The Advanced Energy Manufacturing and Recycling Grant Program will provide technical assistance and grants to small- and medium-sized manufacturers in former coal communities, with priority given to minority-owned manufacturers. The program provides $750 million for grants to expand or establish manufacturing or recycling facilities for the production or recycling of advanced energy technologies (including clean electricity, industrial decarbonization, clean transportation, and clean fuels), or to re-equip existing manufacturing facilities with equipment designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. As a first step, DOE is providing tailored technical assistance to eligible manufacturers interested in seeking a grant under the program.

This funding opportunity announcement (FOA) is being issued by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) to invest in innovative research and development (R&D) that accelerates the large-scale development and deployment of solar technology to support an equitable transition to a decarbonized electricity system by 2035 and decarbonized energy sector by 2050. By investing in research on the co-location of solar photovoltaics (PV) and agriculture (“agrivoltaics”), this FOA will advance the decarbonization of the energy system while providing new economic opportunities to farmers, rural communities, and the solar industry. The office supports solar energy research, development, demonstration, and technical assistance in five areas—PV, concentrating solar-thermal power (CSP), systems integration, manufacturing and competitiveness, and soft costs—to improve the affordability, reliability, and domestic benefit of solar technologies on the electric grid.

As the U.S. works to decarbonize the transportation sector and produce an increasing amount of “clean” (zero emission) electricity, electric vehicles (EVs) become logical alternatives to internal combustion engines (ICEs). However, to accelerate and/or broaden EV adoption, consumer-centric considerations need to be more thoroughly addressed, including cost, convenience, reliability, and safety. Although it is expected that EVs will continue to gain market share domestically, significantly more effort is required to address and remove key technology barriers to EV adoption among a greater percentage of the population. In response to these challenges, ARPA-E’s Electric Vehicles for American Low-Carbon Living (EVs4ALL) program will focus on advancing next-generation battery technologies that have the potential to significantly improve affordability, convenience, reliability, and safety of EVs compared to those available today. Final submission deadline TBD.

Projects awarded under this FOA will be funded, in whole or in part, with funds appropriated by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL). The activities to be funded under this FOA support BIL Sections 40207 (b) & (c) and the broader government-wide approach to upgrading and modernizing infrastructure, including by strengthening critical domestic manufacturing and supply chains to maximize the benefits of the clean energy transition as the nation works to curb the climate crisis and advance environmental justice. This FOA provides approximately $3.1 billion to successful applicants to fund investments within the electric vehicle battery supply chain, increase domestic battery manufacturing, and create good-paying clean energy jobs. The overall scope in this FOA includes demonstration and commercial facilities for battery grade precursor materials, battery components, and cell manufacturing and recycling. Letters of Intent are due May 27.

Projects awarded under this FOA will be funded, in whole or in part, with funds appropriated by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL). This FOA and any related activities support BIL section 40208. The sections are focused on Electric Drive Vehicle Battery Recycling and Second-Life Program which includes second-life applications for electric drive vehicle batteries that have been used to power electric drive vehicles; and technologies and processes for final recycling and disposal of the electric drive vehicle batteries.

The Geothermal Geophone Prize consists of three phases that will fast-track efforts to design, test, and fabricate advanced functional seismometer prototypes. Each stage will include a contest period when competitors work to rapidly advance their solutions with the support of the American-Made Network. Sign up to compete here.

In Phase I (April – September 2022), teams will submit concept and feasibility designs to identify and develop high temperature, downhole seismic sensors using currently available components. Up to 8 semifinalists will receive $150,000 in cash prizes and vouches!

Phase II will open in December 2022 and close in October 2023. Both new and repeat applicants are eligible to submit design and proof-of-concept for their technologies. Up to 5 finalists will receive $350,000 in cash prizes and vouchers.

Phase III will open in December 2023 and close in March 2025. In this phase, teams will prototype and test their Phase II designs. Up to 2 winners will receive a $350,000 cash prize.

