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["INSTRUCTIONS"]
[1,"All questions pertaining to this funding opportunity announcement should be emailed to SETO.FOA@ee.doe.gov. "]
[2,"All questions pertaining to EERE Exchange should be emailed to EERE-ExchangeSupport@hq.doe.gov. Include FOA name and number in subject line."]
[3,"All questions and answers pertaining to this FOA will be posted on EERE Exchange within this spreadsheet."]
[4,"DOE will attempt to respond to a question within 3 business days, unless a similar question and answer has already been posted in this spreadsheet. "]
[5,"All questions should be submitted not later than 3 business days prior to the application due date. Questions submitted after this date will not be answered."]
[6,"Questions are assigned a number in accordance with when they are reviewed by DOE.  "]
[7,"Questions are assigned a topic area by DOE when reviewed."]
[]
["TIPS"]
[1,"Applicants may sort questions and answers in the question tabs of this spreadhseet by selecting the drop-down box arrow on the column headers and selecting any of the listed attributes."]
[2,"Applicants may search for questions and/or keywords by holding CTRL+F on the keyboard and typing in a phrase or keyword."]

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["ADMINISTRATIVE QUESTION AND ANSWER LOG"]
["DE-FOA0002243 - Solar Energy Technologies Office Fiscal Year 2020 Funding Program "]
["Question #","Date Submitted","Topic","Question","Answer"]
[1,"2020-02-05","Other","Regarding the funding, is this a long term loan, or a grant? If a loan, what type of rates/terms, etc.? ","This Fund Opportunity Announcement will fund cooperative agreements. Please see Section II.B.i. of the FOA for more information."]
[2,"2020-02-05","Application Content/Format","I was wondering if there are any feedback that I can address? It appears during the reviewer response phase the comments were generally positive. If there are additional details we can provide, we hope to submit a revised SIPS application this FY. ","The Department of Energy is unable to comment on the merit of specific projects during an open competition. "]
[3,"2020-02-05","Technical Topics","Page 48 of the FOA under Topic 4 lists “development of racking and mounting of PV systems” as an area specifically NOT of interest. Would the proposed development of other components of a PV tracker system which were not in direct contact with the PV module (i.e. not explicitly clamping nor supporting the PV modules directly) fall under this same excluded category?","EERE will not make eligibility determinations for potential applicants prior to the date on which applications to this FOA must be submitted. The decision whether to submit an application in response to this FOA lies solely with the applicant. The applicant should select the FOA Topic they feel is most appropriate. Please see Section I.B. of the FOA for Topic Areas/Technical Areas of Interest."]
[4,"2020-02-05","Technical Topics","My company is developing an innovative mounting bracket for solar panels on slate roofs. Would DE-FOA-0002243 provide grants for this type of innovation in the Solar industry?","EERE will not make eligibility determinations for potential applicants prior to the date on which applications to this FOA must be submitted. The decision whether to submit an application in response to this FOA lies solely with the applicant. The applicant should select the FOA Topic they feel is most appropriate. Please see Section I.B. of the FOA for Topic Areas/Technical Areas of Interest."]
[5,"2020-02-06","Eligibility","Just curious what type of entities typically qualify for these grants?","Please refer to Section III.A \"Eligible Applicants\" for more information."]
[6,"2020-02-06","Intellectual Property","I am curious to know how DOE handles IP in cases where they are funding development. I tried to browse the website but couldn’t find anything and so I was emailing to see if you could provide some insight into how IP is handled or if there is a link that I can go to understand IP management.","Please refer to Section VI.C.ix \"Intellectual Property Provisions\"  for more information"]
[7,"2020-02-06","Technical Topics","Would other technologies such as water treatment, distribution and storage linked to solar energy technologies be also considered as enabling technologies?","EERE will not make eligibility determinations for potential applicants prior to the date on which applications to this FOA must be submitted. The decision whether to submit an application in response to this FOA lies solely with the applicant. The applicant should select the FOA Topic they feel is most appropriate. Please see Section I.B. of the FOA for Topic Areas/Technical Areas of Interest."]
[8,"2020-02-06","Cost Sharing","Can equipment discount be counted as cost share? ","No, equipment discount cannot be counted as cost share."]
[9,"2020-02-06","Eligibility","Are electric utilities an eligible applicant as a prime recipient for this FOA.","Please refer to Section III.A \"Eligible Applicants\" for more information."]
[10,"2020-02-07","Technical Topics","There are two research areas of interest in Topic 5.3, namely 1) internal hybrid plant design and control, 2) control and coordination among hybrid plants.  Does this requirement “Field validation of the hybrid PV plant is expected at a minimum of 1 MW” apply to the second area of interest?\n\nIf that answer is “yes”, do you require more than one hybrid PV plant in the field validation?","1. Yes, field validation applies to second area of interest.\n2. For the second area of interest, One or more hybrid PV plants may be used for field validation as long as the aggregate power requirement of 1MW or higher is still satisfied.  As an example, 1MW hybrid PV plant or two 500kW hybrid PV plants can satisfy the field validation requirement for second area of interest. "]
[11,"2020-02-08","Technical Topics","I have a query about DE-FOA-0002243, specifically the area of interest for “Topic Area 8: Small Innovative Projects in Solar”. I have a small and, I believe, highly unusual and innovative, high-risk project that would be valuable to solar. However, I’m not sure whether or not it is appropriate for funding under this FOA. \n\nIs there a person I could talk to about this FOA and who could let me know if our concept is appropriate for this SIPS Topic Area? ","EERE will not make eligibility determinations for potential applicants prior to the date on which applications to this FOA must be submitted. The decision whether to submit an application in response to this FOA lies solely with the applicant. The applicant should select the FOA Topic they feel is most appropriate. Please see Section I.B. of the FOA for Topic Areas/Technical Areas of Interest."]
[12,"2020-02-10","Technical Topics","Is there any grant funding available for the installation of solar panels? ","Please refer to the FOA document for specific areas of interest."]
[13,"2020-02-10","Technical Topics","We are trying to submit a proposal for DOE (Topic Area 8: Small Innovative Projects in Solar (SIPS): PV and CSP, under DE-TA8-0002243). Please look at attached file to see the summary of the project and let me know if this project can be fit in your program. If not, would you please let me know where we can apply this project","Thank you for your interest in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) number DE-FOA-0002243.\n\nInstructions for completing the concept paper and full application are contained in the full text of the Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) which can be obtained at the DOE EERE Funding Opportunity eXCHANGE website at: https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/default.aspx."]
[14,"2020-02-10","Cost Sharing","Do you have any examples or suggestions to find funding sources for cost sharing? ","EERE cannot give examples or suggestions on finding sources for cost sharing."]
[15,"2020-02-12","Other","We are in the process of putting together a team, and understand you have a list of people who want to be sub-applicants. Is this list available? ","The teaming list will be posted no later than February 14, 2020 and updated weekly"]
[16,"2020-02-12","Technical Topics","We think our Proposal A fits FOA Topic #1 (Hardware) and our Proposal B fits Topic 6 (Agriculture); yet are not sure. Is there someone we can communicate with for guidance?","DE-FOA-0002243, Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) is a competitive solicitation and private discussions, while the announcement is open, are prohibited. All questions regarding this FOA must be submitted via e-mail to SETO.FOA@ee.doe.gov not later than 3 business days prior to the application due date.  All questions and answers related to this FOA will be posted on EERE eXCHANGE at: https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/   Please note that you must first select this specific FOA Number in order to view the questions and answers specific to this FOA.  "]
[17,"2020-02-12","Labs/FFRDCs"," On topic area 4 are FFRDCs allowed to be subrecipients?","Yes, FFRDCs are allowed to be sub-recipients. Prime recipients are restricted to For-Profit Entities for Topic Area 4. Additionally, on Page 92, “For Topic Area 4, the scope of work performed by the prime recipient shall not be less than the scope of work performed by the subrecipients who are ineligible to be prime applicants…” "]
[18,"2020-02-12","Other","The following three questions are required in LOI as stated in FOA but I cannot find the place in the submission system to answer these questions:\n•  a. Whether the application has been previously submitted to EERE; \n• b. Whether the applicant has applied to a FOA managed by SETO in the last 5 years; \n• c. How the applicant heard about the funding opportunity (SETO newsletter, SETO website, Twitter, Facebook, news article, word of mouth, other). \nI understand that we should answer them according to FOA, but where in the online submission system can we find these questions?\n","This information should be included within the content of your Letter of Intent."]
[19,"2020-02-12","Technical Topics","Is it possible to have a phone conversation about viii. Topic Area 8: Small Innovative Projects in Solar (SIPS): PV and CSP","DE-FOA-0002243, Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) is a competitive solicitation and private discussions, while the announcement is open, are prohibited. All questions regarding this FOA must be submitted via e-mail to SETO.FOA@ee.doe.gov not later than 3 business days prior to the application due date.  All questions and answers related to this FOA will be posted on EERE eXCHANGE at: https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/   Please note that you must first select this specific FOA Number in order to view the questions and answers specific to this FOA.  \n\nAdditionally, EERE will not make eligibility determinations for potential applicants prior to the date on which applications to this FOA must be submitted. The decision whether to submit an application in response to this FOA lies solely with the applicant. The applicant should select the FOA Topic they feel is most appropriate. Please see Section I.B. of the FOA for Topic Areas/Technical Areas of Interest.\n"]
[20,"2020-02-12","Other","Looking for a team to join, please advise me what I can do?","A teaming list will be posted on this FOA Announcement within the next week. Please refer to that list to find possible project partners. You may also submit your name and information to be added to the teaming list, please refer to the specific directions located in the Teaming List attachment. "]
[21,"2020-02-11","Technical Topics","Among the 8 topic areas of DE-FOA-0002243, we consider our proposal may fit into more than one topics, specifically topic area 2, 6 and 8.  In this case, can we submit applications for each of the topics (namely, total of 3 applications)?","If each application is distinctly different, applicants could technically apply to all three topic areas, but if it is the same project applicants should apply under the topic area that they believe is most appropriate. Additionally, EERE will not make eligibility determinations for potential applicants prior to the date on which applications to this FOA must be submitted. The decision whether to submit an application in response to this FOA lies solely with the applicant. The applicant should select the FOA Topic they feel is most appropriate. Please see Section I.B. of the FOA for Topic Areas/Technical Areas of Interest."]
[22,"2020-02-12","Other","We are going to be submitting Letters of Intent to the FOA, but there is no option for us to attach a document in the Letter of Intent submittal form.","There is no place to attach a document. Applicants should fill in the fields as best they can on the exchange interface."]
