EERE Funding Opportunities

This teaming partner list is for DE-FOA-0003460, Solar Module and Solar Hardware (SMASH) Incubator NOFO. The teaming partner list allows organizations that may wish to participate on a project to express their interest to other applicants and explore potential partnerships.

Private, for-profit manufacturing entities—the target applicants for this NOFO—would benefit greatly from developing strong partnerships within this ecosystem. As such, applicants are strongly encouraged to form teams for projects under this NOFO. Applicants are encouraged to partner with academia, national laboratories, other industry members, supply chain partners, equipment developers, and institutions representing a diversity of individuals, such as Tribal communities, minority-serving institutions, minority business enterprises, minority-owned businesses, woman-owned businesses, veteran-owned businesses, or entities located in underserved communities. Applicants are particularly encouraged to partner with a diverse set of organizations for demonstration and field-testing activities.

SMASH Incubator seeks to address the lack of sufficient private investment that is available to successfully commercialize the output of research, development, and demonstration activities and bring innovative solar photovoltaic (PV) technology to market.

Specifically, projects funded through this NOFO will encourage innovations in solar photovoltaic (PV) manufacturing across the supply chain, with the aim of reducing U.S. reliance on imported materials and technologies. This NOFO also encourages the development of new solar hardware and technology for domestic use and potential export. These activities are expected to deliver jobs and economic growth in the clean energy sector, while increasing national energy security.

Topic Area 1 seeks to conduct early-stage pilot-scale testing and demonstration of innovative processes or products that can substantively increase domestic manufacturing in all segments of the crystalline silicon solar module supply chain. Each segment also includes the manufacturing equipment used in that segment, input materials for that segment, process control and characterization tools, and consumables used in that segment, which today are predominantly made outside the United States.

Topic Area 2 aims to support the cadmium telluride (CdTe) PV industry, an increasingly valuable part of the U.S. economy and leading domestic renewable energy technology. All segments of the CdTe PV module supply chain are of interest, including improvements in materials, processes, manufacturing, components, metrology, demonstration, recycling, and reclamation.

Topic Area 3 is focused on R&D and demonstration activities with the goal of de-risking new non-module PV components and manufacturing processes, while developing and validating a realistic pathway to commercial success. This includes structural and electrical components and tools that can be made domestically and improve performance, functionality, reliability, or ease of installation for PV systems.

DOE is compiling a Teaming Partner List to facilitate the formation of project teams for this NOFO. The Teaming Partner List allows organizations that may wish to participate on a project to express their interest to other applicants and explore potential partnerships.

The Teaming Partner List will be available on EERE eXCHANGE and will be regularly updated to reflect new teaming partners who provide their organization’s information.

SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS: View the Teaming Partner List by visiting the EERE eXCHANGE homepage and clicking on “Teaming Partners” within the left-hand navigation pane. This page allows users to view published Teaming Partner Lists. To join the Teaming Partner List, submit a request within eXCHANGE. Select the appropriate Teaming Partner List from the drop-down menu and fill in the following information: Investigator Name, Organization Name, Organization Type, Topic Area, Background and Capabilities, Website, Contact Address, Contact Email, and Contact Phone.

DISCLAIMER: By submitting a request to be included on the Teaming Partner List, the requesting organization consents to the publication of the above-referenced information. By facilitating the Teaming Partner List, DOE is not endorsing, sponsoring, or otherwise evaluating the qualifications of the individuals and organizations that are identifying themselves for placement on this Teaming Partner List. DOE will not pay for the provision of any information, nor will it compensate any applicants or requesting organizations for the development of such information.

This notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) is being issued by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) to invest in R&D, technical assistance, and stakeholder engagement activities that improve the compatibility of large-scale solar (LSS) facilities with wildlife and ecosystems and facilitate the dual use of land for agricultural and solar energy production (agrivoltaics).

Projects selected in this NOFO will a) test strategies that mitigate adverse impacts and/or maximize benefits to wildlife and ecosystems at LSS facilities, b) provide technical assistance and engagement opportunities that enable stakeholders to improve the compatibility of LSS facilities with wildlife, or c) provide technical assistance and stakeholder engagement opportunities related to agrivoltaics.

Topic Area 1 is focused on improving the ability of stakeholders to implement strategies that improve the compatibility of LSS facilities with wildlife and ecosystems. Projects will test new or existing strategies for mitigating adverse impacts on and/or maximizing benefits to wildlife and ecosystems from LSS development (e.g., wildlife-permeable fencing, native vegetation management, wildlife movement corridors). Projects will also provide technical assistance and stakeholder engagement opportunities on wildlife-solar interactions to improve coordination and collaboration among stakeholders and make research findings and best practices more accessible.

Topic Area 2 is focused on disseminating agrivoltaic research, sharing best practices, and enabling cross-sector collaboration. Projects will provide technical assistance and engagement opportunities to entities involved in LSS development, including but not limited to solar industry members, agricultural practitioners, rural cooperatives, Tribal governments and communities, and local governments.

Applicants must include the team members needed to achieve the stated objectives, disseminate the project outputs, and convene the appropriate stakeholders, including those who can implement proposed solutions. Team member or partner willingness to participate in the project can be demonstrated by providing letters of commitment in project applications. Organizations that are eligible to apply or participate as project collaborators include but are not limited to private or for-profit entities, colleges and universities, state agencies, non‐profits, community‐based organizations, and federally funded R&D centers (FFRDCs). Relevant stakeholder groups include solar developers, owners, and operators, environmental consultants, academic researchers with wildlife or agrivoltaics expertise, Tribal governments and communities, and state agencies and nonprofits working on wildlife, hunting, conservation, environmental, and agricultural issues.

MOD 000002:  Update Information Webinar Date

Through this RFI, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) seeks to gain a better understanding of photovoltaic-thermal (PVT) technologies. SETO is looking to solicit information on PVT technology, including but not limited to business, state-of-the-art, regulatory statutes, and consumer opinion. SETO aims to summarize the information gathered from this RFI and will use the stakeholder feedback obtained to inform future program development.

Application Submission Deadline 12/31/2024

This is a Request for Information (RFI) only. EERE 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. EERE may or may not issue funding based on consideration of the input received from this RFI.

The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) intends to issue, on behalf of the Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO), a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) entitled “Fiscal Year 2025 Solar Module and Solar Hardware (SMASH) Incubator Notice of Funding Opportunity.”

This NOFO seeks to address the lack of sufficient private investment that is available to successfully commercialize research and development (R&D) and research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) activities and bring innovative solar photovoltaic (PV) technology to market. Prime recipients of awards funded through this NOFO will be for-profit entities, with institutions of higher education, for-profit entities, nonprofit entities, state and local governmental entities, and federally recognized Indian Tribes as eligible subrecipients to provide technical expertise, technology know-how, and technical validation capabilities.

Successful applications to this NOFO will be selected from three topic areas:

1. Crystalline silicon (c-Si) module technology, covering all segments of the c-Si PV module supply chain from input materials and production equipment through module assembly.
2. Cadmium telluride (CdTe) module technology, covering all segments of the CdTe PV module supply chain, including improvements in materials, processes, manufacturing, components, metrology, demonstration, recycling, and reclamation.
3. Non-module hardware technology, including structural and electrical components and tools that improve performance, functionality, reliability, or ease of installation for PV systems.

Modification 0001: The purpose of this modification is extend the Full Application deadline from October 10, 2024 to October 16, 2024 due to natural disaster, Hurricane Milton, impacting the ability of applicants to complete and submit an application by the deadline.

The “Connected Communities 2.0: Innovations to Manage Growing Transportation, Building, and Industrial Loads to the Grid” Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) issued by the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy is designed to address major new loads from transportation, industry, and buildings on the electric grid by providing new tools for users, planners, and operators of the electric grid. This FOA has two major topical areas:

1. Connected Communities 2.0, focused on grid edge technical measures in buildings, industry, and transportation to prepare the electric grid for these new loads, and improve the resilience of customers and the grid; and

2. Smart Charge Management (SCM), focused on various unique urban, suburban, and rural use cases to build confidence in SCM as an effective approach for electric vehicles (EVs) to provide flexibility and value to the electric grid.

The learnings from these projects should enable electric system planners and operators, strategic planners, regulators such as Public Utility Commissions (PUCs), and other stakeholders to understand and plan for new load growth and peak loads driven by electrification, growth in manufacturing, and new computing developments; and to plan for physical and cyber threats to reliability and resilience, while keeping costs affordable for customers and ratepayers. To achieve this end, the cohort of awarded projects will pursue three primary goals. First, the cohort will demonstrate how smart and coordinated management of EVs and other distributed energy resources (DERs), including the integration of efficiency, smart electrical panels, solar, heat pumps, controls, EV charging, and storage can together provide grid support, reduce system costs, and improve the economics of customer technology adoption, at a scale sufficient to enable confidence in wide-scale adoption. The second goal is to demonstrate approaches that enable acceptance by utilities, PUCs, and communities of smart charge management, grid-edge technical measures and innovative planning strategies as valid methods towards right sizing investments in the distribution system. The third and final major goal for the cohort is to demonstrate approaches towards improved resilience for communities, end-use customers, and the overall grid in the face of growing loads, extreme weather events, cyber threats, and increasing reliance on the electric grid through the use of grid edge technical measures.

This FOA will award an estimated $65M, and is a cross office FOA co-funded by BTO, VTO, SETO, IEDO, GTO, and OE.

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

DOE is compiling a Teaming Partner List to facilitate the formation of project teams for this FOA. The Teaming Partner List allows organizations that may wish to participate on a project to express their interest to other applicants and explore potential partnerships.

SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS: View the Teaming Partner List by visiting the EERE eXCHANGE homepage and clicking on Teaming Partners within the left-hand navigation pane. This page allows users to view published Teaming Partner Lists. To join the Teaming Partner List, submit a request within eXCHANGE. Select the appropriate Teaming Partner List from the drop-down menu and fill in the following information: Investigator Name, Organization Name, Organization Type, Topic Area, Background and Capabilities, Website, Contact Address, Contact Email, and Contact Phone.

DISCLAIMER: By submitting a request to be included on the Teaming Partner List, the requesting organization consents to the publication of the above-referenced information. By facilitating the Teaming Partner List, DOE is not endorsing, sponsoring, or otherwise evaluating the qualifications of the individuals and organizations that are identifying themselves for placement on this Teaming Partner List. DOE will not pay for the provision of any information, nor will it compensate any applicants or requesting organizations for the development of such information.

Private, for-profit manufacturing entities—the target applicants for this FOA—would benefit greatly from developing strong partnerships within this ecosystem. As such, applicants are strongly encouraged to form teams for projects under this FOA. Applicants are encouraged to partner with academia, national laboratories, other industry members, supply chain partners, equipment developers, and institutions representing a diversity of individuals, such as, but not limited to, Tribal communities, minority serving institutions,[1] minority business enterprises, minority-owned businesses, woman-owned businesses, veteran-owned businesses, or entities located in underserved communities. Applicants are particularly encouraged to partner with a diverse set of organizations to advance demonstration and field-testing activities.

[1] Minority serving institutions (MSIs) include historically Black colleges and universities/other minority institutions as educational entities recognized by the Office of Civil Rights and U.S. Department of Education and identified on the Office of Civil Rights' Department of Education accredited postsecondary minorities’ institution list. See www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/edlite-minorityinst.html.

MOD000003: The purpose of FOA Modification 000003 is to revise the page limit of the Statement of Project Objectives (SOPO) document in Section IV. Application and Submission Information.

MOD000002: The purpose of FOA Modification 000002 is to revise anticipated federal funding amounts in Section I.B ii, Section I.B.iii, and Section II.A.i.

MOD000001: The purpose of FOA Modification 000001 is to revise Section I.B.iv Topic Area 3: Solar and Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment Permitting Software, Outreach, Education, and Development, Section I.C.iiTopic Area 3, Section I.E Authorizing Statues, and Section II.A.i Estimated Funding.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) announced the Fiscal Year 2024 Solar Energy Supply Chain Incubator funding opportunity (FOA), which will provide up to $50.5 million for research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) projects that de-risk solar hardware, manufacturing processes, and software products across a wide range of solar technology areas.

The research and development (R&D) and demonstration (RD&D) activities to be funded under this FOA will support the government-wide approach to the climate crisis by driving the innovation that can lead to the deployment of clean energy technologies, which are critical for climate protection. Specifically, this FOA will support the DOE decarbonization goals by advancing innovative solar hardware, software, and manufacturing processes across a broad range of technology readiness levels, from laboratory-scale to pilot-scale testing and prototype demonstration.

Technologies of interest include photovoltaics (PV), systems integration, and concentrating solar-thermal power (CSP) technologies, as well as those that connect solar with storage or electric vehicles and dual-use PV applications like agrivoltaics and vehicle-integrated PV. SETO encourages for-profit applicants to team with diverse institutions including academic institutions, non-profits, state and local governments, and Tribal governments.

The FOA also seeks projects that provide outreach, education, or technology development for software that delivers an automated permit review and approval process for rooftop solar PV with or without energy storage. Both for-profit and non-profit entities are eligible to apply under this topic.

SETO expects to make between 11 and 23 awards ranging from $1 million to $6 million under this FOA. Learn more about past Incubator funding program awardees.

Prior to submitting a full application for this opportunity, a mandatory concept paper is due July 19 at 5 p.m. ET.

Applicants can also access free Application Education Services through the American-Made Network and can engage with Power Connectors.

Modification 000001: Extend the submission deadline for full applications as shown on the cover page of the FOA document.

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) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO). Building a clean and equitable energy economy and addressing the climate crisis is a top priority of the Biden Administration. This FOA will advance the Biden Administration’s goals to achieve carbon pollution-free electricity by 2035 and to “deliver an equitable, clean energy future, and put the United States on a path to achieve net-zero emissions, economy-wide, by no later than 2050[1] to the benefit of all Americans.

The research and development (R&D) and demonstration (RD&D) activities to be funded under this FOA will support the government-wide approach to the climate crisis by driving the innovation that can lead to the deployment of clean energy technologies, which are critical for climate protection. Specifically, the Solar Technologies’ Rapid Integration and Validation for Energy Systems (STRIVES) FOA will fund RD&D projects to improve power systems simulation software tools and demonstrate new business models for distribution systems operations to integrate and optimize the value of inverter-based resources (IBRs) and distributed energy resources (DERs) including solar, wind, energy storage, and other technologies such as buildings and electric vehicles (EVs).

This funding opportunity announcement (FOA) is part of a collaborative effort by the DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) to issue multiple FOAs totaling more than $100 million for field demonstration projects and other research to support better planning and operations of the electric grid.

Projects funded under this FOA will address near-term and long-term challenges in operating electric power grids with large deployments of solar energy systems and other DERs. This FOA has two topic areas:

Topic Area 1: Robust Experimentation and Advanced Learning for Distribution System Operators – 8-10 projects, $2.5-3 million each

Projects in this topic area will design and perform field demonstrations of distribution system operator models that consider technology development and the roles of non-traditional stakeholders in potential distribution electricity services and markets.

Topic Area 2: Improved Simulation Tools for Large-Scale IBR Transient and Dynamic Studies – 4-5 projects, $1-2.5 million each

The research and development (R&D) activities to be funded under this FOA will support the government-wide approach to the climate crisis by driving the innovation that can lead to the deployment of clean energy technologies, which are critical for climate protection. Specifically, this FOA will fund innovative solar photovoltaics (PV) R&D that reduces the cost of PV modules, reduces carbon and energy intensity of PV manufacturing processes, and optimizes PV technology for new, specialized markets.

SETO’s PVRD program works to accelerate the deployment of solar energy technologies by funding innovative R&D in PV cell and module technologies, balance-of-system components, reliability tracing and tracking, metrology, and other key research questions in PV. To accelerate toward these deployment targets and augment SETO’s ongoing PV research portfolio,12 this FOA will fund R&D on innovative cell- and minimodule-level technologies focused on three major goals:

•Enable cost reduction on an LCOE basis through development of durable, high-efficiency cell and module PV technology

•Identify pathways to reduce the carbon intensity and energy intensity of industrial processes required to fabricate PV cells and modules

•Increase technical viability of PV cells and modules tailored for emerging integrated PV sectors, such as building-integrated PV (BIPV) and vehicle-integrated PV.

This FOA will fund innovative R&D projects that aim to advance the state of the art in various cell and module technologies to accomplish these goals of cost reduction, lower carbon intensity, and viability of dual-use markets. This FOA is separated into two topic areas:

•Photovoltaic Advances in Cell Efficiency, Reliability, and Supply Chain (PACERS): Applications in four PV supply chain, cell, and module technology spaces are of particular interest: low-carbon synthesis of metallurgical-grade silicon (MGS, here defined as silicon that is 98% pure as defined by the 5/5/3 standard)13 production, crystalline silicon (c-Si) PV, III-V PV, and organic PV (OPV). However, proposals for any industrial process, cell, or minimodule-level research that enables the goals of this FOA will be considered, excluding areas specified as not of interest in Section I.C., such as perovskite technology, which is addressed in other funding programs, and CdTe technology, which is addressed in Topic Area 2.

•Building Academic Capabilities in Cadmium Telluride: Applications describing advanced R&D projects requiring the procurement or upgrade of CdTe equipment are of interest. Proposals should detail work that will enhance fabrication, characterization, or analytical capabilities while also benefiting the larger CdTe PV research community.

The Funding Opportunity Announcement's (FOA) will be issued by the Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO), the Building Technologies Office (BTO), and the Vehicle Technologies Office (VTO), in collaboration with the Geothermal Technologies Office, the Industrial Efficiency and Decarbonization Office, and the Office of Electricity to equitably address grid edge challenges.

It is anticipated that the FOAs under this Notice of Intent (NOI) will be released individually and may include the following areas of interest:

SETO Funding Opportunity Announcement No. DE-FOA-0003331 (STRIVES) to develop and demonstrate technology and market tools for better integration of distributed energy resources including solar, wind, and energy storage.

BTO Funding Opportunity Announcement No. DE-FOA-0003136 (Connected Communities) to equitably advance grid-edge solutions for resilient, decarbonized communities including an emphasis on affordable housing communities that have limited availability of distribution capacity for transportation and building electrification.

VTO Funding Opportunity Announcement No. DE-FOA-0003344 (SuperTruck Charge) will demonstrate concepts for managed charging at truck depots/hubs and truck stops that alleviate grid capacity challenges.

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

i. Topic Area 1: Scalable Concentrating Solar Collectors

This topic area solicits innovations to decrease the installed costs of solar collectors to $50/m² with high reliability and efficiency over a 30-year lifetime. Heliostat systems, line-focusing collectors, and other novel collector forms are of interest.

Areas of interest include, but are not limited to:

• Advanced manufacturing
• Automated robotic installation
• Communication and control systems
• Structures and facets
• Solar field analysis tools and standards
• Anti-soiling and cleaning technologies
• Wind and weather impact

ii. Topic Area 2: Scalable Supercritical Carbon Dioxide (sCO₂) Turbomachinery

SETO solicits proposals for RD&D to enable the deployment of sCO₂ turbomachinery for advanced CSP systems. Multiple heat engine and heat pump cycles are of interest to enable cost-effective CST plants coupled with thermal energy storage.

iii. Topic Area 3: Scalable Concentrating Solar-thermal Receivers and Reactors

This topic solicits proposals for novel solar receivers, solar reactors, and improvements to existing solar receiver concepts. Successful receiver or reactor technologies will support the deployment of CST systems that can impact the U.S. market. Targeted outcomes include:

• Development of a complete receiver subsystem with ≥10 MW_th capacity and ≥750 ⁰C outlet temperature that can be integrated and tested with a ≥10 MW_e sCO₂ power cycle.
• Development of a ≥1 MW_th reactor archetype that integrates solar thermal energy with industrial production of chemicals, cement, or minerals. Testing and integration of solar steam or heat with the product of industrial products for scaled up reactor use.
• Enabling near-term cost, reliability, and performance improvements of commercial CST receivers.
• De-risking receiver or reactor concepts to enable novel CST systems which can achieve broad commercial deployment.

DE-FOA-0003269 Modification (0003) extends the Full Application Deadline on the Cover Page.

DE-FOA-0003269 Modification (00002) includes clarification of SOPO page limit on page 57.

DE-FOA-0003269 Modification (000001) includes the addition of Section IV.A.ii (Applicant Education Services).

SETO’s efforts are part of a multiyear, multiprong strategy that is guided by the Industrial Heat Shot,15 a DOE-wide initiative to develop cost-competitive industrial heat decarbonization technologies with at least 85% lower greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions compared to 2020 emissions by 2035. To this end, the FOA titled Concentrating Solar Flux to Heat and Power supports this initiative and is composed of three different topic areas as noted below:

Topic Area 1: Scalable Concentrating Solar Collectors

Topic Area 2: Scalable Supercritical Carbon Dioxide (sCO2)

Topic Area 3: Scalable Concentrating Solar-thermal Receivers and Reactors

DOE is compiling a Teaming Partner List to facilitate the formation of project teams for this FOA. The Teaming Partner List allows organizations that may wish to participate on a project to express their interest to other applicants and explore potential partnerships.

The Teaming Partner List will be available on EERE eXCHANGE and will be regularly updated to reflect new teaming partners who provide their organization’s information.

SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS: View the Teaming Partner List by visiting the EERE eXCHANGE homepage and clicking on “Teaming Partners” within the left-hand navigation pane. This page allows users to view published Teaming Partner Lists. To join the Teaming Partner List, submit a request within eXCHANGE. Select the appropriate Teaming Partner List from the drop-down menu and fill in the following information: Investigator Name, Organization Name, Organization Type, Topic Area, Background and Capabilities, Website, Contact Address, Contact Email, and Contact Phone.

DISCLAIMER: By submitting a request to be included on the Teaming Partner List, the requesting organization consents to the publication of the above-referenced information. By facilitating the Teaming Partner List, DOE is not endorsing, sponsoring, or otherwise evaluating the qualifications of the individuals and organizations that are identifying themselves for placement on this Teaming Partner List. DOE will not pay for the provision of any information, nor will it compensate any applicants or requesting organizations for the development of such information.

This teaming partner list is for DE-FOA-0003246, Solar and Wind Interconnection for Future Transmission (SWIFTR).

A teaming partner list may be used to facilitate the formation of new project teams for the announcement/topic area. The list allows organizations to express their interest and to explore potential partnerships, including representation from Minority Serving Institutions (e.g., Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs)/Other Minority Serving Institutions); and partnerships with Minority Business Enterprises, Minority Owned Businesses, Woman Owned Businesses, Veteran Owned Businesses, or tribal nations.

Modification 000001: Submission deadline for full applications has been moved from 6/28 to 7/11. Deadline for replies to reviewer comments has been moved accordingly to 8/16. Expected date for selection notifications has been moved to 10/1 and timeframe for negotiations has been moved to October-December 2024.

This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is jointly issued by the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) and Wind Energy Technologies Office (WETO) as part of their Interconnection Innovation Exchange (i2X) program1 to support innovative work to enable simpler, faster, and fairer interconnection of clean energy resources while enhancing the reliability, resiliency, and security of our electrical grid.

The two FOA topic areas are as follows:

Topic Area 1: Improved Efficiency of EMT Simulations for Interconnection Studies of IBRs Projects in this topic area will seek to improve the efficiency of the interconnection study process for new IBRs, such as solar and wind plants and battery energy storage systems, by improving software tools to study plant dynamics to increase long-term plant reliability. Projects will achieve this both by improving the speed of advanced, high-fidelity EMT modeling and simulation tools used in power systems interconnection studies and by developing a better understanding of when such high-fidelity simulations are necessary in the interconnection process.

Topic Area 2: Dynamic Stability-Enhanced Network Assessment Tools Projects in this topic area will develop tools to provide stakeholders with data on transmission system characteristics related to stability, voltage, and grid strength while securing confidential and critical energy infrastructure information. Projects will establish the type of information required by stakeholders, develop a tool or tools, and test and evaluate those tools on at least one real transmission system.

Topic Area 1 is primarily focused on the improvement of software tools, methods, or processes used to conduct EMT studies, the results of which will inform the transmission system interconnection stakeholders in Topic Area 2. Projects in Topic Area 2 do not need to be focused solely on transmission system characteristics based on EMT studies.

The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) intends to issue, on behalf of the Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO), a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) titled “Concentrating Solar Flux to Heat and Power.”

SETO anticipates that the FOA will seek RD&D projects in three topic areas. Technologies in each area may support a variety of concentrating solar-thermal (CST) forms including CSP, SIPH, and high-temperature solar-thermal reactors. Each topic area focuses on scaling and maturing impactful technologies for specified CST subsystems.

The purpose of this RFI is to solicit feedback from industry; state, territory, Tribal, and local government agencies; utilities; nonprofit organizations; solar developers and installers; solar industry organizations; subscriber management organizations; community-based organizations; financial institutions; philanthropic organizations; academia; research laboratories; advocacy organizations; community action agencies; environmental justice organization; consumer protection agencies; community members; and other stakeholders on issues related to successfully deploying distributed solar and related technologies through industry, government, and utility-led programs designed to serve low-income and disadvantaged communities (LIDAC).

EERE is specifically interested in information as identified in the “Request for Information Categories and Questions” section of this document.This is solely a request for information and not a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA). EERE is not accepting applications.

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

This is an 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.

Responses to this RFI must be submitted electronically to EquitableSolar@ee.doe.gov no later than 5:00pm (ET) on February 23, 2024. Responses must be provided as attachments to an email.

This request for information (RFI) is intended to inform the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) on specific research, development, and demonstration opportunities to enable near term deployment of receivers for concentrating solar-thermal power (CSP) plants, and reactors for CSP industries.

To build a clean and equitable energy economy and address the climate crisis, SETO invests in innovative research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) projects that work to drive down costs of solar technologies and develop next-generation products ready for commercialization. This RFI seeks information to help advance the goals of achieving carbon-pollution-free electricity by 2035, and to “deliver an equitable, clean energy future, and put the United States on a path to achieve net-zero emissions, economy-wide, by no later than 2050.

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

This funding opportunity announcement (FOA) is being issued by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) to invest in innovative research and development (R&D) that accelerates the large-scale development and deployment of solar technologies to support an equitable transition to a decarbonized electricity system by 2035 and decarbonized energy sector by 2050. Achieving this goal will support the nationwide effort to meet the threat of climate change and ensure that all Americans benefit from the transition to a clean energy economy.

This Small Innovative Projects in Solar (SIPS) FOA solicits seedling R&D projects for both photovoltaic and concentrating solar thermal power technologies. The funding opportunity is designed to streamline the application process and to encourage applicants with a diverse range of backgrounds.

This FOA is expected to be re-issued on an annual basis and will provide applicants the opportunity to submit new applications for consideration. EERE intends to modify this FOA at a future time to solicit applications for subsequent fiscal years.

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The current issuance of this FOA solicits applications for fiscal year 2024.

NOTE: This deadline for submissions as related to DE-FOA-0003270 has been extended to February 20, 2024, at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST).  

This request for information (RFI) is intended to inform the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) on the specific research, development, and demonstration opportunities to enable near term deployment of supercritical carbon dioxide (sCO2) based turbomachinery for concentrating solar power plants.

DOE is compiling a Teaming Partner List to facilitate the formation of project teams for this FOA. The Teaming Partner List allows organizations that may wish to participate on a project to express their interest to other applicants and explore potential partnerships.

The Teaming Partner List will be available on EERE eXCHANGE and will be regularly updated to reflect new teaming partners who provide their organization’s information.

SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS: View the Teaming Partner List by visiting the EERE eXCHANGE homepage and clicking on “Teaming Partners” within the left-hand navigation pane. This page allows users to view published Teaming Partner Lists. To join the Teaming Partner List, submit a request within eXCHANGE. Select the appropriate Teaming Partner List from the drop-down menu and fill in the following information: Investigator Name, Organization Name, Organization Type, Topic Area, Background and Capabilities, Website, Contact Address, Contact Email, and Contact Phone.

DISCLAIMER: By submitting a request to be included on the Teaming Partner List, the requesting organization consents to the publication of the above-referenced information. By facilitating the Teaming Partner List, DOE is not endorsing, sponsoring, or otherwise evaluating the qualifications of the individuals and organizations that are identifying themselves for placement on this Teaming Partner List. DOE will not pay for the provision of any information, nor will it compensate any applicants or requesting organizations for the development of such information.

This topic will fund research programs that study the social dimensions of large-scale solar siting. This includes the dynamics of community acceptance of proposed projects, the role of public attitudes and other factors in the permitting process, and impacts of large-scale solar projects on communities. The goal of the award is to identify community engagement strategies, process changes, and other interventions that improve siting processes so that they are procedurally fair, create equitable benefits for communities, and balance the national need to site large-scale solar generation.

Outcomes of interest include:

• Community acceptance or opposition
• Permitting and land use decisions, predictability, and timeliness
• Community impacts (including meaningful benefits, burdens, and equity and procedural and distributional justice)

DOE is compiling a Teaming Partner List to facilitate the formation of project teams for this FOA. The Teaming Partner List allows organizations that may wish to participate on a project to express their interest to other applicants and explore potential partnerships. Please see the Teaming List section of the FOA document for more information.

EERE eXCHANGE is designed to enforce the deadlines specified in this FOA. The “Apply” and “Submit” buttons will automatically disable at the defined submission deadlines. Should applicants experience problems with EERE eXCHANGE, the following information may be helpful.

Applicants that experience issues with submission PRIOR to the FOA deadline: In the event that an applicant experiences technical difficulties with a submission, the applicant should contact the EERE eXCHANGE helpdesk for assistance (EERE-eXCHANGESupport@hq.doe.gov). The EERE eXCHANGE helpdesk and/or the EERE eXCHANGE system administrators will assist applicants in resolving issues.

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) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO). This FOA will advance the Biden Administration’s goals to achieve carbon pollution-free electricity by 2035 and to “deliver an equitable, clean energy future, and put the United States on a path to achieve net-zero emissions, economy-wide, by no later than 2050” to the benefit of all Americans. The research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) activities to be funded under this FOA will support the government-wide approach to the climate crisis by driving innovations that can lead to the largescale deployment of clean energy technologies.

Specifically, this FOA will implement two approaches to energy storage in concentrated solar-thermal (CST) systems: thermochemical storage via solar fuel production and local thermal energy storage (TES) for dispatchable energy. The two technologies will support the government-wide approach to the climate crisis by driving the innovation that can lead to the deployment of clean energy technologies, which are critical for climate protection.

MOD 00001:  Modified the Full Application Deadline and expected date for Selections Notifications; see the cover page of the FOA.

Mod 0002: Defines prime recipient as representing the “majority of the work performed (over 50%) at I A i Program Purpose and III A i Domestic Entities, and revises the deadline for expected E/D decision and Applicant interviews.

Mod 0001: The purpose of this modification is to revise the expected date for Concept Paper Encourage/Discourage Decision date from 11/7 to 11/14, and revise the full application deadline from 12/12 to 12/18/2023.

The Advancing U.S. Thin-Film Solar Photovoltaics FOA will focus on accelerating the capabilities of two thin-film photovoltaic (PV) technologies: metal-halide perovskite PV and cadmium telluride (CdTe) PV technologies. It will fund innovative industrial research and development (R&D) projects that will enable future commercialization of hybrid tandem perovskite PV, defined as a perovskite PV in combination with another technology such as silicon or CdTe. It will also fund industrial research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) projects across the materials, equipment, installation, and performance monitoring sectors to improve the competitiveness of the domestic CdTe PV industry. This FOA promotes American leadership in thin-film PV technology by promoting the domestic manufacture of thin-film PV modules. With this goal in mind, only for-profit entities and teams led by for-profit entities may apply to this FOA (see Section III.A for more details on eligibility criteria) and all work must be performed in the United States (see Section IV.I.iii. and Appendix C).

FOA Modification 000001: Full Application due date extended to 11/30/2023.

Through this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA), the Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) will provide funding for multi-stakeholder collaborations to reduce material usage, improve installation quality and resilience of PV systems, and address handling of PV systems at the end of life. This FOA calls for diverse teams to assess impact of the developed technologies on all the life stages of PV systems in terms of energy use, cost, and environmental impact. The holistic technological solutions developed in the projects funded by this FOA will facilitate rapid growth of PV deployment in the U.S. in the next decade.

Topic Area 1: MORE Connection: Connecting PV Materials, Design, Installation, Performance, and End of Life

This Topic Area will use $12 million of non-Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) funding to fund collaborations of diverse stakeholders who can bring expertise from all life stages of the PV system lifecycle to reduce cost and lifecycle impacts of a PV system and its components, including co-located storage. Projects funded in this topic area will develop technology and design solutions to optimize the interconnected energy, economic, and environmental impact metrics in pursuit of rapid and sustainable scale-up of PV technologies.

Specific areas of interest include:

· Design of PV systems and PV system components that minimizes the use of materials, especially critical materials.

· Development of characterization and non-destructive testing of bill of materials (BOM) of PV system components throughout their life.

· Development and implementation of holistic design for engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) of PV systems that can simultaneously optimize energy, economic, and environmental metrics during the system’s useful life under relevant operating conditions, in a high deployment environment.

· Scalable hardware and software solutions for robust, error-free, low-maintenance tools, components, and methods for installation, quality management, and maintenance.

Topic Area 2: Solar Partnership to Advance Recycling and Circularity (Solar PARC)

This topic area uses funds designated by the BIL and seeks to fund one research partnership at a maximum of $8 million dedicated to improving materials recovery efficiency and developing safe end-of-life (EOL) practices for PV system components, including modules, inverters, and other balance-of-system (BOS) components. The partnership will focus on technologies and methods to enable low-cost reuse, refurbishing, repair, and recycling of photovoltaic materials, and best practices for safe disposal of these materials, and will include data collection, analysis, and working groups to enable effective collaborations and technology transfer.

The teaming list for the FOA is TPL-0000021: TEAMING PARTNER LIST FOR DE-FOA-0002985 MATERIALS, OPERATION, AND RECYCLING OF PHOTOVOLTAICS (MORE PV).

Mod 000001: Added “Applicant Education Services” section IV.A.ii.

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), Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO). Some of the awards made under this FOA will be funded with funds appropriated by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL).

BIL is a once-in-a-generation investment in modernizing and upgrading American infrastructure to enhance U.S. competitiveness, drive the creation of good-paying union jobs, tackle the climate crisis, and ensure strong access to economic, environmental, and other benefits for disadvantaged communities. BIL appropriates more than $62 billion to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)4 to invest in American manufacturing and workers; expand access to energy efficiency and clean energy; deliver reliable, clean, and affordable power to more Americans; and demonstrate and deploy the technologies of tomorrow through clean energy demonstrations.

DOE’s BIL investments will support efforts to build a clean and equitable energy economy that achieves a zero-carbon electricity system by 2035, and to put the United States on a path to achieve net-zero emissions economy-wide by no later than 20505 to benefit all Americans.

This FOA will invest appropriations of $45 million over three years for development of new solar photovoltaics (PV) technologies to improve U.S. domestic manufacturing and competitiveness and secure our domestic energy supply chains.

The activities under this FOA are partly funded by BIL section 41007(c)(2)—the Advanced Solar Energy Manufacturing Initiative, which appropriates $20 million to carry out this activity, and was authorized by the Energy Act of 2020. In addition, appropriations from fiscal year 2023 will be used, authorized under Division Z Section 3004(b) of the Energy Act of 2020, (42 U.S.C. 16238(b)). These activities support the broader government-wide approach to strengthening critical domestic manufacturing and supply chains and to maximize the benefits of the clean energy transition as the nation works to curb the climate crisis, empower workers, and advance environmental justice. These BIL sections are focused on: Photovoltaics and Manufacturability of low cost, high quality solar systems

This funding opportunity has two topic areas. Topic 1 is focused on demonstration activities that support the domestic silicon PV module supply chain. Topic 2 is focused on RD&D and product development for dual-use PV with the aim of developing these market segments in the United States and increasing deployment.In both Topic Areas, SETO funding aims to retire technical, business, and market risks of solar hardware to validate pathways to commercial success through customer engagement and trials. Successful awardees will be well positioned to attract follow-on private investment, grow their businesses, generate revenue, and create jobs. This will help address SETO’s aims to support U.S. manufacturing across the solar value chain..

This Teaming Partner List is for the Advancing U.S. Thin-Film Solar Photovoltaics Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA). This FOA will focus on accelerating the capabilities of two thin-film photovoltaic (PV) technologies: metal-halide perovskite PV and cadmium telluride (CdTe) PV technologies. It will fund innovative industrial research and development (R&D) projects that will enable future commercialization of hybrid tandem perovskite PV, defined as a perovskite PV in combination with another technology such as silicon or CdTe. It will also fund industrial research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) projects across the materials, equipment, installation, and performance monitoring sectors to improve the competitiveness of the domestic CdTe PV industry. This FOA promotes American leadership in thin-film PV technology by promoting the domestic manufacture of thin-film PV modules. With this goal in mind, only for-profit entities and teams led by for-profit entities may apply to this FOA and all work must be performed in the United States.

The United States has world-leading domestic research and development (R&D) capabilities in thin-film PV across a multitude of universities and national laboratories. The United States is also in the process of rebuilding PV manufacturing equipment capabilities. It is expected that private for-profit entities, who are the target prime recipients for this FOA, will benefit greatly from developing strong partnerships with this ecosystem. As such, teaming arrangements are strongly encouraged.

This Teaming Partner List is available to facilitate the widest possible national participation in the formation of applicant teams for the FOA. The Teaming Partner List allows organizations that may wish to participate on a project to express their interest to other applicants and explore potential partnerships.

This FOA will encourage potential applicants to form partnerships with academia, national laboratories, other industry members, supply chain partners, equipment developers, and with institutions representing diverse individuals such as, but not limited to, tribal communities; minority-serving institutions (MSI), including historically black colleges and universities (HBCU) and other minority institutions (OMI); minority business enterprises; minority-, woman-, and veteran-owned businesses; entities located in an underserved community or through linkages with Opportunity Zones. Applicants are particularly encouraged to partner with a diverse set of organizations to advance demonstration and field-testing activities.

Updates to the Teaming Partner List will be available in the EERE Exchange website. The Teaming Partner List will be regularly updated to reflect new teaming partners who provide their organization’s information. Please include information about your organization type/characteristics in the “Background, Interest, Capabilities” field in Exchange to help other participants identify your capabilities.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) intends to release the Advancing U.S. Thin-Film Solar Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) of up to $36 million for research, development, and demonstration projects on two major thin-film photovoltaic (PV) technologies: metal halide perovskite PV and cadmium telluride (CdTe) PV. This FOA will promote American leadership in thin-film PV technology, and the domestic manufacture of thin-film PV modules. This FOA will also support SETO in meeting Congressional direction provided in fiscal year 2023 to spend no less than $25 million each to support the advancement of both perovskite PV and CdTe PV technologies ($50 million in total). The FOA is expected to be released in September 2023 and is expected to be restricted to for-profit lead applicants.

Up to $20 million will fund projects on industrial perovskite PV research and development to enable future commercialization by reaching specific thresholds of efficiency, long-term reliability, manufacturability, and economic viability. Quantitative guidelines within the NOI describe what a competitive application is expected to include for a given funding level. This information is being communicated through the NOI so potential applicants can take advantage of the intervening time before a FOA is released to identify and fill possible gaps in their capabilities.

Up to $16 million will fund projects to advance cadmium telluride (CdTe) PV research, development, demonstration, and commercialization across the materials, equipment, installation, and performance monitoring supply chain to improve the competitiveness of the domestic CdTe PV technology industry.  

SETO anticipates to award 3 or more financial assistance awards in the form of cooperative agreements. These awards will last 18-36 months, with $3 million to 20 million federal share per project and a cost share requirement of 20-50%.

Navigate to TPL-0000020 in EERE Exchange to access the Teaming Partner List for this solicitation

View the informational webinar recording (password: QgGtSKC8) and download the slides below. 

Modification 000002: The Full Application Submissions Dealine has been extended.

Modification 000001: The Concept Paper Submissions Deadline has been extended.

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) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO). This FOA will advance the Biden Administration’s goals to achieve carbon pollution-free electricity by 2035 and to “deliver an equitable, clean energy future, and put the United States on a path to achieve net-zero emissions, economy-wide, by no later than 2050” to the benefit of all Americans.

The research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) activities to be funded under this FOA will support the government-wide approach to the climate crisis by driving innovations that can lead to the large-scale deployment of clean energy technologies.

Topic Area 1: System Planning Tools for Future Power Systems

This topic seeks to improve the long-term planning process of the bulk power grid by incorporating the unique features of VRE and new technologies that support VRE into the planning process.

Topic Area 2: Variability Management in Grid Operations

Projects funded under this topic area will develop tools for grid operators to optimally utilize and control IBR connected to the bulk power grid, as well as large numbers of DER, to achieve a more reliable and predictable grid with high penetrations of VRE.

Topic Area 3: Rapid System Health and Risk Assessment Tools for Grid Operators

This funding opportunity announcement (FOA) is being issued by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) to invest in innovative research and development (R&D) that accelerates the large-scale development and deployment of solar technologies to support an equitable transition to a decarbonized electricity system by 2035 and decarbonized energy sector by 2050. Achieving this goal will support the nationwide effort to meet the threat of climate change and ensure that all Americans benefit from the transition to a clean energy economy.

This Small Innovative Projects in Solar (SIPS) FOA solicits seedling R&D projects for both photovoltaic and concentrating solar thermal power technologies. The funding opportunity is designed to streamline the application process and to encourage applicants with a diverse range of backgrounds.

This FOA is expected to be re-issued on an annual basis and will provide applicants the opportunity to submit new applications for consideration. EERE intends to modify this FOA at a future time to solicit applications for subsequent fiscal years.

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The current issuance of this FOA solicits applications for fiscal year 2023.

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**DOE expects to make the announcement on Selections for the FY23 FOA in early January 2024**

This request for information (RFI) is intended to inform the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) on the challenges and opportunities associated with scaling the domestic solar manufacturing workforce. This RFI pertains to job roles associated with operating U.S.-based manufacturing facilities involved in the production of photovoltaic (PV) modules and related components and materials.

This request for information (RFI) is intended to inform the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) on the specific research, development, and demonstration opportunities to enable cost-effective production of hydrogen, ammonia, liquid fuels—such as gasoline, diesel, jet fuel—and solid fuels using concentrating solar-thermal energy.

In addition, SETO seeks information on thermal energy storage (TES) for concentrating solar power and concentrating solar-thermal (industrial) applications. While TES is an integral feature of concentrating solar-thermal power (CSP) generation, other applications of TES include energy supply for industrial process heat. Multiple modes of TES include sensible heat, latent heat, and thermochemical energy storage. Sensible heat TES using molten nitrate salt is currently used in commercial CSP plants. High temperature sensible heat storage in tanks of large size have had inconsistent operational success. Future generation CSP plants may make use of particles or rock to store thermal energy as they do not suffer from temperature limitations. This RFI will focus on improvements to various TES technologies appropriate for CSP integration for both power and industrial decarbonization applications.

The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) is issuing, on behalf of the Water Power Technlogies Office (WPTO), this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) titled “Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Section 40334: Pumped Storage Hydropower Wind and Solar Integration and System Reliability Initiative.” Awards made under this FOA will be funded, in whole or in part, with funds appropriated by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, more commonly known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL).

Through this FOA, DOE will invest $10 million to carry out project design, transmission studies, power market assessments, and permitting for a pumped storage hydropower (PSH) project to facilitate the long-duration storage of intermittent renewable electricity. Eligibility for this FOA is limited to projects that have received a FERC preliminary permit, and are working toward licensing a PSH project with at least 1000 MW capacity that can participate in multiple markets and store intermittent renewable energy generated on tribal lands.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) is requesting information on the cost and value of acquiring, accessing, and sharing solar photovoltaic (PV) system performance data. SETO seeks responses from all interested stakeholders in industry, academia, government, research laboratories, and more, including data owners, data users, and system owners, operators, and developers. These responses will inform SETO activities relevant to PV system performance and related data to accelerate research, development, and deployment of solar energy.

***PLEASE NOTE: This FOA has been modified (DE-FOA-0002792.0001). Section III.A.ii and footnote 59 regarding FFRDC eligibility have been updated to indicate that, for Topic 4, only core members of the M2FCT consortium are ineligible to apply as subrecipients. Core national laboratories in M2FCT include Los Alamos National Laboratory, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Argonne National Laboratory, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Please see the "DE-FOA-0002792_HFTO FOA_FINAL_Mod 0001" document in the Announcement Documents section below.***

The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) hereby issues Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) entitled “Funding Opportunity in Support of the Hydrogen Shot and a University Research Consortium on Grid Resilience” that will address two unique areas of interest: one with topic areas focused on supporting the DOE Hydrogen Shot on behalf of the Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office and a second EERE-wide topic area focused on grid resilience through a university research consortium.

This FOA includes the following five topics under two Areas of Interest, as follows:

Area of Interest 1: Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies in Support of Hydrogen Shot

Topic 1) HydroGEN: Solar Fuels from Photoelectrochemical and Solar Thermochemical Water SplittingTopic 2) Development and Validation of Sensor Technology for Monitoring and Measuring Hydrogen LossesTopic 3) Materials-based H₂ Storage DemonstrationsTopic 4) M2FCT: High Performing, Durable, and Low-PGM Catalysts/Membrane Electrode Assemblies (MEAs) for Medium- and Heavy-duty Applications

Area of Interest 2: Improving Electricity Grid Resilience

Topic 5) University Research Consortium on Grid Resilience

Please see the 'Full FOA Document' in the DOCUMENTS section below.

The Teaming Partner List is transferred from Notice of Intent (NOI) DE-FOA-0002807. The list will remain open and will be updated at least weekly until the close of the Full Application period, to reflect new Teaming Partners who have provided their information. Any organization that would like to be included on this list should submit the following information to HFTOFOA@ee.doe.gov, with the subject line “Teaming Partner Information FOA-0002792”: Topic Area(s) of Interest, Organization Name, Contact Name, Contact Address, Contact Email, Contact Phone, Organization Type (including MSI designation or disadvantaged community status, if relevant), Area of Technical Expertise, and Brief Description of Capabilities.

Applicants must submit a Concept Paper by 5:00pm ET on the due date listed in the FOA to be eligible to submit a Full Application.

Concept Papers and Applications will be accepted only through EERE eXCHANGE.

Applicants that experience issues with submissions PRIOR to the 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).

***PLEASE NOTE: This FOA has been modified (DE-FOA-0002792.000001). Section III.A.ii and footnote 59 regarding FFRDC eligibility have been updated to indicate that, for Topic 4, only core members of the M2FCT consortium are ineligible to apply as subrecipients. Core national laboratories in M2FCT include Los Alamos National Laboratory, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Argonne National Laboratory, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Please see the "DE-FOA-0002792_HFTO FOA_FINAL_Mod 0001" document in the Announcement Documents section below.***

Notice of Intent to Issue

Funding Opportunity Announcement No. DE-FOA-0002731

Funding Opportunity Announcement No. DE-FOA-0002800

Funding Opportunity Announcement No. DE-FOA-0002802

The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) intends to issue, on behalf of the Water Power Technologies Office, three Funding Opportunity Announcements (FOA) entitled “Bipartisan Infrastructure Law: Section 41006. Water Power Projects: Innovative Technologies to Enable Low Impact Hydropower and Pumped Storage Hydropower Growth”, “Bipartisan Infrastructure Law: Section 41006. Water Power Projects: Stakeholder Insight into Hydropower R&D Issues”, and “Section 40334. Pumped Storage Hydropower Wind and Solar Integration and System Reliability Initiative”.

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

The Advanced Manufacturing Office (AMO) is seeking information to better understand the barriers to deploying onsite clean energy and storage technologies at industrial facilities and pathways for accelerated adoption. These technologies include, but are not limited to, solar photovoltaic (PV), solar thermal, wind power, renewable fuels, geothermal, bioenergy, battery storage, and thermal storage technologies. This request for information (RFI) is focused on understanding the current state of knowledge and uptake of these technologies by industrial energy users, opportunities and barriers for technology integration at industrial facilities, existing technical assistance and resources available for technology evaluation and deployment, and pathways to accelerate the adoption of onsite clean energy technologies.

The purpose of this RFI is to solicit feedback from industry, academia, research laboratories, government agencies, utilities, and other stakeholders on issues related to the deployment of onsite clean energy and storage technologies, including solar, solar thermal, wind power, renewable fuels, geothermal, battery storage, and thermal storage, at industrial facilities. EERE is specifically interested in information on the key barriers that manufacturers are encountering during technology evaluation and implementation of clean energy projects. EERE is also interested in the current state of knowledge and uptake of onsite clean energy technologies, existing technical assistance and resources for project evaluation and deployment, and potential pathways for accelerating the integration of clean energy technologies in the industrial sector. This is solely a request for information and not a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA). EERE is not accepting applications.

MOD 000003: Extended the Submission Deadline for Replies to Reviewer Comments from 12/15/2022 to 12/20/2022. Updated the FOA timeline on the FOA cover page to accomodate this change.

MOD 000002: Extended the Concept Paper Submission Deadline from 9/1/2022 to 9/15/2022. Updated the FOA timeline on the FOA cover page to accommodate this change.

MOD 000001: A broken link was fixed in Section I.A.vi - Teaming Partner List.

The U.S Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) is issuing, on behalf of the Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) and Wind Energy Technologies Office (WETO), this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA). Projects awarded under this FOA will be funded, in whole or in part, with funds appropriated by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Public Law 117-58,1 also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL).

The Systems Integration Solar and Wind Grid Services and Reliability Demonstration FOA will provide funding to demonstrate the capability of large-scale solar and wind plants to provide grid services to the bulk power grid as well as improving grid reliability.

Topic 1: Wind and Solar Grid Services Design, Implementation, and Demonstration

This topic area supports full-scale demonstration projects that seamlessly integrate renewable generation with other large-scale or aggregated distributed energy resource (DER) technologies to provide ancillary (grid) services and improve reliability.

Topic 2: Protection of Bulk Power Systems with High Contribution from Inverter-Based Resources

The goal of this topic area is to develop a better understanding of how protection systems will operate under very-high IBR scenarios through advancements in modeling and simulation capabilities and to develop and validate strategies and new technologies that can maintain system protection at any level of IBR penetration and improve reliability.

The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) intends to issue a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) entitled “Funding Opportunity in Support of the Hydrogen Shot and a University Research Consortium on Grid Resilience,” that will address two unique areas of interest: one with topic areas focused on supporting the DOE Hydrogen Shot on behalf of the Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office and a second EERE-wide topic area focused on grid resilience through a university research consortium.

EERE anticipates that the FOA may include the following five topics under two Areas of Interest, as follows:

Area of Interest 1: Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies in Support of Hydrogen Shot

Topic 1) HydroGEN: Solar Fuels from Photoelectrochemical and Solar Thermochemical Water Splitting

Topic 2) Development and Validation of Sensor Technology for Monitoring and Measuring Hydrogen Losses

Topic 3) Materials-based H₂ Storage Demonstrations

Topic 4) M2FCT: High Performing, Durable, and Low-PGM Catalysts/Membrane Electrode Assemblies (MEAs) for Medium- and Heavy-duty Applications

Area of Interest 2: Improving Electricity Grid Resilience

Topic 5) University Research Consortium on Grid Resilience

EERE plans to issue the FOA on or about August 2022 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.

The Teaming Partner List has moved to EERE Exchange at https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/Default.aspx#FoaId47252393-c846-4779-9760-86414eddda9f under FOA number DE-FOA-0002792.

DISCLAIMER: This “Notice of Intent” is for informational purposes only; the Department of Energy is not seeking comments on the information in this notice and 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. Applications are not being accepted at this time. Any information contained in this notice is subject to change.

MOD 000001: Extend the RFI response date to September 16, 2022

This request for information (RFI) is intended to inform the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO), in partnership with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), on the development of a new platform to manage the enrollment, use, and monitoring of community solar subscriptions for Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) recipients. SETO is interested in responses from all stakeholders, including:

• Community-based organizations

• Community solar subscription managers and developers

• State and local governments

• Researchers

• LIHEAP implementation organizations

• Organizations representing and serving environmental justice and fossil fuel-transitioning communities

• Groups that work with individuals and organizations with high energy burdens

Modification 00001: Extended the Full Application Submission Deadline from 12/6/2022 to 12/16/2022 5:00pmET. Updated the FOA timeline on the FOA cover page to accommodate this change. Updated Section IV.E.v – Statement of Project Objectives (SOPO) to show maximum number of pages for SOPO (5 pages).

Background and Context

The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) is issuing, on behalf of the Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO), this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA). Awards made under this FOA will be funded, in whole or in part, with funds appropriated by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, also more commonly known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL).

Under Section 41007(c)(1), the BIL provides funding to carry out research, development, demonstration, and commercialization activities relating to solar energy technologies, which includes conducting workforce development activities.

The activities to be funded under this FOA support the broader government-wide approach to addressing the climate crisis and maximize the benefits of the clean energy transition as the nation works to curb the climate crisis, empower workers, and advance environmental justice.

Program Purpose

This FOA supports the administration goals laid out above by supporting the development of workforce programs and partnerships that will facilitate the continued deployment of solar energy technologies, while supporting an inclusive workforce with opportunities for career advancement, including through union membership. As part of the whole-of-government approach to advance equity and encourage worker organizing and collective bargaining, this FOA and any related activities will seek to encourage meaningful engagement and participation of labor unions and underserved communities and underrepresented groups, including consultation with Tribal Nations.

Areas of Interest

SETO will consider and evaluate a variety of multi-stakeholder high-road training partnership proposals under this FOA. Projects should primarily relate to PV solar deployment and associated careers including in installation, system design, operations and maintenance (O&M), electrical work, project management, sales, and business operations. Proposals focused on manufacturing for solar PV modules and other equipment will be considered, but is not expected to be the primary area of focus for the funding program. Proposals related to CSP or other solar-thermal heating systems will not be considered.

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) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO). This funding program seeks to invest in innovative research and development (R&D) as well as research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) projects that enable continued cost reductions, while developing next-generation solar technologies and boosting American solar manufacturing, especially in cadmium telluride (CdTe) photovoltaics. These projects will support the scaling of affordable solar generation and facilitate secure, reliable integration of solar electricity into the nation’s energy grid to ultimately benefit the U.S. economy.

The research and development (R&D) activities to be funded under this FOA will support the government-wide approach to the climate crisis by driving the innovation that can lead to the deployment of clean energy technologies, which are critical for climate protection. Specifically, this FOA will develop and demonstrate new technologies enabling fast deployment of large amounts of solar generation into the grid.

Modification 00001: Extend Letter of Intent deadline to 8/5/2022

This FOA seeks to fund projects to reduce photovoltaics hardware costs and environmental impacts; and increase perovskite module performance. These research areas will support increased photovoltaics deployment needed to meet the Biden administration’s goal of a carbon emissions free electricity sector by 2035. The FOA will have two topics:

Topic Area 1 seeks to fund up to ten research projects at a maximum of $1.5M per project in federal funds to produce low-cost, high-throughput photovoltaics module designs and processing methods to reduce the environmental burden; materials usage, market price, and availability in the metallization and contacting steps; and end-of-life handling of photovoltaic modules to support the transition to a decarbonized electricity system by 2035. Projects under this topic will be funded for two to three years.

Topic Area 2 seeks to fund up to two projects that will bring together teams of researchers from multiple institutions and/or companies to improve coordination among domestic researchers and address the major issues in perovskite solar cell devices that limit the durability, scale-up, and efficiency. Projects are expected to be funded at an annual federal rate of up to $3 million per year to support collaborations between multiple research groups. Projects selected under this topic area will be funded for three to five years.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) and Vehicle Technologies Office (VTO) are requesting information on technical and commercial challenges and opportunities for vehicle-integrated photovoltaic systems.

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) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) to invest in innovative research and development (R&D) that accelerates the large-scale development and deployment of solar technology to support an equitable transition to a decarbonized electricity system by 2035 and decarbonized energy sector by 2050. By investing in research on the co-location of solar photovoltaics (PV) and agriculture (“agrivoltaics”), this FOA will advance the decarbonization of the energy system while providing new economic opportunities to farmers, rural communities, and the solar industry.

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) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) to invest in locally appropriate energy resilience planning at the community level, including the development and integration of new and existing metrics and preparedness and response plans, via robust multi-stakeholder participation and collaboration. Where appropriate, opportunities will be identified for solar plus storage deployment in those locations that can best support increased resilience.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) and Building Technologies Office (BTO) are requesting information on technical and commercial challenges and opportunities for building integrated and built environment integrated photovoltaic systems.

Responses to this RFI must be submitted electronically to bipv@ee.doe.gov no later than 5:00pm (ET) on April 1, 2022.

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) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) to invest in innovative research that accelerates the large-scale development and deployment of solar technology to support an equitable transition to a decarbonized electricity system by 2035 and decarbonized energy sector by 2050. Decarbonizing the grid responsibly and equitably requires that wildlife and ecosystems associated with solar energy facilities are well understood. Achieving this goal will support the nationwide effort to meet the threat of climate change and ensure that all Americans as well as the nation’s wildlife and ecosystems benefit from the transition to a clean energy economy. Climate change is a threat not just to human societies but also “presents a growing threat to the nation’s fish, wildlife, plants and their habitats in profound ways.”[1]

The goal of this funding opportunity is to develop solutions and/or strategies that minimize the adverse impacts of solar energy on wildlife and maximize the ecosystem benefits while enabling the rapid deployment of ground-mounted solar energy. SETO is interested in projects that will produce results with broad relevance to solar stakeholders by establishing methods, technologies, models, best management practices, and/or resources that facilitate solar energy’s pivotal role in achieving a 100% clean electricity system by 2035 and a net-zero energy system by 2050. Successful projects will produce research results that are generalizable to multiple sites, pertinent to multiple stakeholder groups, impactful in a short timeframe (i.e., 3 years or less), and engage local communities most affected by solar energy deployment.

[1] U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Conservation in a Changing Climate. https://www.fws.gov/home/climatechange/

Modification 000003 - See the Modification table in the FOA. Changes from modification 000003 are highlighed in blue.

Modification 000002 - See the Modification table in the FOA. Changes from modification 000002 are highlighed in green.

Modification 000001 - See the Modification table in the FOA. Changes from modification 000001 are highlighed in yellow.

This lab call is being issued as part of the Technology Commercialization Fund (TCF) by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Office of Technology Transitions, the Office of Electricity, the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy’s Building Technologies Office, Geothermal Technologies Office, Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office, Solar Energy Technologies Office, Water Power Technologies Office, and Wind Energy Technologies Office, as well as the Office of Nuclear Energy.

This call solicits proposals from National Laboratory Technology Transfer Offices, in collaboration with partners across the DOE National Laboratory Complex, to develop and implement programming to facilitate an improved and more impactful lab commercialization process.

This funding opportunity announcement (FOA) is being issued by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) to invest in innovative research and development (R&D) that accelerates the large-scale development and deployment of solar technologies to support an equitable transition to a decarbonized electricity system by 2035 and decarbonized energy sector by 2050. Achieving this goal will support the nationwide effort to meet the threat of climate change and ensure that all Americans benefit from the transition to a clean energy economy.

This Small Innovative Projects in Solar (SIPS) FOA solicits seedling R&D projects for both photovoltaic and concentrating solar thermal power technologies. The funding opportunity is designed to streamline the application process and to encourage a applicants with a diverse range of backgrounds.

Modification 000001 - See the Modification table in the FOA. Changes from modification 000001 are highlighted in yellow.

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) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) to invest in innovative research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) that accelerates the large-scale development and deployment of solar technology to support an equitable transition to a decarbonized electricity system by 2035 and decarbonized energy sector by 2050. Achieving this goal will support the nationwide effort to meet the threat of climate change and ensure that all Americans benefit from the transition to a clean energy economy. To support these objectives, applications are solicitied for two Topic Areas:

Topic Area 1: Concentrating Solar Thermal for Industrial Decarbonization

The focus of this topic is to enable concentrating solar thermal (CST) energy generation coupled with thermal energy storage (TES) to be integrated with high-temperature process technologies to produce economically important products, like steel, cement, ammonia, fuels, and other chemicals and fuels.

Topic Area 2: Concentrating Solar-thermal Particle Technologies for Generation 3 CSP and Beyond (Gen3++)

This topic area builds on learnings from the Solar Energy Technologies Office's Gen3 CSP program. Within the Gen3 CSP program, systems using particles as the heat transfer media have been shown to be viable for operation at temepratures avove 700°C. Responsive applications to this Topic Area will describe the development of particle based CST technologies.

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The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) is requesting information on efficiency, stability and replicability performance targets for perovskite photovoltaic devices that could be utilized to demonstrate technical and commercial readiness for future funding programs.

This Request for Information (RFI) is intended to inform the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)

Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) on the overall technical research, development, and demonstration opportunities in solar manufacturing and hardware product commercialization. SETO is seeking specific feedback on:

• Technical areas with opportunities to invest in innovative research and development (R&D) as well as research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) projects that enable solar to continue to drive down costs, while developing next-generation solar technologies, supporting the scalability of solar as deployment increases across the country, and boosting American solar manufacturing;
• Removal of the Concept Paper stage from the funding opportunity process to better align it with the needs of a fast-moving industry and community and in an effort to streamline the application process and reduce the time from application deadline to selection notification; and
• Ways to better engage and support partnerships between institutions representing diverse entities such as, but not limited to, Tribal communities; minority-serving institutions (MSI); minority business enterprises; minority-, woman-, and veteran-owned businesses[1]; entities located in an underserved community or through linkages with Opportunity Zones.

[1] Opportunity Zones were added to the Internal Revenue Code by section 13823 of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, codified at 26 U.S.C. 1400Z-1. The list of designated Qualified Opportunity Zones can be found in IRS Notices 2018-48 (PDF) and 2019-42 (PDF). Further, a visual map of the census tracts designated as Qualified Opportunity Zones may also be found at Opportunity Zones Resources. Also see, frequently asked questions about Qualified Opportunity Zones.  

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) is requesting information on the current practices related to siting large-scale solar energy plants and how stakeholders evaluate the impacts these plants may have on the surrounding environment, especially on wildlife.