The Geothermal Geophone Prize consists of three phases that will fast-track efforts to design, test, and fabricate advanced functional seismometer prototypes. Each stage will include a contest period when competitors work to rapidly advance their solutions with the support of the American-Made Network. Sign up to compete here.

In Phase I (April – September 2022), teams will submit concept and feasibility designs to identify and develop high temperature, downhole seismic sensors using currently available components. Up to 8 semifinalists will receive $150,000 in cash prizes and vouches!

Phase II will open in December 2022 and close in October 2023. Both new and repeat applicants are eligible to submit design and proof-of-concept for their technologies. Up to 5 finalists will receive $350,000 in cash prizes and vouchers.

Looking forward, in Phase III (December 2023 – March 2025), teams will prototype and test their Phase II designs. Up to 2 winners will receive a $350,000 cash prize.

Within the Build to Scale opportunity, two challenges aimed at supporting technology entrepreneurs will be funded by the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA).

The Venture Challenge focuses on advancing technology-based economic development. Looking for programs producing businesses that can scale. The “build” tier provides up to $750,000 and the “scale” tier provides up to $2 million in federal funding over the grant period.

The Capital Challenge seeks to increase formation and access to capital, particularly in communities where there is a limited supply of equity-based funding and a demonstrated opportunity to invest in technology based businesses. The “form” tier provides up to $300,000 in federal funding for identifying and organizing investors in the early-stage, and the “deploy” tier provides up to $750,000 to start a fund.

Eligible entitles include nonprofits, venture development organization, public-private partnership, federal labs, economic development organizations, higher education institutions, and more.

This 6-month training program is tailored to small businesses. The program provides the opportunity to accelerate your leadership skills, learn an MBA-level curriculum, receive tailored business coaching, and build relationships with a community of business owners, advisors, and experts.

The next cohort is beginning in numerous cities across the country, with hybrid programming. Apply and participate for free. Applicants must have annual revenues of at least $250,000, have been in business for at least three years, and have at least one employee, other than self.

The Geothermal Geophone Prize consists of three phases that will fast-track efforts to design, test, and fabricate advanced functional seismometer prototypes. Each stage will include a contest period when competitors work to rapidly advance their solutions with the support of the American-Made Network. Sign up to compete here.

In Phase I (April – September 2022), teams will submit concept and feasibility designs to identify and develop high temperature, downhole seismic sensors using currently available components. Up to 8 semifinalists will receive $150,000 in cash prizes and vouchers!

Looking forward, in Phase II (December 2022 – October 2023), new and repeat applicants will submit design and proof-of-concept for their technologies. Up to 5 finalists will receive $350,000 in cash prizes and vouchers. Finally, in Phase III (December 2023 – March 2025), teams will prototype and test their Phase II designs. Up to 2 winners will receive a $350,000 cash prize.

The Conductivity-enhanced materials for Affordable, Breakthrough Leapfrog Electric and thermal applications (CABLE) Conductor Manufacturing Prize aims to help supercharge U.S. energy and manufacturing industries.

In the current stage of this prize, competitors will provide a sample of their material for electrical conductivity testing and preliminary plans to scale-up and manufacture the material according to prize requirements. Up to 6 competitors each will win $200,000 in cash awards and $100,000 in noncash voucher support to work with a DOE national laboratory (including user facilities) or other American-Made Challenges Network provider in Stage 3. Any eligible entity can compete in Stage 2 regardless of whether they were a competitor in Stage 1.

The DOE’s National Community Solar Partnership (NCSP) as a partner is a coalition of community solar stakeholders working to expand access to affordable community solar to every U.S. household.

This partnership will enable the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Energy Technologies Office and its national laboratory partners to:
– Create a platform for collaboration
– Develop practical resources
– Facilitate peer-to-peer learning
– Offer a variety of technical assistance opportunities to help you set goals, reach objectives, track progress, and report key metrics.