[23,"2020-02-12","Technical Topics","What are the lead times or horizons of interest under the TA7 Long-Term Insolation Prediction area? 2-7 days? 1-4 weeks? Seasonal? Annual? Or is this up to the applicant to define? ","Of most interest are forecast horizons from 48-144 hours ahead to 48-240 hours ahead, i.e. 4-8 day horizons with 48-hour lead time."]
[24,"2020-02-12","Eligibility","If there is a team member that provides data and important advice, as well as uses our results for their own operations, but does not receive funding,\n1) Do they need to meet the application eligibility criteria?\n2) Do I need to list them as a team member?\n","All team members should be listed on the application and will need to meet application eligibility criteria. "]
[25,"2020-02-12","Technical Topics","After this afternoon's webcast I was wondering whether any categories would accommodate in-situ solar cell manufacturing on the Moon. This would involve developing a solar cell stack as well as designing of solar cell manufacturing hardware.","EERE will not make eligibility determinations for potential applicants prior to the date on which applications to this FOA must be submitted. The decision whether to submit an application in response to this FOA lies solely with the applicant. The applicant should select the FOA Topic they feel is most appropriate. Please see Section I.B. of the FOA for Topic Areas/Technical Areas of Interest."]
[26,"2020-02-12","Technical Topics","This FOA says that Topic 6 will build upon and expand ongoing SETO projects. Does this mean that new projects will not be considered or encouraged? If there is an expected or existing PV-ag installation that doesn’t already have SETO funding for research, can we apply under this FOA? ","Proposals should build upon the lessons learned and knowledge generated by prior SETO-funded work and other work conducted by the broader agriculture and PV communities. They may, but do not have to, leverage existing facilities and installations. Proposals for new scope that address the areas of interest or other relevant subjects will be considered."]
[27,"2020-02-13","Webinar","Can you please send a recording of the webinar?","Once a copy is available it will be posted to the FOA page on EERE Exchange."]
[28,"2020-02-13","Webinar","I would be grateful if you could send me the presentation given during the webinar.","Once a copy is available it will be posted to the FOA page on EERE Exchange."]
[29,"2020-02-13","Cost Sharing","1) Can an SBIR fund be used for cost sharing for research purposes?\n2) How long is the timeline to prove that cost sharing funds are in place after receiving the award?\n3) Is there a score based on the size of a project? If we only have cost sharing funds for a demonstration project that totals ~$150,000 in cost, then will that be too small to award?\n","1) Other Federal funding may not be used as a source of cost share. 2) Cost share letters from third party contributors should be uploaded at the time of submission of the applications. Additionally, Applicants certify on the SF424 the amount of cost share they're contributing to the project at time of submission. 3) EERE will not make eligibility determinations for potential applicants prior to the date on which applications to this FOA must be submitted. The decision whether to submit an application in response to this FOA lies solely with the applicant. The applicant should select the FOA Topic they feel is most appropriate. Please see Section I.B. of the FOA for Topic Areas/Technical Areas of Interest."]
[30,"2020-02-13","Concept Paper","For this sentence in the requirement of concept paper, \"Applicants may provide graphs, charts, or other data to supplement their technology description\", can these graphs, charts or other data only be included in the Addendum? Or is the Addendum only about the qualifications of the team?","Applicants can provide graphs, charts, or other data as part of their Technical Description. However, the Technical Description, Impacts, and Addendum on the team qualifications must be no more than 4 pages in total length (or 10 pages for Topic 2). "]
[31,"2020-02-13","Webinar","I am not finding this deck at the above link as suggested during the webinar.  Appreciate if you provide the required assistance in getting this deck.  Thanks.","Once a copy is available it will be posted to the FOA page on EERE Exchange."]
[32,"2020-02-13","Webinar","I am trying to locate the slides from yesterday’s webinar. ","Once a copy is available it will be posted to the FOA page on EERE Exchange."]
[33,"2020-02-13","Technical Topics","For topic 1.1 Characterizing and Mitigating Performance Degrading Defects in Silicon PV, I wonder your definition for “defects”. Does it mean only structural defects such as dislocations, silicon vacancies, etc.? Or does it also include impurities such as iron, copper, and therefore purification methods to remove these performance degrading impurities?","The intention of the cited area of interest cited is to address all defects within the silicon that reduce or degrade cell performance, including impurities."]
[34,"2020-02-13","Technical Topics","Topic 6 reads \"This topic area will build upon and expand ongoing SETO projects related to the co-location of solar and agriculture by developing technology\"\n\nDoes this statement mean that topic 6 will only fund previously funded SETO projects? If so, does that mean those projects would have been agricultural-centric? How is \"building upon\" being defined?","See Question 26"]
[35,"2020-02-13","Application Content/Format","My company is developing two patent pending products they apply to two different topics areas. Can my company submit to multiple different topics?  \n\nIf yes, do we submit two LOI's and two applications?  \n\nFurthermore, can we submit the same patent pending product to multiple topic areas if it applies? Or, do we submit to only one topic area with it being most relevant? ","If each application is distinctly different, applicants could technically apply to multiple topic areas, but if it is the same project applicants should apply under the topic area that they believe is most appropriate. Additionally, EERE will not make eligibility determinations for potential applicants prior to the date on which applications to this FOA must be submitted. The decision whether to submit an application in response to this FOA lies solely with the applicant. The applicant should select the FOA Topic they feel is most appropriate. Please see Section I.B. of the FOA for Topic Areas/Technical Areas of Interest."]
[36,"2020-02-13","Webinar","I unfortunately missed the webinar held yesterday with information on DE-FOA-0002243. Can you send me a link to the recording when it is posted?","Once a copy is available it will be posted to the FOA page on EERE Exchange."]
[37,"2020-02-13","Technical Topics","A proposal on the possible use/development of novel metallic alloys as a replacement to more expensive Ni-base superalloys to be used in turbomachinery fabrication, and it’s compatibility issue (corrosion etc.) in sCO2 environment. \n\nSuch a proposal will be considered responsive for the current call? \n","EERE will not make eligibility determinations for potential applicants prior to the date on which applications to this FOA must be submitted. The decision whether to submit an application in response to this FOA lies solely with the applicant. The applicant should select the FOA Topic they feel is most appropriate. Please see Section I.B. of the FOA for Topic Areas/Technical Areas of Interest."]
[38,"2020-02-13","Technical Topics","The text under 'Areas of Interest' for Topic Area 8.1 SIPS-PV mentions 'Projects that fit the scope and duration of a PV SIPS project described above, which support an installed cost of solar of $0.02 per kWh by addressing the technical challenges described in Topic Area 1: Photovoltaics Hardware Research.'\n\nDoes this text imply that Topic Area 8.1 covers only hardware-related research? I'm asking to clarify that since the aforesaid sentence is the only place restricting 8.1 to only hardware solutions.","Topic 8 applicants are not required to conduct hardware research in their SIPS project."]
[39,"2020-02-17","Application Content/Format","With regards to topic 4, would SETO encourage a small business submit multiple proposals to the topic so long as the scope of each were different? If so, would SETO encourage a small business to make one submission under the SBIR/STTR track and one under the hardware incubator track?","If each application is distinctly different, applicants could technically apply to multiple topic areas, but if it is the same project applicants should apply under the topic area that they believe is most appropriate. Additionally, EERE will not make eligibility determinations for potential applicants prior to the date on which applications to this FOA must be submitted. The decision whether to submit an application in response to this FOA lies solely with the applicant. The applicant should select the FOA Topic they feel is most appropriate. Please see Section I.B. of the FOA for Topic Areas/Technical Areas of Interest."]
[40,"2020-02-17","Foreign Entities/Work","For example, if I partner with my previous collaborators in Australia in a DOE funding application, and I will be the lead PI, then would the Australian Co-Investigators be able to receive any part of the fund? They will work in Australia, not in US, and expect to receive a portion of the fund in support their relevant work. ","Applicants must submit a Performance of Work in the United States Waiver as outlined in Section IV.F.xi in the FOA Document. If the waiver is approved, foreign Subrecipient's would be allowed to participate in the project and be  reimbursed for their costs. "]
[41,"2020-02-18","Intellectual Property","Where can I find “Intellectual Property Provisions” document?","The intellectual property provisions document is created during negotiation of a selected award. Please see Section VIII of the FOA for more information. "]
[42,"2020-02-18","Webinar","Can you please advise on status/timing of posting of last week’s webinar slides?","Once a copy is available it will be posted to the FOA page on EERE Exchange."]
[43,"2020-02-20","Cost Sharing","Wanted to confirm if Topic 8 had any relaxation of cost-share requirements for teams consisting of just academic institutions or academic institutions plus FFRDC.","Cost share requirements can be found in Section III.B"]
[44,"2020-02-20","Application Content/Format","Can the applicant change during the concept paper to full proposal \nstage? For example, can the prime become the sub and the sub become the \nprime?\n","Applicants can change the teaming arrangement (lead Org/Team members) any time up to the submission deadline (Concept Paper/Full Application). Applicants can also change the teaming arrangement in the Full Application phase of the submission process. For instance, if the teaming arrangement changes for the applicant after the Concept Paper phase of the submission process and they intend to submit a Full Application the Exchange website will allow them to change the teaming arrangement in the Full Application phase.\nHowever, during the LOI phase the applicants cannot change their teaming arrangement after they click the \"\"Create Letter of Intent\"\" button on the Letter of Intent Details page. The EERE Funding Opportunity Exchange system uses the information that an applicant provides on the Letter of Intent Details form to populate the data fields in the Concept Paper Record in the website. The applicant can then edit that information on the Concept Paper form up to the Concept Paper Submission deadline.\nIf the application has already been submitted in EERE Exchange, the application must be resubmitted by the new Prime Applicant, and all application documents must reflect the correct Prime Applicant. The LOI, Concept Paper, and Full Application must be submitted by the deadlines stated in the FOA.\"\n"]
[45,"2020-02-20","Eligibility","We have a team member who was part of the team member of a SEEDS2-SES project which just ended in Dec 2019. Is he eligible to be a team member of this proposal?","Please refer to Section III.A \"Eligible Applicants\" for more information."]
[46,"2020-02-21","Technical Topics","Hello, my question is whether you would consider research on colocation of solar with aquaculture (algae production, fish aquaculture, integrated multi-tropic aquaculture) having a similar focus on providing habitat for biodiversity?","EERE will not make eligibility determinations for potential applicants prior to the date on which applications to this FOA must be submitted. The decision whether to submit an application in response to this FOA lies solely with the applicant. The applicant should select the FOA Topic they feel is most appropriate. Please see Section I.B. of the FOA for Topic Areas/Technical Areas of Interest."]
[47,"2020-02-21","Technical Topics","Can you tell me if the FOA would support economic analyses as a primary activity?  This could be coupled with risk assessments, and outreach activities.  ","EERE will not make eligibility determinations for potential applicants prior to the date on which applications to this FOA must be submitted. The decision whether to submit an application in response to this FOA lies solely with the applicant. The applicant should select the FOA Topic they feel is most appropriate. Please see Section I.B. of the FOA for Topic Areas/Technical Areas of Interest."]
[48,"2020-02-24","Cost Sharing","Regarding cost share for Topic 2, the FOA states on Page 33 “This team will initially provide a basic engineering, design, and cost estimate together with a budgetary proposal for meeting the requisite cost share” (emphasis mine). However, on page 97, it also states “Applicants are required to provide written assurance of their proposed cost share contributions in their Full Applications”. The first statement seems to imply that the full cost share does not need to be committed during the proposal phase, but the second statement seems to contradict that.","Applicants are required to provide written assurance of their proposed cost share contributions in their Full Applications, which include cost share commitment letters from subrecipients and third-parties. Cost share contributions must be specified in the project budget, verifiable from the prime recipient’s records, and necessary and reasonable for proper and efficient accomplishment of the project. As all sources of cost share are considered part of total project cost, the cost share dollars will be scrutinized under the same federal regulations as federal dollars to the project. Every cost share contribution must be reviewed and approved in advance by the Contracting Officer and incorporated into the project budget before the expenditures are incurred."]
[49,"2020-02-24","Technical Topics","We’re working to submit a non-wire systems technology that has disruptive potential to increase solar adoption. By and large, the SETO FOA topics are designed to encourage systems integrations with grid (topic 3) or hardware that integrates with grid (topic 4). We want SETO to evaluate a more effective non-wire solution – which topic area shall we pick? ","EERE will not make eligibility determinations for potential applicants prior to the date on which applications to this FOA must be submitted. The decision whether to submit an application in response to this FOA lies solely with the applicant. The applicant should select the FOA Topic they feel is most appropriate. Please see Section I.B. of the FOA for Topic Areas/Technical Areas of Interest."]
[50,"2020-02-25","Technical Topics","1. Does the field demonstration for Topic 5.1 - Resilient Community Microgrids require a microgrid with 1 MW PV capacity, hundreds to thousands of participants and more than 10,000 DERs, as defined in the FOA? In other words, does this apply for testing and simulation only, while a scaled down field version is acceptable for demonstration? If the latter, what is the minimum scale/size for demonstration?\n2. The FOA states on pg. 53: “A resilient community microgrid may consist of a full feeder microgrid or a network of partial-feeder and single-customer microgrids that are connected at multiple points…” Does a full feeder microgrid with a single point of common coupling to the substation and one tie-line to a neighboring feeder qualify under this definition?\n","Pending Response"]
[51,"2020-02-25","Eligibility","Can one person be the PI of one proposal, and then co-PI of another proposal led by a person from another institution? These two proposals are on the same topic area. ","Yes"]
[52,"2020-02-25","Eligibility","In the course of assembling a team, I have reached out to a potential research partner who is already collaborating as part of another team focused on the same topic and subtopic. \n\nCan this potential research partner be a part of two different teams’ proposals?","Yes"]
[53,"2020-02-25","Eligibility","Can we perform R&D studies on a large microgrid (100-1,000 buildings + >10,000 DERs, etc.) system while demonstrating the technologies on a smaller scale community microgrid with high penetration of PV?","EERE will not make eligibility determinations for potential applicants prior to the date on which applications to this FOA must be submitted. The decision whether to submit an application in response to this FOA lies solely with the applicant. The applicant should select the FOA Topic they feel is most appropriate. Please see Section I.B. of the FOA for Topic Areas/Technical Areas of Interest."]
[54,"2020-02-25","Other","• There does not appear to be an option to upload a PDF for the LOI, is the “abstract’ box where all of the required information should be submitted?\n• Also there does not appear to be an option for listing the project team, whether the application has been previously submitted, how the applicant heard about the funding opportunity, are these things that should be listed and included in the LOI or abstract box?\n• Also, if I submitted to the LOI before the deadline, can I submit a corrected LOI?","The EERE Funding Opportunity Exchange website does not provide a document upload feature for the Letter of Intent phase of the submission process. Fill in the fields in Exchange as thoroughly as possible and then hit \"create LOI.\" "]
[55,"2020-02-26","Intellectual Property","How does DOE handle confidentiality of project details? If we disclose any project details or confidential information, then does DOE have the right to publish that or is it held confidential under an NDA?","Please see Section VIII.D and E of the FOA. "]
[56,"2020-02-26","Other","Does DOE retroactively go back and consider all the expenses incurred on the project as in kind by the applicant? We have a project that we would like to submit an application for but we have been working on it for a year now and have incurred expenses on the project and so I am wondering if DOE will take into account all the expenses incurred since the project started as in kind or will it only consider expenses moving forward?","Only costs incurred during the period of performance of a selected project will be considered as allowable reimbursable costs. "]
[57,"2020-02-27","Other","If a previous submission was submitted to EERE that contained work that is a portion (e.g., 25%) of work that is proposed for the current FOA (2243) should that be noted in the LOI? If yes, A) should the differences (e.g., 75%) and similarities (e.g., 25%) be noted in the LOI?  and B) please offer any advice, other than the rough % estimates that are noted above, as to how to signal that the previous proposal was different.","Please see Section IV.D. of the FOA for information that must be provided in the LOI. EERE will accept only new applications under this FOA. EERE will not consider applications for renewals of existing EERE-funded awards through this FOA."]
[58,"2020-02-27","Eligibility","I work with contacts working on technologies to support improved PV panel disassembly, reuse and recycling. This certainly could have an impact of disposal costs with one year and have a lasting impact on the lifecycle costs and environmental impacts of PV. \n\nWould these types of technologies be eligible under the solicitation’s ","EERE will not make eligibility determinations for potential applicants prior to the date on which applications to this FOA must be submitted. The decision whether to submit an application in response to this FOA lies solely with the applicant. The applicant should select the FOA Topic they feel is most appropriate. Please see Section I.B. of the FOA for Topic Areas/Technical Areas of Interest."]
[59,"2020-02-27","Cost Sharing","We are an FFRDC.  Is there any % minimums required for the lead or subs?  Specifically interested in any minimums for FFRDC’s.  Doe the lead need to provide more than the subs, and if so by how much?","Please see Section III Eligibility Information. "]
[60,"2020-02-27","Application Content/Format","The FOA pdf says 200 words max for the abstract but the EERE Funding Opportunity Exchange states 4000 characters.  If one writes using particularly long or short words those could be quite different.  Which one is correct?","The amount listed in the FOA (200 words) is the correct amount. The LOI Abstract will not be used to make Encourage/Discourage or Award decisions, but is just used by SETO to make reviewer assignments, in order to align the content of the Concept Papers with reviewer expertise. "]
[61,"2020-02-28","Eligibility","I wanted to know that is this program is only for US or another applicant from the US are eligible to apply?","Please refer to Section III.A \"Eligible Applicants\" for more information."]
[62,"2020-02-28","Technical Topics","Regarding the topic of interest, “Long-Term Performance and Reliability of PV Modules,” we wanted to clarify if this area is specific to PV modules, or if we are allowed to consider other PV devices such as smart inverters in addition to PV modules.\n\nIf SETO’s interest for Topic Area 7 is only in PV modules, could you let us know which other Topic Area would be most appropriate to propose AI/ML for reliability that includes PV inverters as well?","The examples listed in the FOA under Topic 7 were only indicative. If the particular subject is not explicitly deemed not-of interest, it could be considered."]
[63,"2020-02-28","Application Content/Format","We are wondering if we will be able to change the application lead/prime and the partners list included in the LOI later in the Concept Paper or Full Application?","See question 44"]
[64,"2020-02-28","Other","I am trying to find out what the letter of intent should contain? Also, where I can locate the form as I am not seeing on the website. Can you please point me in the right direction. ","Please refer to Section IV.C  of the FOA document. There is no form associated with this requirement. Please provide the information in the data fields on EERE Exchange. "]
[65,"2020-03-02","Other","We are interested to apply for one of your FOA’s.  I started the process several weeks ago to obtain a SAM registration and a CAGE number.  I received a reply back from CAGE on February 20th with questions, and I replied that same date with answers (see message below).\n\nWe have heard nothing further from CAGE, and it’s been two weeks now since we responded to them.  Is there anything you can do to expedite our CAGE request?  I am concerned that at the slow rate they are working, we will miss the deadline for your FOA because we will not have a SAM registration and CAGE number.","SAM registration is run by a separate entity and DOE has no control over their ability to issue CAGE/DUNS numbers."]
[66,"2020-03-02","Technical Topics","  Were setting parameters to apply for the Innovations in Manufacturing Grant with a Professor from a university as the lead.   This project is going to take massive amounts of expensive optics, material chemistry, computing power, bandwidth, and advanced cooling metrics.   A SIPS wont cover the costs. Do you believe this Volumetric 3D Printing that has been proven by LLNL and Daqri merits the application? \n","EERE will not make eligibility determinations for potential applicants prior to the date on which applications to this FOA must be submitted. The decision whether to submit an application in response to this FOA lies solely with the applicant. The applicant should select the FOA Topic they feel is most appropriate. Please see Section I.B. of the FOA for Topic Areas/Technical Areas of Interest."]
[67,"2020-03-02","Cost Sharing","I understand that distributed energy resources cannot be counted towards the cost share component of topic 5.1 proposals. However, we are wondering if microgrid control hardware can contribute towards the 50% requirement for the demonstration phase?","Please refer to Section III.B.iii in the FOA document"]
[68,"2020-03-02","Other","Can you tell me what information should be included in the abstract of the LOI for the subject funding opportunity? I tried to find information in the Q&A but was unable to do so.","Please see question 64"]
[69,"2020-03-02","Other","I have followed the instruction in I.A.v. to find the Teaming Partner List.  However, I cannot find the list in https://eere-Exchange.energy.gov under FOA DE-FOA-0002243.","The name of the document is SETO Teaming Partner List - Updated (most recent date the document was updated)."]
[70,"2020-03-02","Eligibility","Can my research group in the UK apply for the funding to develop \"thermophotovoltaics hardware\".","Please see section III Eligibility Information. "]
[71,"2020-03-03","Application Content/Format","I wanted to reach out and see if I could please get guidance on the application process for the SETO 2020 Funding Opportunity. I’m very new to this process and was looking for examples of the Letter of Intent and Concept Paper","EERE does not provide templates or examples for the Letter of Intent or Concept Paper. Please refer to Section IV. Application and Submission Information"]
[72,"2020-03-03","Technical Topics","Could Silicon Solar Cell device and technology research be considered as part of Topic Area 1?","EERE will not make eligibility determinations for potential applicants prior to the date on which applications to this FOA must be submitted. The decision whether to submit an application in response to this FOA lies solely with the applicant. The applicant should select the FOA Topic they feel is most appropriate. Please see Section I.B. of the FOA for Topic Areas/Technical Areas of Interest."]
[73,"2020-03-03","Technical Topics","a) Is 75% PV penetration in the microgrid a strict requirement? The utility partners informed me they have feeders with more  than 50% PV penetration but not 75%. \nb) The utility was also concerned about demonstration on critical infrastructure. From past experience, whenever critical infrastructure was involved, they received a lot of push back. How essential is the ability to demonstrate the algorithm on critical infrastructure outage for a successful proposal?\nc) Is demonstration on more than 10,000 nodes a requirement because the utility wasn’t sure if demonstration on this scale was possible.","Pending Response"]
[74,"2020-03-03","Other","When is the CAGE code and FedConnect registration needed?","The DUNS # and access to FedConnect will be required if an application is selected for negotiation. "]
[75,"2020-03-03","Eligibility","Is the grant open for Non-US universities as well? Or is it limited within the US only?","Please refer to Section III Eligibility Information in the FOA Document"]
[76,"2020-03-04","Registration Requirements","We were previously able to log-in to the site however, we are unable to now.  Could you kindly provide a new user name and password in order to get access?","Please contact the EERE Exchange Helpdesk at EERE-ExchangeSupport@hq.doe.gov for issues relating to EERE Exchange."]
[77,"2020-03-04","Labs/FFRDCs","Can an FFRDC use equipment they own as cost share to this program? A PV \nsystem that is owned and can be sued by the program if awarded is in \nquestion.","Because FFRDCs are funded by the federal government, costs incurred by FFRDCs generally may not be used to meet the cost share requirement. FFRDCs may contribute cost share only if the contributions are paid directly from the contractor’s Management Fee or another non-federal source."]
[78,"2020-03-04","Application Content/Format","Can this submission included diagrams, pictures, and drawings?","Please refer to Section IV.F for information regarding the contents of the application."]
[79,"2020-03-04","Application Content/Format","We logged into the Topic 2 link to submit the Letter of Intent information to obtain the control number.  We filled out the fields listed, received the control number, and received the corresponding email.   However, the information within the FOA on pages 105 and 106 has additional information which was NOT in the online submission page (whether application has been previously submitted To EERE,  applied to a FOA managed by SETO, how  we heard of the funding opportunity to name a few.).  Should we send the additional information, if yes, how and/or where shall we supply this information?  Or is what we currently did sufficient?  ","This information should be included in the text field provided in Exchange."]
[80,"2020-03-04","Concept Paper","Do we need to provide any budget information in either the Letter of Intent or in the Concept Paper? I do not see a mention of needing to provide information on a proposed budget or project duration in any of the FOA instructions for these first required submissions.","Please review to Section IV.C and IV.D.i for all requirements needed for the Letter of Intent and Concept Paper."]
[81,"2020-03-04","Other","Where can I find the form of letter of intent for DE-FOA-0002243 so I can submit it by Mar-9","Please refer to question 64"]
[82,"2020-03-04","Eligibility","We have not yet decided which of us will be the lead Organization and PI for our proposal--and likely will not be able to until after the LOI deadline due to logistical/HR actions in progress (although before the Concept Paper and Final Proposal). Can we change lead PI/Organization for the Concept paper? Should we both submit LOIs for the project, yet only have one concept paper and final proposal? Please advise on the best course of action for our proposal. ","See Question 44"]
[83,"2020-03-05","Concept Paper","I just submitted my LOI for the Topic 6 in the above referenced FOA.  I took a peek at the contents on the exchange for the Concept Proposal.  There I saw at tab for entry of high level budget information (total cost, cost share).  The FOA, under section IV-C  “Content and Form of the Concept Paper” makes no mention of the need for a budget at this stage.  Can you clarify.  And if we do need to submit a budget for the Concept Proposal, can we be assured that our Final Proposal budget may substantively differ from the amount stated in the Concept Proposal.","Per the FOA, high level budget information is not required for the concept paper, therefore applicants are not required to fill in that information. "]
[84,"2020-03-05","Other","I’m new to DOE’s funding system and have a very quick question about the scope of LOIs.  I assume these are perfunctory declarations of intent to apply within a specific topic area and are not included in the review process.  Or are they considered part of the review, and should they include some statement of project merit?","Please refer to Section IV.C for information regarding the content and form of the Letter of Intent."]
[85,"2020-03-05","Other","I went through the LOI submission portal. The FOA states on pp. 104-105 that the LOI must include whether the application has been previously submitted, whether the applicant has submitted to a SETO FOA in the last 5 years, and how the applicant heard about the opportunity. There were no places on the submission portal to enter this information.\nAlso, the total commitment at present is 90% because we are in discussion with two utilities and hope to bring one on board.\nPlease confirm that, with regard to these points, our LOI is compliant. The submission portal apparently allows me to go to the concept paper stage, so I assume the LOI is OK.","The Letter of Intent is used as a signal to DOE staff on the level of interest and how many applicants are expected. If a Letter of Intent was submitted you can move forward to the concept paper phase without pre-approval from DOE."]
[86,"2020-03-05","Other","I have logged in the website for submitting LOI. I need to speak with a help desk member to make sure my submission, once I complete the form, would be sufficient.\nIs there a phone number I can reach?","EERE is unable to make determinations on sufficiency of the Letter of Intent. "]
[87,"2020-03-05","Application Content/Format","In page 89 there is a table showing column \"Details (topic funding and award numbers are approximate)\".  This column shows for Topic Area 7: \"$500,000 to $750,000 per award\". Our question is: (1) Is the $750K is a hard upper limit (so the budget must be within the limit) or $750K is an approximate limit so that the budget can be higher than it? (2) If it is an approximate limit, would somewhere around $850K~$900K be acceptable or ever considered.","The limit for Federal share in Topic 7 is $750,000 per award. Applications above the maximum value listed may not be considered. Please keep in mind that with cost share requirements, total project costs would be more than $750,000. "]
[88,"2020-03-05","Cost Sharing","We had a question related to Cost Share for the DE-FOA0002243.  Page 103/170 states that “Software licenses for software owned by prime or sub-recipients will not be considered allowable as cost share”.\nCan the sub-recipient owned software license contribute to the cost to the project and be reimbursed?","A sub-recipient can not be reimbursed for software license that is already owned by the sub-recipient. "]
[89,"2020-03-05","Other","We are working to submit an LOI for DE-FOA-0002243. One of the requirements in the LOI is to question whether we have submitted for a previous FOA managed by SETO in the past 5 years.\n\nIn 2019 we submitted a Concept Paper for FOA 2064 (control #: 2064-2622). However, that paper was rejected because we had submitted our LOI late. \n\nCan you please confirm whether we should indicate Yes or No as to whether we have ever previously submitted for a previous FOA managed by SETO?","Please include any relevant information as it pertains to the question. "]
[90,"2020-03-06","Cost Sharing","Could you please provide clarification on who can commit volunteer personnel time for In-Kind Cost Share? Would a PI or graduate student be allowed to commit their time in a volunteer capacity?","Per 2 CFR 200.306, Third-party in-kind contributions are the only volunteer time permitted for financial assistance agreements. "]
[91,"2020-03-06","Other","In the pdf for the funding program, it states that the abstract should be no longer than 200 words. I will link this PDF down below for reference, it is on page 105. \nHowever, when we login to the \"apply\" section of the funding page, the abstract states that we have up to 4000 characters. \n","The amount listed in the FOA (200 words) is the correct amount. The LOI Abstract will not be used to make Encourage/Discourage or Award decisions, but is just used by SETO to make reviewer assignments, in order to align the content of the Concept Papers with reviewer expertise. "]
[92,"2020-03-06","Other","Is the above solar funding opportunity, which has a May 2020 closing date, not actually being maintained or open?  ","DOE Staff is maintaining and monitoring the Exchange web posting daily."]
[93,"2020-03-06","Technical Topics","1. p. 56: Resilient Community Microgrid: \"Multiple (hundreds to thousands), independently owned and operated buildings, and likewise many (>10,000) DER that act as a group of interconnected loads and generation.\" Our project has a single owner and over a hundred buildings distributed over 5-6 adjacent blocks (but not over two hundred). The buildings include mixed-used commercial/residential space and approximately 120 duplex buildings (240 units).\n2. p. 59: Applications not of interest \"Seek to develop campus-style or single-facility microgrids, which have single points of common coupling and reflect the current state of the art.\" To clarify: our project has a minimum of 5 separate microgrids that are all adjacent to each other with their own coupling. This is not a single facility. Is this project of interest? ","EERE will not make eligibility determinations for potential applicants prior to the date on which applications to this FOA must be submitted. The decision whether to submit an application in response to this FOA lies solely with the applicant. The applicant should select the FOA Topic they feel is most appropriate. Please see Section I.B. of the FOA for Topic Areas/Technical Areas of Interest."]
[94,"2020-03-09","Eligibility","We are very interested in applying for Topic 6 of the FOA regarding \"Solar and Agriculture: System Design, Value Frameworks and Impacts Analysis\", however we saw on slide 32 of the PPT that only US Citizens and Legal residents are eligible to apply. \nWe are a registered CA corporation however the founder/owner is here on a business investment visa, so he is not a legal resident/green card holder. \nOn slide 31, it states that additional documents such as \"Foreign Entity and Foreign Work waiver requests, if applicable\" should be completed. \nDoes that mean we can apply?? ","Please review to Section III.A Eligible Applicants for more information. Further, if your entity is incorporated in the USA, it would be eligible to apply."]
[95,"2020-03-09","Other","Where on the web interface do I list the previous EERE calls I have submitted to?  The current call (p. 105) lists this as required.   Also, the abstract was limited in the call to 200 words.  The web interface has it at 4000 characters.  The limit is still 200 words, however, correct?  ","Please refer to questions 91 and 79"]
[96,"2020-03-09","Other","Can you please tell me who we should direct Letters of Intent to, and the mailing address, for DE-FOA-0002243  Solar Energy Technologies Office Fiscal Year 2020 Funding Program?","Letters of Intent should be submitted to the EERE Exchange Website at, https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/default.aspx."]
[97,"2020-03-09","Other","I misunderstood the steps for submitting a Letter of Intent. I thought I needed a Control Number. I Filled out the form information, added a sentence in the abstract section as a place holder, and hit submit. The letter of Intent was not submitted/attached. Can I add the letter to the abstract section, or do I need to submit and new form for the Letter of Intent? If so, what happens to the control number that was created in error? Any guidance in this matter is appreciated.","If you completed and submitted the form through EERE Exchange then you have submitted your Letter of Intent. "]
[98,"2020-03-09","Other","I just submitted a letter of intent. Is there a way to modify it? ","Please contact the EERE Exchange Helpdesk at EERE-ExchangeSupport@hq.doe.gov for issues relating to EERE Exchange."]
[99,"2020-03-09","Other","Please let me know where I should be able to find the guidelines for writing the concept paper for the DOE-FOA-0002243 proposal submission, including the required items and page limit. ","Please refer to Section IV.D of the FOA document attached to the EERE Exchange posting. "]
[100,"2020-03-09","Other","I am preparing the LOI for topic 8.1 of DE-FOA-0002243 and am wondering if I can edit the submitted document if it is before the deadline.","Please contact the EERE Exchange Helpdesk at EERE-ExchangeSupport@hq.doe.gov for issues relating to EERE Exchange."]
[101,"2020-03-09","Other","We submitted the LOI to this program, but I did not received any confirmation. As result, I decided to submit the concept paper as well. I received the confirmation for the Concept paper though. Would you please let me know if you received the LOI submission from us?","If you were able to submit a Concept Paper then your LOI has been received."]
[102,"2020-03-09","Other","I was in the process of submitting the Letter of Intent when the EERE server stopped responding. The page keep trying to reload for some time, then I finally escaped from the page and when the page reloaded I hit the submit button. I thought I was submitting the LOI, but regrettably the system indicated that I submitted a “Concept Paper”.  ","Once the LOI, Concept Paper, Topic Area 8 SIPS Application, Full Application for Topic Areas 1-7, or Reply to Reviewer Comments is submitted in EERE Exchange, applicants may revise or update that submission until the expiration of the applicable deadline. If changes are made, the applicant must resubmit the LOI, Concept Paper, Topic Area 8 SIPS Application, Full Application for Topic Areas 1-7, or Reply to Reviewer Comments before the applicable deadline."]
[103,"2020-03-09","Cost Sharing","However, the Table on page 95 shows the following breakdown for R&D and demonstration projects: R&D tasks - 20% Cost Share; and demonstration tasks - 50% Cost Share. This implies that total Cost Share percentage for these types of projects would 70% of the total allowable cost (i.e. Federal Shares). Could you please clarify/confirm that our understanding this is correct.  ","If a project includes tasks for R&D and Demonstration then a blended cost share amount would be calculated for the project by task/activity and cost share would be somewhere between 20%-50%. "]
[104,"2020-03-10","Cost Sharing","IF, R&D is only performed in Budget Year 1, and demonstration would be performed in Budget Year 2 and 3, could the cost share requirement be: 20% Budget Year 1, and 50% spread across Budget Year 2 and Budget 3; i.e.: Budget Year 1 = 20% cost share (R&D); Budget Year 2 = 25% cost share (demonstration), and Budget Year 3 = 25% cost share (demonstration)? With a total cost share requirement of 70%? \n\nOr, with the above project scenario would the like cost share allocation be as follows: Budget Year 1 = 20% cost share (R&D); Budget Year 2 = 50% cost share (demonstration), and Budget Year 3 = 50% cost share (demonstration)? Thus, implying that the total cost share requirement of the project would be 120% \n\nIF, the project is strictly demonstration, would the cost share for the project then only be 50% of the total allowable cost?  ","Please refer to Section III.B.iii and Appendix B of the FOA Document"]
[105,"2020-03-10","Due Dates","I had technical difficulty and an emergency at the time of the LOI deadline, can my LOI still be considered?","Please refer to Section III.C of the FOA Document"]
[106,"2020-03-10","Concept Paper","I am unable to update the above referenced concept paper, hence I am enclosing a revised (minor edits) copy, which kindly swap with what has been uploaded, if you can and please confirm once done","You can make edits to the subject Concept Paper record by doing the following:\n\n1. Log into the EERE Funding Opportunity Exchange website.\n2. Open the “My Submissions’ page.\n3. Locate your Concept Paper record.\n4. Click the Edit Link to open the Concept Paper in edit mode.  Since you have already submitted the Concept Paper in the website you will be presented with a pop-up interactive warning message informing you that if you continue the Concept Paper status will change to not submitted and you will have to resubmit the concept paper after making changes and before the submission deadline."]
[107,"2020-03-10","Technical Topics","Per your response to a previous question, “Field validation of the hybrid PV plant is expected at a minimum of 1 MW”  applies to research area 2 of Topic 5.3.\n\nIs it acceptable to conduct this field validation having a physical 1-MW PV hybrid plant interacting with real-time simulations of other PV hybrid plants?","EERE will not make eligibility determinations for potential applicants prior to the date on which applications to this FOA must be submitted. The decision whether to submit an application in response to this FOA lies solely with the applicant. The applicant should select the FOA Topic they feel is most appropriate. Please see Section I.B. of the FOA for Topic Areas/Technical Areas of Interest."]
[108,"2020-03-10","Other","Can you define who the business point of contact is? One of my PIs is submitting.","The business contact is someone who can certify and conduct business on behalf of the entity applying for the Funding Opportunity Announcement. Also known as an authorized representative of the entity"]
[109,"2020-03-10","Other","Please contact me with information regarding your solar panel programs.","Thank you for your interest in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) number DE-FOA-0002243.\n\nInstructions for completing the concept paper and full application are contained in the full text of the Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) which can be obtained at the DOE EERE Funding Opportunity eXCHANGE website at: https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/default.aspx."]
[110,"2020-03-10","Technical Topics","With respect to this FOA,  in addition to inverter-based generation resources (such as batteries), can  “Hybrid PV Solar Plants” include synchronous generators driven by gas turbines or diesel engines?","Yes, as long as the solar PV and other plant inverter-based resources (IBR) are grid forming and align with the topics of interest for the hybrid PV plant design and control."]
[111,"2020-03-10","Due Dates","Coronavirus quarantines in our area are making it difficult for our team to travel and meet. Could the Concept Paper deadline be extended to allow a fair and equal opportunity for all?","An extension will not be granted."]
[112,"2020-03-11","Concept Paper","Does SETO require that concept papers include budget as part of the submission? I’m not seeing it in the evaluation criteria and thought I would ask.","Please refer to Section IV.D of the FOA document attached to the EERE Exchange posting. "]
[113,"2020-03-11","Concept Paper","We are preparing a concept paper for DE-FOA-0002243, Track 3. We have several partners who will be supporting our project and will be integral to its success. These partners will also be providing cost share. Is there opportunity with the concept paper to submit their letters of support? ","Letters of support should be included in the full application phase of the solicitation. "]
[114,"2020-03-11","Other","I am sending in an application for Topic 4 of DE-FOA-0002243. Am I correct in thinking that the concept letter and budgets are due by this Friday and then have another 30 days to turn in the Technical Volume? Or is all due this Friday?","The concept paper is due on March 16, 2020, please refer to Section IV.D of the FOAF document for concept paper requirements."]
[115,"2020-03-11","Eligibility","Will it be possible to make this change to the project lead when submitting an application, even though the LOI has already been submitted? ","Please refer to question 44"]
[116,"2020-03-11","Application Content/Format","Page 56 – J. Funding restrictions, there was no mention that building renovation or building construction was prohibited.  Could you let me know if facilities/constructions projects are permissible?  ","Facilities/construction are typically performed by contractors. Therefore, these costs are typically proposed under the contractual tab of the budget. "]
[117,"2020-03-12","Concept Paper","Our team has a question about the structure of the Concept Paper for this FOA. In the requirements many of the bullets seem to ask questions related to a technology solution that will be investigated with the research. We are working on Topic 3 which does not necessarily deal with development of technology and were wondering if there was a different set of requirements that may exist or be sought for this topic ","Please refer to Section IV.D of the FOA Document"]
[118,"2020-03-12","Due Dates","Given the fact that many universities around the US are now quickly shifting their teaching mode to on-line instruction, with the list of impacted institutions growing by the day, this is creating a substantial disruption in the associated faculty’s schedules.  Whereas we may have originally planned to use our spring break (this week for many of us) to work on the DE-FOA-0002243 concept paper, we’re now faced with the sudden requirement of completely re-engineering/reformatting our lectures and labs.  Ultimately this will only be a temporary disruption, but the timing is anything but convenient.  Is there any possibility that SETO might consider a one-week extension of the concept paper deadline to keep us sane?  ","An extension will not be granted."]
[119,"2020-03-12","Concept Paper","Is there a page limit on the Concept Paper Addendum? Should it be submitted as a separate document?","Please refer to Section IV.D of the FOA Document"]
[120,"2020-03-12","Concept Paper","I have a question regarding the upcoming Concept paper due 3/16.  According to the FOA (and also the existing question 83), “high level budget information is not required for the concept paper, therefore applicants are not required to fill in that information.”   However, the system indicates this is a required field to complete submission.  Should we fill this in a $0 or a different value?","If an estimated dollar amount is known, applicants should place that amount in the required field, applicants are not bound by this amount in the concept paper phase. Otherwise, $0 is also acceptable."]
[121,"2020-03-12","Concept Paper","Page 106 says “Applicants may provide graphs, charts, or other data to supplement their technology description.” Does this mean in addition to 4 page limit?","Each submission must not exceed the specified maximum page limit, including cover page, charts, graphs, maps, and photographs when printed using the formatting requirements set forth above and single-spaced. If applicants exceed the maximum page lengths indicated below, EERE will review only the authorized number of pages and disregard any additional pages."]
[122,"2020-03-12","Application Content/Format","The per award funding for topic 8 is listed as exactly $300,000 (i.e. no range is given, unlike the other topics). Will proposals requesting less than $300,000 be considered compliant?","Yes."]
[123,"2020-03-12","Technical Topics","For Topic 7, it reads \"Successful applications will be supported by at least one distribution utility that will provide the data sets for training and validation\". Is a partnership with a distribution utility required for award approval? If we can get the data by other means, could that suffice for successful application in this topic area?","Legal access to a volume of data that is sufficient for training and validation is the core requirement. The partnership with the distribution utility also offers a plausible path to future field application and commercialization but, if the data can be secured otherwise, the lack of such a partnership will not disqualify the application."]
[124,"2020-03-16","Application Content/Format","What is the allowable indirect cost % on FOA-0002243?","Indirect rates are based on negotiated rates with an entity's cognizant agency. There is no cap on a rate but depending on the rate, the indirect costs may be capped at a certain dollar amount to ensure project objectives are completed."]
[125,"2020-03-16","Application Content/Format","Pg 95 of the FOA describes cost-share is 50% for demo and commercial application projects.  Based on TRL definitions in Appx E, does DOE expect all projects at TRL 7 or above to provide 50% cost-share for that portion?  Further, is TRL 6 still considered development required 20% cost-share.","A discussion on cost share is provided in Page 35, pages 94-95 and Appendices A &B.  The FOA document does not explicitly tie demonstration (and associated cost share) to a specific TRL level.  R&D activities (for instance, development of components and any required scientific activities) are allowed a 20% cost share; demonstration activities are a 50% cost share requirement. A mixture of R&D and non R&D and demonstration tasks are expected. A review of budget tasks will be performed by DOE at the appropriate time to ensure that the correct cost share is attributed to each task.  This is conducted at the award negotiation stage.  Applicants should read the explanation of R&D and demonstration in the FOA and attribute the correct cost share on a task by task basis in their proposed budgets.  If an application is selected for award negotiations, selectees and DOE will work to determine the required cost share of specific activities. "]
[126,"2020-03-26","Application Content/Format","I have a question on working with FFRDCs as mentioned in the FOA.  To what extent should a prime applicant include its plans to work with an FFRDC in the proposal?  For example, should the task outline include work to be done by the FFRDC?  Should the FFRDC supply some sort of letter of support for the application? Would the FFRDC be listed as a teaming partner?","Please refer to the following sections Section IV.F.ii, Section IV.F.viii, and Section IV.F.ix of the FOA document for full details. "]
[127,"2020-04-01","Cost Sharing","I am trying to submit an LOI for Topic 8 as part of DE-TA8-0002243 for the Topic 8 SIPS program. I would like to have a foreign entity as a sub-recipient. In my case it is the German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute for Solar Research, which is the national aeronautics and space research centre in Germany. What organization category should I include this subrecipient under?","Please refer to Section III.A \"Eligible Applicants\" for more information. Please also refer to Appendix C for additional information on requests for waivers of performance of work in the U.S. "]
[128,"2020-04-01","Other","If an organization would like to participate in multiple Topic Areas (TAs), do we have to submit an LOI respective of each TA we would like to participate in?","Yes"]
[129,"2020-04-01","Eligibility","We are a small start-up, and are interested in applying for Topic 8 in the recent SETO FOA: DE-FOA-0002243.  However, we have won $50k in the recent Solar Prize Ready challenge, and are currently participating in the Solar Prize challenge round 3.  Do you know if we are still qualified to apply for funding under Topic 8?","There is no prohibition in applying for funding under Topic 8 if you've received a Solar Prize; however, the funding awarded from the Solar Prize cannot be used as a form of cost share if your application is selected. "]
[130,"2020-04-02","Other","Regarding Topic Area 8: SIPS, will there be a down select before the full proposals are due?","No"]
[131,"2020-04-02","Eligibility","I'm from Papua New Guinea  in the South Pacific. I am not sure if I'm eligible to apply for this project.","Please refer to Section III.A \"Eligible Applicants\" for more information."]
[132,"2020-04-07","Other","For SIPS LOI, will I receive an email after I hit “create Letter of Intent”? Also, how do I remove an old LOI?","Please contact the EERE Exchange Helpdesk at EERE-ExchangeSupport@hq.doe.gov for issues relating to EERE Exchange."]
[133,"2020-04-08","Application Content/Format","How is Outreach defined as a grant-funded activity?","Pending Response"]
[134,"2020-04-08","Other","Am I correct that Letters of Commitment are not required as part of the application submission for Topic 8 SIPS PV projects?","Please refer to Section IV.E.i of the FOA document."]
[135,"2020-04-09","Cost Sharing","We plan a proposal in Topic Area 3 that requires a 20% cost-sharing. The proposal is led by a University and includes NREL as a co-recipient. Would the amount of funding that they receive be exempted from the cost-sharing requirement?","No, the prime recipient will still be required to meet 20% cost share on the FFRDC amount. The cost share must be at least 20% of the total allowable costs (i.e., the sum of the government share, including FFRDC costs if applicable, and the recipient share of allowable costs equals the total allowable cost of the project) for R&D projects"]
[136,"2020-04-13","Due Dates","When does SETO expect to have encourage/discourage decisions made for topic areas 1-7?","Once DOE has reviewed all of the eligible concept papers encourage/discourage decisions will be posted in EERE eXchange, and applicants will be notified.  "]
[137,"2020-04-19","Due Dates","We would like to submit an LOI for submission of a subsequent full proposal for Topic 8 of FOA DE-FOA-0002243.  The deadline for the mandatory LOI submission was April 9, 2020.  Considering the unusual business disruptions due to the COVID-19 pandemic, is it possible for us to submit our LOI for Topic 8?","LOI's may still be submitted via EERE Exchange.  "]
[138,"2020-04-21","Application Content/Format","As we are putting together our tasks, milestones, and schedules for the grant application, the question has come up as to whether business startup/operating expenses (e.g. sales/marketing, business legal fees, admin, travel, utilities/overhead) are applicable and should be included in our application, or if the tasks and costs identified in the application need to be directly related to the product (e.g. product patent fees, engineering fees, manufacturing costs). We view the indirect business expenses as critical to the ultimate success of the product and goals of the grant, and feel they should be included.","Please review 2 CFR 200 Subpart E regarding the Cost Principles.  Pre-award costs may only be incurred after award selections have been made, and with prior approval from the Contracting Officer.  These requests will be addressed during award negotiations.  Any costs incurred prior the awards being selected for negotiation are not directly allocable to the award, and will not be reimbursed.  "]
[139,"2020-04-22","Application Content/Format","\"The Concept Paper, Full Application for Topic Areas 1-7, Topic Area 8 SIPS Application, and Reply to Reviewer Comments must conform to the following requirements:\nReferences must be included as footnotes or endnotes in a font size of 10 or larger. Footnotes and endnotes are counted toward the maximum page requirement;\"\nHowever, on page 109, it is stated: \n\"An unlimited number of reference pages, one-page letters of support and/or one-page resumes of project participants may be submitted but are not required.\"","In general, footnotes and endnotes count toward the page limit, but letters of support and resumes do not. However, for SIPS Applications, due to the lower page limits, additional reference pages are permitted beyond the page limit."]
[140,"2020-04-25","Application Content/Format","After reading this announcement I wondered if you had considered targeting energy efficiency with hospitals and medical centers?","Please review all of Section B Topic Areas, including Applications Specifically Not of Interest.  DOE will not make early determinations on applications.  It is ultimately an applicant's responsibility to determine if they wish to submit an application and all of the required documents for the FOA."]
[141,"2020-04-28","Application Reviews","Is it allowable to submit full applications with a project idea modified from the idea reflected in the concept paper stage?","Yes, that is allowed. "]
[142,"2020-05-04","Other","How can I follow the funding opportunity, and especially who gets money for topic area 6? ","Please explore the SETO website at https://www.energy.gov/eere/solar/solar-energy-technologies-office and subscribe to our newsletter."]
[143,"2020-05-04","Other","What does this mean? = = >\n“View Full Application Reviewer Comments Period: 7/24/2020 12:00 PM ET – 7/29/2020 5:00 PM ET”\nWho is viewing?  What exactly is being viewed?  What access could I have?  ","This means that applicants will be able to view the reviewer responses to their full applications during that time period."]
[144,"2020-05-06","Cost Sharing","SEEDS3 has a 20% cost share and $1-2M per award. Does the $1-2M include or exclude the cost share? E.g., is the minimum award request about $840k from DOE plus a $168k cost share = about $1M total, or is it $1M from DOE plus a $200k cost share?","The $1-2M reflects just the DOE share. Cost Share is calculated as shown in Appendix A of the FOA.  If an awardee receives $1M in federal funds, they are expected to provide $250,000 in cost share for a total project cost of $1.25M."]
[145,"2020-05-06","Application Content/Format","Are SF-LLLs required for FFRDCs?","SF-LLLs are not required for FFRDCs."]
[146,"2020-05-06","Application Content/Format","Topic Area 8: Small Innovative Projects in Solar (SIPS): PV and CSP\nThe FOA says that the technical volume for this topic is 4 pages. (plus a cover page)\nIs that it? 4 pages to describe the concept and the statement of work?\nOr is it just the concept and the statement of work is submitted somewhere else?","The requirements for the SIPS application Technical Volume can be found in Section IV.E. of the FOA.  It is limited to 4 pages plus a cover page."]
[147,"2020-05-06","Cost Sharing","I am wondering if you could clarify what qualifies as in-kind cost share equivalent? For example, can I say that the use of a scanning tunneling microscope is worth 20% in-kind contribution? Or could I say that my research efforts contributing to experimental measurements, training of students, and writing of papers count as in-kind contributions? or devoting one of my lab spaces to the research efforts is an in-kind contribution?","Please refer to the 2CFR200, UNIFORM ADMINISTRATIVE REQUIREMENTS, COST PRINCIPLES, AND AUDIT REQUIREMENTS FOR FEDERAL AWARDS.  This may be found at https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/retrieveECFR?gp=&SID=0bfb6670884a7e62ddc714a97a5f3d0d&n=pt2.1.200&r=PART&ty=HTML#_top "]
[148,"2020-05-08","Foreign Entities/Work","Our proposed work includes demonstration and validation on a power plant located outside the US and owned by a foreign entity. We intend to include this foreign entity in the project as an unpaid participant. Our question is: Can this unpaid foreign entity participant provide third-party cost share? If so, what additional forms we need to submit along our full application?","A request for a waiver to the Performance of Work in the US must be submitted. If the waiver is considered, the participant must provide details for the proposed cost share. "]
[149,"2020-05-11","Application Content/Format","We want to clarify who is required to provide a letter of commitment. Are letters of commitment only for partners who are providing cost share? Or are they for all partners, even if they are not providing cost share?","Letters of commitment are requested from all cost share partners. "]
[150,"2020-05-11","Cost Sharing","We have two external partners (a company and a government research agency) that are providing data and inputs but are not receiving funding. Can their efforts count as cost-share?","Data may not be counted as cost share."]
[151,"2020-05-11","Cost Sharing","If we have tenured-faculty members serving as advisors but not directly receiving funding, can their hours count as cost-share? ","If the academic faculty are working directly on the scope of work of the project and being paid by the academic institution for their time, then that time may be counted as cash cost share with the approval of the academic institution."]
[152,"2020-05-11","Cost Sharing","If we get a graduate assistant funded by the university from my academic unit working on this project, can that count as cost-share?  ","If the graduate assistant is working directly on the scope of work of the project and being paid by the academic institution for their time, then that time may be counted as cash cost share with the approval of the academic institution."]
[153,"2020-05-13","Technical Topics","Our horticulture expert suggested to plant 3 kinds of crops in the high tunnels such as perennial shrubs(blueberries), seasonal vegetables(tomatoes, cucumbers), and nursery plants(roses).\nThis would require lots of maintenance and I feel might not be the focus of the grant. Would planting only one (or two) type(s) of low maintenance (perennial shrubs like blueberries) be sufficient?","SETO cannot provide specific guidance to applicants on how to construct their application, beyond what is in the FOA document.  "]
[154,"2020-05-13","Technical Topics","We are using novel solar panels that are not UL rated. Would having the system off-grid be frowned upon? The FOA states that they are not interested in small off-grid systems but we are planning to have two 15kW installs on the greenhouses and a 5kW ground mount for a control so it is not so small. ","SETO cannot provide specific guidance to applicants on how to construct their application, beyond what is in the FOA document.  "]
[155,"2020-05-14","Due Dates","Has the deadline for submission of 2020 Topic 8 SIPS applications been delayed from May 21 to June 18?","The Full Application submission deadline is 6/18/2020 as of the date of this question."]
[156,"2020-05-14","Application Content/Format"," With regard to the SF-LLL Disclosure of Lobbying Activities Form. Can you advise on how we should fill that out given that we have no lobbying activities to disclose?","The identifying portions of the SFLLL should be completed and for the sections which require lobbying activities to be listed you may write, \"N/A\""]
[157,"2020-04-19","Eligibility","I am currently working with a client on implementing a community-based renewable energy system in Puerto Rico. Are projects in territories qualified to apply?","Yes"]
[158,"2020-05-15","Application Content/Format","The “Estimated Funding” table on Pg. 89 of DE-FOA-0002243_Mod2 seems to contain the only real guidance on total budget and potential length of award that I can seem to find.  For Topic Area 1 (PV Hardware Research) it states “$1 to $2 million per award” and “3 to 4 years per award.”  However, the EERE-335 budget forms provided on Exchange are only for either 3 or 5 budget periods (no option for 4).  Historically the budget periods for these regular (non-SIPS) projects have been 1-yr/12-mo in length.  Should that remain the same here?  That is, if we are to propose a 4-year project, should that be in the form of 4 budget periods of 12 months each (in which case, should we just use the 5-year EERE-335 and ignore the 5th year) or should we set the project up for 3 budget periods of 16 months each (and then use the 3 BP form)?","The appropriate number of budget periods and their length will be determined by the length of the project and the way the work is organized. If a 4 year project is proposed, the applicant should determine an appropriate length for each budget period based on proposed tasks and milestones, and separate the budget periods in the EERE-335 using the 5-year template leaving one column blank. "]
[159,"2020-05-15","Application Content/Format","Regarding the SOPO instructions, do you want the tasks organized at the highest level per each budget period (with tasks and subtasks per budget period)? Or do you want it organized just by tasks?\n\nThe example in the FOA is organized just by tasks.  However, the instructions ask for a task budget amount for each year.","Tasks in the SOPO should be organized by budget period."]
[160,"2020-05-15","Application Content/Format","Can the budget increase between the Concept Paper and Full Application phases?","Yes."]
[161,"2020-05-15","Application Content/Format","Can you confirm that the technical volume is only 15 pages long which includes the journal paper and conferences references? ","Technical Volume to the Full Application for Topic Areas 1-7 except Topic Area 2 may not be more than 15 pages, including the cover page, table of contents, and all citations, charts, graphs, maps, photos, or other graphics"]
[162,"2020-05-15","Application Content/Format","There seems to be no separate SOPO document in the submission. Is the only location for the task details in the summary of the SOPO in the technical volume?","Yes, the summary SOPO is where the task details should be broken out."]
[163,"2020-05-15","Application Content/Format","Can we make the font size of the table and reference lesser than the overall text font (12)?","Yes, but must be font size 10 or larger."]
[164,"2020-05-15","Application Content/Format","If a project duration is 3 years, are 2 go/no-go points at the end of year 1 and year 2 sufficient? ","Go/no-go decision points should align with the end of each budget period.  DOE cannot make a determination of the sufficient number of go/no-go decision points."]
[165,"2020-05-19","Application Content/Format","Topic 8 SIPS Application.  On re-reviewing the FOA, the bulleted list at the bottom of pg 102 of the latest version (modified 4/9) states:\n\"The Concept Paper, Full Application for Topic Areas 1-7, Topic Area 8 SIPS Application, and Reply to Reviewer Comments must conform to the following requirements: ... References must be included as footnotes or endnotes in a font size of 10 or larger. Footnotes and endnotes are counted toward the maximum page requirement; \"\nOn the other hand, the table on pg 109 states:\n\"An unlimited number of reference pages, one-page letters of support and/or one-page resumes of project participants may be submitted but are not required\"\nIs this a contradiction or does the latter NOT include footnote and endnotes? Please clarify.","This has been addressed by Modification 0003 to the FOA.  For SIPS Applications, footnotes and endnotes are not counted towards the page limits."]
[166,null,"Labs/FFRDCs","My company is planning to submit an application with an FFRDC as a subrecipient.  Are we required to submit a letter from the cognizant officer at the time of application or will that be requested later only if we are awarded the grant?  ","Please see Section IV.F.viii. which requires a FFRDC Authorization from applicants."]
[167,"2020-05-19","Cost Sharing","For Topic 8 on page 89 they note that the award would be for $300,000. Is this the federal amount or is this the total with the 20% cost share?","The $300,000 reflects the federal share only."]
[168,"2020-05-19","Eligibility","We have been invited to be a Subrecipient on two responses to FOA 2243.  Please confirm that we can team with 2 or more primes on same FOA.","You may be a subrecipient on multiple applications provided that each application describes a unique, scientifically distinct project."]
[169,"2020-05-20","Concept Paper","Between the Concept Paper and the Full Proposal, is it allowed for the Project Title to be changed?  The Concept Paper received an “Encourage.” Obviously, the Control Number would be constant.","Yes."]
[170,"2020-05-21","Eligibility","Section III on page 92 states: “For Topic Areas 1 and 8, the scope of work performed by the prime recipient shall not be less than the scope of work performed by the subrecipients who are ineligible to be prime applicants, as measured by the total project costs. The requirement for the prime recipient’s share of total project costs can be met with the prime’s percentage being greater than the individual contribution of each subrecipient even if the prime applicant’s share is less than 50% of the scope of work.” \nIf the subrecipient meets the eligibility criteria to be a prime, can their scope/budget be greater than that of the prime? For example, if a small business is prime and their subrecipient is an educational institution, can the educational institution have a bigger budget than the prime?","The prime’s percentage of scope/budget must be greater than the individual contribution of each subrecipient."]
[171,"2020-05-25","Cost Sharing","With regards to the funding levels indicated  in II.A.i Estimated Funding, I understand an application requesting funds exceeding the maximum amount may not be considered.  Please clarify or confirm that the maximum applies to the Federal share only.  ","The estimated funding levels indicated in II.A.i. reflect only the DOE portion of each project."]
[172,"2020-05-26","Technical Topics","The FOA says; Applications Specifically Not of Interest Applications will be deemed nonresponsive and declined without external merit review if they: Proposed sCO2 cycles that do not incorporate thermal energy storage or do not use air-cooled heat sinks. (p. 36-37)\n\nWould it be acceptable to propose that the sCO2 cooler simulate the operation of an air cooled heat rejection system, in terms of sCO2 outlet temperatures, wind induced temperature fluctuations, and diurnal and seasonal temperature changes, using an evaporative water cooling system?","SETO cannot provide additional information beyond what is in the FOA about technical areas of interest and not of interest."]
[173,"2020-05-26","Cost Sharing","The FOA says; A minimum 20% recipient cost share is required for R&D tasks; a minimum 50% recipient cost share is required for demonstration and commercial application tasks. Individual tasks will be cost-shared at either a 20% or 50% rate, depending on the type of work to be performed. (p. 33-34)\n\nIf there is cost share in excess of the 20% required for R&D tasks, can the project take credit for that excess cost share in the demonstration phase at the 50% rate? ","The calculated required cost share percentage for each budget period must be met cumulatively on an invoice by invoice basis.  \n-If a budget period includes both R&D and demonstration work then a blended cost share percentage will be calculated for that Budget Period (somewhere between 20-50%).  Each invoice must meet that blended cost share percentage.  \n-If Budget Period 1 is R&D (20% cost share) and Budget Period 2 is demonstration (50% cost share) then during BP1 invoices must reflect at or above 20% cost share being provided and BP2 must reflect at or above 50% cost share being provided. "]
[174,"2020-05-26","Application Content/Format","I notice that the budget justification workshop travel tab does not include a column for registration fees. Does this mean that registration fees for professional conferences at which researchers present results of the proposed project is not an allowable cost?","Registration fees for conference attendance at conferences that are necessary to the scope of work may be included in the, \"Other Direct Costs,\" tab of the budget justification form."]
[175,"2020-05-26","Cost Sharing","Can a faculty member’s Startup Funds be used for the required cost share as listed in DE-FOA-0002243, so long as the funds are not from a Federal source?  ","Please refer to FOA Section III.B.iii.  EERE cannot make determinations regarding eligibility of applicants' potential individual cost share contributions at this time."]
[176,"2020-05-26","Data Management","We noticed a recent revision to the FOA and it added that \"For topics 3.1, 3.2, and 7, the application includes sufficient explanation of how project‐generated data will be made available to researchers and other stakeholders.\"   \nMy question is should the explanation be included in the Technical Volume? Or included in the Data Management Plan during the award negotiation?","This explanation should be included in the Technical Volume."]
[177,"2020-05-29","Application Content/Format","Would the lead applicant provide a letter of commitment (letter of support) as well as the third party/subrecipient if both are contributing to the cost share?","Lead applicants (Prime organizations) are not required to submit a Letter of Support.  The SF424 Application document serves as the commitment to providing cost share by the lead applicant.  All Subrecipients and third parties providing cost share must provide Letters of Support."]
[178,"2020-05-29","Other","Can the Performance Period of the project start in any year after the proposed award date? For example can the performance period start in 2023?","Proposed project start dates should be between December 2020 and May 2021 and will be finalized during negotiations.  "]
[179,"2020-05-29","Other","What is the range of the acceptable project start dates?  Any time between Jan 2021 to May 2021 is fine?","Proposed project start dates should be between December 2020 and May 2021 and will be finalized during negotiations.  "]
[180,"2020-05-30","Application Content/Format","Is a Table of Contents required for Topics 1-7?  A TOC is mentioned in the context of the page limitation (“including”), but is not mentioned in the multi-page table that follows, with other FOA text stating that the technical volume “must include all of the information in the table below” and “must conform to the following content requirements:” ","A Table of Contents is not required."]
[181,"2020-06-01","Application Content/Format","For topics 1-7, can references simply be included at the end of technical document (although still within the 15 page limitation) but not linked electronically from the reference in the text? That is, can it simply be a list of references that have been cited in the body of the document?","There is no requirement for references to be electronically linked."]
[182,"2020-06-02","Application Content/Format","If a go-no-go occurs in real time in first 6 months, should it still be reported/reflected in project timeline as end of year (12 month)?","Go/no-go decision points should align with the end of each budget period and the appropriate number of budget periods and their length will be determined by the length of the project and the way the work is organized.  "]
[183,"2020-06-02","Application Content/Format","Should milestones include a reference to the month in which it will be completed (as Tasks are)?  If so, the month or quarter?","Milestones should identify project-month to be completed. "]
[184,"2020-06-02","Application Content/Format","Significant guidance provided on milestones and still having difficulty discerning the difference between “demonstration of a definitive achievement of progress” verses completion of a task—can you provide example milestones?  ","We cannot provide milestone examples to applicants. Please refer to page 116 of the FOA."]
[185,"2020-06-02","Application Content/Format","Does 15 page limit include team qualifications & resources?","Yes"]
[186,"2020-06-02","Application Content/Format","Confirm 15 page limit does not include appendices for TA1-7.","Confirmed"]
[187,"2020-06-02","Application Content/Format","Is a milestone required for each task?","No"]
[188,"2020-06-02","Application Content/Format","Are “end of project goals” = same as goals/objectives required in Project Overview? ","The Project Overview likely will include intermediate goals and objectives which combine to accomplish greater end of project goals."]
[189,"2020-06-02","Application Content/Format","Reference to project goals/objectives in the overview section guidance suggest the two term are synonymous?","While the FOA document uses both terms somewhat interchangably. Please ensure you're thinking of goals/objectives that are  SMART  (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Timely) and contribute to larger end of project goals."]
[190,"2020-06-03","Other","Our project requires professional installation of several unique solar arrays whose total cost could exceed $500K. Is there a limit on capital expenses for this award?","No, there is no limit on capital expenses within the award.  Please keep in mind that demonstration tasks require 50% cost share contribution."]
[191,"2020-06-03","Other","What happens to capital equipment installed as part of the research at the end of the project?","The disposition of capital equipment will be in accordance with 2CFR200.313. https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/retrieveECFR?gp=&SID=0bfb6670884a7e62ddc714a97a5f3d0d&n=pt2.1.200&r=PART&ty=HTML#se2.1.200_1313. For Profit entities should refer to 2 CFR 910.360."]
[192,"2020-06-03","Cost Sharing","Can we use the land being used to host the solar array as cost share? How do we determine the value of land?","The value of land that may be contributed as cost share would be determined by the acquisition or rental value of a similar piece of land at the time the land is used as cost share. If the land is used for serveral months of the project, then the value would have to be determined on a reasonable basis (i.e. monthly), in which the value may vary. The cost for the land would only be allocable to the project as a direct cost if it was used exclusively for the purposes of the project during the award's performance period."]
[193,"2020-06-04","Application Content/Format","Should the Lobbying disclosure form also be completed by cost share partners that are only providing cost share and not requesting any federal funds? ","All subrecipients must submit a Lobbying Disclosure form. The form is not required for third-parties. "]
[194,"2020-06-04","Cost Sharing","The DE-FOA-0002243 states on p. 105 re: cost share: “Cash contributions include, but are not limited to: personnel costs, fringe costs, supply and equipment costs, indirect costs and other direct costs.”\n \nIn the EERE 335 budget justification file, on tab j. Cost Share there is the following text: 7. NOTE: A Recipient cannot claim \"unrecovered indirect costs\" as a Cost Share contribution, without prior approval.\n\nCould you please clarify if the FOA allows for foregone indirect costs to be included as cost share to meet the 20% mandatory match? If it does not, please let us know the process for requesting approval to include these as cost share.","The review and approval of the budget justification by the Contracting Officer during award negotiations constitutes prior approval.  Indirect costs are an allowable form of cash cost share if included in the approved budget justification. Applicants must provide a Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement or Indirect Rate Proposal to support the indirect rates proposed in the budget. "]
[195,"2020-06-05","Application Content/Format","The SOPO speaks to summary, tasks, milestone, schedules, and Gantt chart.  Could we provide detail to the extent of a month in a task/milestone schedule and then use quarters in the Gantt chart, as a monthly Gantt chart over 3 years will stretch out quite a bit?","Yes."]
[196,"2020-06-05","Application Content/Format","Is a Subrecipient Budget Justification workbook required for a DOE FFRDC \nNational Lab who is performing a portion of the work, in addition to the \nDOE WP and DOE Authorization Letter?","No."]
[197,"2020-06-08","Technical Topics","Our technical input for the submission is part of a patent, which has not been filed formally. May I know whether this technical input needs to be quoted specially in the proposal? ","An Applicant should not include trade secrets or commercial or financial information that is privileged or confidential, which would include unpublished patentable information, in its application unless such information is necessary to convey an understanding of the proposed project or to comply with a requirement in the FOA.  If such information is included, it must be marked accordingly.  Please see Article VIII. Other Information D. Treatment of Application Information of the FOA for more instructions and requirements regarding proprietary information in an application.  "]
[198,"2020-06-08","Technical Topics","In Topic Area 3, the FOA states, “All applicants must develop plans for data and protocol sharing with other projects funded under this topic and possibly with larger groups of researchers.” Considering the mention of “protocol sharing” in addition to “data” and new references to FAIR, DataOne, and OpenEI, is there an expectation or requirement that software employed to analyze the collected data or model systems using the collected data be distributed under an open source license?","Software employed to perform analysis or modeling is not required to be open source. However, ”applicants are also strongly encouraged to describe how they will adhere to FAIR standards for data access or why such adherence would not be feasible for their project,” so applicants should be mindful of whether their use of proprietary software will present barriers to easy data sharing and this should be justified by other technical considerations."]
[199,"2020-06-09","Application Content/Format","For Topic Area 8, I do not see where to upload the Budget Justification and FFRDC Documents.  Are they required?","Please refer to page 109 of the FOA.  For Topic Area 8, Budget Justifications will be required at such time that an application is selected for negotiations of an award.  They are not required as part of the application package.  There are spaces for all of the required application documents."]
[200,"2020-06-09","Cost Sharing","We read from the FOA that software license cannot be counted as cost-share. Data license is not mentioned. Are data licenses allowable cost-share?","Data may not be counted as cost share."]
[201,"2020-06-10","Cost Sharing","For this funding opportunity, I understand that the cost share must be at least 20% of the total allowable costs for R&D projects, and 50% of the total allowable costs for demonstration and commercial application projects and must come from non-federal sources unless otherwise allowed by law.  However, may I please seek clarification regarding a blended task project that includes outreach and R&D only?  \n\nFor example, would it be appropriate for a project scope reflecting a budget request of R&D Federal: $1,200,000; R&D 20% Cost-Share: $240,000; and Outreach Federal: $800,000; 0% Outreach Cost-Share: $0, to have a total project cost-share contribution of $240,000?","Your example is correct except that cost share is calculated based on the total costs of the work being done.  If the R&D portion of work is $1,200,000 then the required cost share on that work is $240,000 (with $960,000 to be covered by federal dollars).  If the Outreach portion were an additional $800,000 your total project costs would be $2,000,000 ($1,760,000 fed share, $240,000 cost share)."]
[202,"2020-06-10","Application Content/Format","I am writing in regards to the DOE FOA 0002243 Topic 6. We will not be proposing any buying of equipment or manufacturing. Do we need to submit a US Manufacturing Plan as asked for in section IV.F.xii. U.S. Manufacturing Commitments? If so, do you have an example of a U.S. Manufacturing Plan we can go by?","Applicants must submit all required documents listed in the FOA. Please refer to the FOA for guidance on the manufacturing commitment and manufacturing plan. "]
[203,"2020-06-10","Cost Sharing","Our team has one utility member, who doesn’t take any federal money but only provide cost share. We understand it has to provide letter of commitment, but does it need to also provide SF-LLL form?","All subrecipients must submit a Lobbying Disclosure form. The form is not required for third-parties. "]
[204,"2020-06-11","Application Content/Format","Can you please confirm that an Environmental Questionnaire is not required unless the proposal is selected for funding?","Confirmed."]
[205,"2020-06-12","Application Content/Format","SF424- Item #18 Estimated Funding does not allow me to enter anything in the \"TOTAL\" row which is highlighted yellow and a required field.  Nor does it auto populate.  Can you please address how I should proceed? ","Please fill the Federal Share and Cost Share amounts and the Total row will auto-populate."]
[206,"2020-06-12","Application Content/Format","S424- Item #19 Is Application Subject to Review By State Under Executive Order 12372 Process?\nHow are we supposed to gather this information'","Applicants should consult with legal counsel. "]
[207,"2020-06-12","Application Content/Format","I see the same 3-period Budget Justification Template in both the DE-FOA-0002243 and in the DE-TA8-0002243 which is for SIPS  1-yr proposal. Please advise if this is the case or we should look for 1-yr Templates for the SIPS proposal.","Please refer to page 109 of the FOA.  For Topic Area 8, Budget Justifications will be required at such time that an application is selected for negotiations of an award.  They are not required as part of the application package.  There are spaces for all of the required application documents."]

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["Pick List"]
[]
["Registration Requirements"]
["Webinar"]
["Concept Paper"]
["Eligibility"]
["Labs/FFRDCs"]
["Foreign Entities/Work"]
["Cost Sharing"]
["Due Dates"]
["Application Content/Format"]
["Intellectual Property"]
["Data Management"]
["Other"]
["U.S. Manufacturing Plan"]
["Application Reviews"]
["Technical Topics"]