prior initiatives. T2M is looking to understand unaddressed challenges faced by early-stage clean energy start-ups and investors (and other capital providers) and industry partners that can help facilitate the transition of new technologies into the marketplace. The information being sought under this RFI is intended to assist EERE in further defining the scope and priorities of its initiatives by capitalizing on prior year investments to strengthen the U.S. Energy innovation ecosystem. Descriptions of current T2M efforts can be found at http://energy.gov/eere/technology-to-market/technology-market-program.

Background

The conventional technology-to-market pathway from invention to market entry has proven to be challenging for disruptive non-software clean energy technologies. Specific challenges include high capital needs, long development times, the need to integrate into complex systems and supply chains, the need to work with established industry in a commodity market, and the need to operate within a shifting regulatory environment.

In this complex landscape where innovation pathways encounter many market barriers, it is critical for the U.S. to build a more efficient and interconnected innovation ecosystem in order to transition to a clean energy economy. For the purpose of this RFI, we define the innovation ecosystem as the set of stakeholders (e.g. universities, business and industry, entrepreneurs and start-ups, labs and facilities, and capital providers) that can collectively enable the commercialization of clean energy technologies.

This RFI from EERE’s Office of Strategic Programs (OSP) T2M program seeks to obtain information from the broad innovation community on challenges that start-up companies face in launching and scaling their products and businesses, and understand the interventions in the clean energy innovation ecosystem that could address these challenges.

In February 2016, the Clean Energy Investment Center (CEIC) within DOE’s Office of Technology Transitions (OTT) issued a RFI on how to utilize DOE’s considerable resources and expertise to support the investor community. The questions posed in that RFI primarily addressed specific services and tools that CEIC could develop to maximize the value of DOE engagement with the investment community and support clean energy investment decision making by the public. In response to stakeholder input from that RFI, CEIC has initiated several efforts to serve the investment community, including the Laboratory-Investor Knowledge Series (LINKS), a forum for public-private discussion of the challenges and opportunities around clean energy investment, and a Lab Partnering Service to connect investors with subject matter experts at the DOE national labs. Descriptions of current OTT efforts can be found at http://energy.gov/technologytransitions/services.

This RFI is intended to build upon DOE initiatives already underway to strengthen the clean energy innovation ecosystem in the U.S.

Please see the full RFI document in the "DOCUMENTS" section below. Responses to this RFI must be submitted electronically to T2M@ee.doe.gov no later than 5:00pm (ET) on November 14, 2016.

This funding opportunity announcement (FOA) specifically targets soft cost reduction by increasing data accessibility, quality and interoperability in the U.S. The Solar Bankability Data to Advance Transactions and Access FOA (SB-DATA) will facilitate the growth and expansion of the solar industry by creating a standardized data landscape for distributed solar. As the solar market continues to rapidly grow, it’s critical that the collection, management, and exchange of solar datasets, especially those that affect the bankability of solar assets – across the value chain from project origination to grid integration, operations, and decommissioning – are coordinated and streamlined to protect consumers, increase efficient pricing, and to support new and existing businesses entering the solar marketplace (e.g. new financial, underwriting products, operations and maintenance services).

The goal of SB-DATA is to support the creation and adoption of industry-led de facto open data standards for rapid and seamless data exchange across the value chain from origination to decommissioning. SunShot defines success of this program as the wide adoption of data standards by stakeholders representing at least 60% of the U.S. solar industry, in terms of deployed/managed residential and non-residential distributed solar assets in 2015. This includes solar companies, developers, utilities, state governments, inverter manufactures, financial institutions, investors, underwriters, real estate entities, and others.

Informational Webinar was held June 4, 2015 at 4pm-5pm ET

Slides available for download below.

NOTE: The FOA has been updated to incorporate Modification 001 and Modification 002, as discussed below:

This FOA was modified for a first time on December 18, 2014. The purpose of this modification is to extend the following dates:

1. Submission Deadline for Full Applications;

2. Submission Deadline for Replies to Reviewer Comments;

3. Expected Date for EERE Selection Notifications.

This FOA was modified for a second time on February 12, 2015. The purpose of this modification is to extend the following dates:

1. Submission Deadline for Replies to Reviewer Comments;

2.Expected Date for EERE Selection Notifications.

See Modification 002 under FOA Documents below.

EERE is seeking interdisciplinary projects that apply landscape design approaches to integrate cellulosic feedstock production into existing agricultural and forestry systems while maintaining or enhancing environmental and socio-economic sustainability including ecosystem services and food, feed, and fiber production. For the purposes of this FOA, cellulosic feedstock production refers to dedicated annual and perennial energy crops, use of agricultural and forestry residues, or a combination of these options.