Information is sought on the solar thermochemical decarbonizing of difficult to decarbonize industries.  SETO is specifically interested in information on the research, planning, and execution challenges that must be overcome to deploy concentrating solar thermal heat energy (with or without concomitant electrification) into iron ore reduction and steel manufacture, cement production and ammonia synthesis.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) is requesting information on the possible areas of technical research that would enable utility-scale photovoltaic system service life of 50 years.

The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) intends to issue, on behalf of the Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO) through its HydroWIRES Initiative, a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) entitled “Technology Innovation to Increase Hydropower Flexibility ”.

The FOA seeks next-generation technologies from manufacturers, equipment vendors, and research organizations to improve the flexible capabilities of the U.S. hydropower fleet. The development of technical solutions to improve unit flexibility – either via improving performance across various dimensions of flexible operations or reducing negative impacts of flexible operations – can increase the value of hydropower in an evolving power system by improving its ability to integrate additional wind and solar generation. 

This request for information is intended to inform the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) on the current barriers to rapid community solar deployment, and other community-serving models to increase solar access, that include meaningful benefits such as bill reductions, workforce development, local resiliency, and community wealth building. SETO is interested in responses from all stakeholders, including community-based organizations, local businesses, governments, etc. serving environmental justice communities, fossil fuel transitioning communities, and other groups that work with individuals and organizations with high energy burdens. 

This request for information is intended to inform the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) on workforce development programs, strategies, and tools to support the development of a diverse and skilled clean energy workforce. DOE is re-envisioning its approach to supporting vocational-based career opportunities holistically across clean energy technologies. This RFI is targeted at the solar industry and training providers to better understand how SETO can support an industry-driven, employee-centered approach to the clean energy workforce of the future.

This Funding Opportunity Announcement creates a competitive opportunity for applicants to manage SETO’s existing SolSmart program. SolSmart is a national community designation program that recognizes communities for making it easier and faster to install solar energy. The program provides local governments with technical assistance to improve their permitting, inspection, and zoning processes, and take other steps to reduce soft costs. The current awardee’s period of performance is coming to an end, and SETO will compete the opportunity to take on management of the program. Applicants will also propose ways to further develop the program to incorporate new emerging technologies, support under-resourced communities, measure program impacts, and contribute to the Biden Administration’s equity and climate goals. 

Any individuals or organizations interested in being included on the Teaming Partner List should review Section I.A.iv of the FOA and send the following information to SolSmart.FOA@ee.doe.gov.

• Organization
• Contact Name
• Organization Type
• Area of Expertise
• Short Description of Capabilities
• Contact Information

A recording of the FOA Webinar that was held on May 18, 2021 can be found here. The password is PvSmW3MD. Please use Google Chrome to view the webinar. 

The modification updates the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion language and requirements. In addition dates and times have been added for informational webinars.

Topic Area 5 Small Innovative Projects in Solar (SIPS): Photovoltaics (PV) and Concentrating Solar Power (CSP)

PV SIPS applications must be submitted under Topic Area 5.a.

CSP SIPS applications must be submitted under Topic Area 5.b.

Teaming Lists associated with this FOA can be found on the main FOA page

Questions and Answers related to this FOA can be found on the main FOA page

The modification updates the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion language and requirements. In addition dates and times have been added for informational webinars.

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) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) to invest in innovative research and development (R&D) that will drive down costs and develop next-generation technologies ready for commercialization. SETO works to accelerate the development and deployment of solar technology to support an equitable transition to a decarbonized electricity system by 2035 and a decarbonized energy sector by 2050. Achieving these goals will support the nationwide effort to meet the threat of climate change and ensure that all Americans benefit from the transition to a clean energy economy. The office supports solar energy research, development, demonstration, and technical assistance in five areas—photovoltaics (PV), concentrating solar-thermal power (CSP), systems integration, manufacturing and competitiveness, and soft costs—to improve the affordability, reliability, and domestic benefit of solar technologies on the electric grid.

Topic Area 1 - PV-50: 50-Year Service Life PV Systems

Topic Area 2 - SOLAR R&R: Scalable Outputs for Leveraging Advanced Research on Receivers & Reactors

Topic Area 3 - PTES: Pumped Thermal Energy Storage

Topic Area 5 - SIPS-PV & CSP (Applications must be submitted under DE-TA5-0002378)

4/19/2021 Informational Applicant Webex recording link & password:

https://doe.webex.com/doe/lsr.php?RCID=a242a4aeeef2499d9e9847d89205e738

Password:  iZKTVkC3

This FOA intends to support research and development of grid forming inverters, DER controls and to accelerate commercialization of innovative product ideas that can substantively increase U.S. domestic manufacturing and expand private investment across the solar industry supply chain (photovoltaics, power electronics, systems integration, concentrating solar thermal power, and more).

Modification 000003 - See the Modification table in the FOA. Changes from modification 000003 are highlighted in blue.

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Informational Webinar

An informational webinar was held to provide information on the FOA to potential applicants on Wednesday, January 6, 2021, 1:00pm ET. Please see link below to access the slides for this webinar.

https://www.energy.gov/eere/solar/funding-opportunity-announcement-solar-energy-technologies-office-fiscal-year-2021

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) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO). SETO supports solar energy research and development (R&D) with the goal of improving the affordability, reliability, and domestic benefit of solar technologies.

The SETO 2020 Perovskite Funding Program seeks to advance perovskite photovoltaic technology development and competitiveness through projects in economically viable device and manufacturing R&D and performance validation. The primary goals are to improve understanding of stability; establish methods to produce high-efficiency, stable devices using industry-relevant fabrication techniques; and develop test protocols that enable high confidence in long-duration field performance of perovskite-based photovoltaic technologies.

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Informational Webinar

An informational webinar was held to provide information on the FOA to potential applicants on Friday, August 21, 2020, 3:00pm ET. Please see link below to access the recording of this webinar.

Perovskite Funding Opportunity Announcement Webinar

Recording password: AzYsegV5

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The Educational Materials for Professional Organizations Working on Efficiency and Renewable Energy Developments (EMPOWERED) funding program is a collaborative effort across EERE’s Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO), Vehicle Technologies Office (VTO), and Building Technologies Office (BTO), to provide professionals with educational materials and training resources in fields newly interacting with distributed energy resources (DER). In this program, DER includes distributed solar, like on homes and businesses, as well as efficient building technologies and sustainable transportation technologies, such as electric vehicles.

The goal of this program is to create resources that will help those on the front lines of DER adoption—like first responders, safety officials, and building managers and owners—keep up with these rapidly emerging and advancing technologies. These professionals are at the forefront of America’s energy transition and play a role in easing adoption, ensuring safety, and reducing installation costs. Because of this, the participating EERE offices see these professionals as key to enabling understanding and acceptance of new energy technologies.

SETO, BTO, and VTO seek applicants that will create and integrate education and training materials for professionals who have significant involvement and authority over implementing solar, building, or vehicle technologies on the distribution system but who do not work primarily with these technologies. Those technologies include but are not limited to DER—like PV systems, building efficiency technologies, energy storage systems, AFV, EV—and EV infrastructure.

There was an informational webinar held on April 16, 2020 at 1pm EST. The slides and script are available below.

All questions regarding the content of this FOA should be submitted to Empowered-Workforce@ee.doe.gov.

FY20 SETO FOA Topic Area 2 Applicants ONLY

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Topic Area 2: Integrated Thermal Energy STorage and Brayton Cycle (Integrated TESTBED)
Research in this topic area will work to move lab-scale supercritical CO2 (sCO2) Brayton power cycles closer to commercial production by designing and demonstrating the integration of these cycles with thermal energy storage (TES).

Teaming Lists associated with this FOA can be found on the main FOA page https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/default.aspx#FoaIdc8e280d2-b7bf-4138-810b-cad9ba1541ac.

Questions and Answers related to this FOA can be found on the main FOA page https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/default.aspx#FoaIdc8e280d2-b7bf-4138-810b-cad9ba1541ac.

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Topic Area 8: Small Innovative Projects in Solar (SIPS): PV and CSP
Projects in this topic area will focus on innovative and novel ideas in photovoltaics and concentrating solar-thermal power that are riskier than research ideas based on established technologies.

Submission Note:

PV SIPS applications must be submitted under Topic Area 8.1.

CSP SIPS applications must be submitted under Topic Area 8.2

Teaming Lists associated with this FOA can be found on the main FOA page https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/default.aspx#FoaIdc8e280d2-b7bf-4138-810b-cad9ba1541ac.

Questions and Answers related to this FOA can be found on the main FOA page https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/default.aspx#FoaIdc8e280d2-b7bf-4138-810b-cad9ba1541ac.

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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

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The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) is issuing this request for information (RFI) to solicit feedback from industry, academia, research laboratories, government agencies, and other stakeholders. This RFI will inform SETO’s strategic planning on research related to the integration of solar energy resources. Specifically, this RFI will inform SETO’s strategies relating to prediction of solar irradiance reaching the surface of the earth, and power output from solar generation plants, using either photovoltaic (PV) or concentrating solar power (CSP) technologies. Improving solar generation prediction will better inform grid operators as they consider the impacts of solar power variability on grid planning and operations technologies, as well as the owners and operators of utility-scale plants and aggregators of distributed PV systems.