The full Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is posted on the EERE eXCHANGE website at https://eere-exchange.energy.gov. Applications must be submitted through the EERE eXCHANGE website to be considered for award. The applicant must first register and create an account on the EERE eXCHANGE website. A User Guide for the EERE eXCHANGE can be found on the EERE website https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/Manuals.aspx after logging in to the system.

Information on where to submit questions regarding the content of the announcement and where to submit questions regarding submission of applications is found in the full FOA posted on the EERE eXCHANGE website.

The eXCHANGE system is designed to enforce hard deadlines for Concept Paper and Full Application submissions. The APPLY and SUBMIT buttons automatically disable at the defined submission deadlines. The intention of this design is to consistently enforce a standard deadline for all applicants.

Applicants that experience issues with submissions PRIOR to the FOA Deadline:

In the event that an Applicant experiences technical difficulties with a submission, the Applicant should contact the eXCHANGE helpdesk for assistance (exchangehelp@hq.doe.gov). The eXCHANGE helpdesk &/or the EERE eXCHANGE System Administrators (eXCHANGE@ee.doe.gov) will assist the Applicant in resolving all issues.

Applicants that experience issues with submissions that result in a late submission:

In the event that an Applicant experiences technical difficulties with a submission that results in a late submission, the Applicant should contact the eXCHANGE helpdesk for assistance (exchangehelp@hq.doe.gov). The eXCHANGE helpdesk &/or the EERE eXCHANGE System Administrators (eXCHANGE@ee.doe.gov) will assist the Applicant in resolving all issues (including finalizing the submission on behalf of and with the Applicant’s concurrence). DOE will only accept late applications when the Applicant has a) encountered technical difficulties beyond their control; b) has contacted the eXCHANGE helpdesk for assistance, and c) has submitted the application through eXCHANGE within 24 hours of the FOA’s posted deadline.

Informational Webinar: 

An informational webinar about the Funding Opportunity Announcement and the application process was held on Monday, November 3, 3:00 Eastern Time. Attendance was not mandatory and will not positively or negatively impact the overall review of any Applicant submissions. The link to the audio file of the webinar can be found at: http://youtu.be/Xupg-Jk2Ssc. Please note you will need to provide the same registration information as you did for the webinar. The webinar slides are also now available for review.

The United States (U.S.) Department of Energy (DOE) Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) plans to support the continued increase of sustainably produced domestic bioenergy from renewable cellulosic feedstocks, such as agricultural residues, annual and perennial dedicated energy crops, and forest resources. DOE is seeking input from producers, industry, academia, research laboratories, government agencies, non-governmental organizations, environmental groups, and other bioenergy stakeholders regarding landscape design approaches that integrate cellulosic feedstock production into existing agricultural and forestry systems while maintaining or enhancing environmental and socio-economic sustainability including ecosystem services and food, feed, and fiber production.

DOE is aware of promising advancements that support the objective of designing sustainable, multi-functional landscapes that supply cellulosic bioenergy feedstocks while maintaining or enhancing environmental sustainability. These advancements include the development of relevant spatial models and decision-support tools, modeling studies that demonstrate potential environmental improvements from biomass production, generation of field data on bioenergy crop and residue recovery performance and sustainability, and development of management practices for bioenergy crop and residue production. However, DOE is not aware of many initiatives that apply the current set of tools and knowledge to proactively design these multi-functional landscapes for increased cellulosic feedstock production, validate the environmental and social sustainability impacts at a watershed or comparable scale, and assess the feedstock characteristics and logistics systems (e.g., harvesting, preprocessing, and transport) associated with those landscape designs. DOE is seeking information on cost-effective, feasible approaches for testing the landscape design approach for increasing cellulosic feedstock production at a watershed, multi-landowner, or comparable spatial scale through a combination of modeling, data collection, field research, and engagement with landowners and other relevant stakeholders.

This is a Request for Information (RFI) only. DOE will not pay for information provided under this RFI and no project will be supported as a result of this RFI. This RFI is not accepting applications for financial assistance or financial incentives. DOE may or may not issue a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) based on consideration of the input received from this RFI.

Information on where to submit questions regarding the content of this RFI and where to submit questions regarding submission of responses can be found in the full RFI posted on the EERE Exchange website at https://eere-exchange.energy.gov.

Responses to this RFI must be submitted electronically to BETOLandscapeDesignRFI@ee.doe.gov no later than 5:00pm (EDT) on September 2, 2014. Responses must be provided as attachments to an email. It is recommended that attachments with file sizes exceeding 25MB be compressed (i.e., zipped) to ensure message delivery. Only electronic responses will be accepted.

THIS RFI IS NOT A FUNDING OPPORTUNITY ANNOUNCEMENT (FOA). THEREFORE, DOE IS NOT ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS.