Opportunity Information: Apply for DE FOA 0002847
The Department of Energy (DOE), through the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) and its Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO), announced its intent to release a forthcoming Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) focused on advancing tidal and river current energy in the United States. The opportunity is tied to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), specifically Section 41006(a)(2), and is framed as a major federal push to move tidal and current technologies closer to commercial reality. The central idea is to catalyze a U.S.-based tidal (or river current) research, development, and demonstration (RDandD) site and to support real in-water demonstrations of at least one tidal energy system, with the broader aim of reducing technical and market barriers that have historically slowed deployment.
This planned FOA is expected to provide a total of $35 million to support development of a tidal or river current energy site, preferably led by a U.S. project or site developer, along with funding for at least one in-water technology demonstration. In practical terms, DOE is signaling that it wants to see more than lab-scale progress: it is looking for a site that can host and integrate competitive device developers, collect high-quality performance and environmental data, and provide the physical and organizational platform needed to mature the sector. The emphasis on a dedicated RDandD site reflects how marine energy typically requires shared infrastructure (permitting groundwork, grid interconnection planning, environmental monitoring frameworks, moorings, deployment and retrieval logistics, and data systems) that is expensive and time-consuming for any single technology developer to build alone.
The goals laid out for the FOA focus on both technology advancement and the ecosystem around it. DOE highlights building on state clean energy strategies and working with local partners, which points to a preference for projects that align with state decarbonization plans and energy resilience needs, and that show strong local coordination rather than operating as isolated pilot projects. Another major goal is attracting competitive tidal and current developers for technology site integration, meaning the selected effort should be credible as a host platform that multiple technology providers can plug into over time. DOE also calls out improving tidal and current RDandD, which typically involves validating device performance, reliability, operations and maintenance approaches, and survivability in real ocean or river conditions, while also strengthening the evidence base needed for investors, regulators, and utilities.
In addition to technology and demonstrations, DOE is clearly focused on enabling infrastructure and supply chain development. The opportunity stresses building site infrastructure and supply chains with increased participation at the state level, and explicitly includes local agencies, tribal participation, and university research involvement. That framing suggests the program is meant to generate durable local capacity: partnerships with ports and marine service providers, regional fabrication and assembly capability, workforce development and training pathways, and long-term monitoring and research collaboration. DOE also includes an explicit goal of establishing a working business model that spans from site development to commercial scale, which signals that proposals will likely be expected to address not just engineering, but also how the site becomes financially and operationally sustainable beyond the initial federal investment (for example, through service fees, staged expansion plans, repeatable permitting approaches, and predictable pathways for additional device deployments).
This notice is a Notice of Intent (NOI), meaning it is an advance heads-up rather than the final solicitation. DOE notes that all details may change when the FOA is officially issued, and that the agency will not answer questions about the notice itself. Once the full FOA is released, DOE plans to provide a formal question-and-answer process for applicants, which is typical for EERE opportunities where requirements, cost share expectations, merit review criteria, and compliance obligations are spelled out in detail only in the final announcement.
To encourage broad participation, DOE is also compiling a teaming partner list connected to the NOI. This list is meant to help organizations that have relevant capabilities (technology development, marine operations, environmental monitoring, permitting, grid integration, research expertise, community engagement, tribal coordination, and similar roles) signal their interest and connect with potential lead applicants. The teaming list is essentially a matchmaking tool to help assemble strong project teams before the FOA submission window opens, which can be important for complex, multi-stakeholder site development efforts.
Administrative details provided with the notice indicate the opportunity is categorized as discretionary funding, associated with the energy domain (CFDA 81.087), and is described as open eligibility (unrestricted) subject to any clarifications that appear in the full FOA text. The issuing agency is listed as the Department of Energy, Golden Field Office. The notice directs interested parties to find the complete NOI and subsequent FOA materials on DOE's EERE eXCHANGE portal (https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/), where applicants typically register, download the final FOA, and later submit required concept papers and full applications, depending on the final structure of the solicitation.Apply for DE FOA 0002847
- The Department of Energy, Golden Field Office in the energy sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Notice of Intent to Issue Funding Opportunity Announcement No. DE-FOA-0002845: Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), Section 41006(a)(2): U.S. Tidal Energy Advancement" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 81.087.
- This funding opportunity was created on Oct 18, 2022.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Feb 17, 2023. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $1.00 in funding.
- Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility.
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FAQs: DOE EERE WPTO Notice of Intent (NOI) - Tidal and River Current Energy RDandD Site and In-Water Demonstrations
What is this funding opportunity about?
The Department of Energy (DOE), through the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) and its Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO), announced a planned Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) intended to advance tidal and river current energy in the United States. The planned FOA is designed to move these technologies closer to commercial readiness by supporting a U.S.-based research, development, and demonstration (RDandD) site and at least one real in-water technology demonstration.
Is this the official FOA?
No. This is a Notice of Intent (NOI), which is an advance notice that a FOA is expected to be released. DOE states that details may change once the official FOA is issued.
What is the total expected funding amount?
The planned FOA is expected to provide a total of $35 million to support development of a tidal or river current energy site and to fund at least one in-water technology demonstration.
What kinds of projects does DOE want to support?
Based on the NOI description, DOE is looking for more than lab-scale work. The emphasis is on creating the shared platform needed for real deployments: establishing an RDandD site that can integrate device developers over time, and demonstrating at least one tidal energy system in-water while generating high-quality performance and environmental data.
What is the main purpose of creating a dedicated RDandD site?
The RDandD site concept is meant to reduce barriers that have historically slowed marine energy deployment by providing shared infrastructure and coordination that individual device developers often cannot build on their own. The NOI describes typical shared needs such as permitting groundwork, grid interconnection planning, environmental monitoring frameworks, moorings, deployment and retrieval logistics, and data systems.
Does the opportunity cover tidal energy only, or river current too?
The NOI describes the planned FOA as focused on advancing tidal and river current energy in the United States, indicating the opportunity is intended to address both technology areas.
What outcomes is DOE trying to achieve?
The NOI frames the planned FOA as a major push to reduce technical and market barriers, advance technology maturity, and move tidal and river current technologies closer to commercial reality. It also highlights establishing a working business model that supports scaling from site development toward commercial deployment.
Will the funded site need to host multiple technology developers?
The NOI emphasizes attracting competitive tidal and current developers for technology site integration. This suggests DOE is looking for a credible host platform that can support integration of competitive device developers over time, not just a single one-off pilot.
Is an in-water demonstration required?
The NOI states that the planned FOA is expected to support development of an RDandD site along with funding for at least one in-water technology demonstration, indicating real in-water work is a central element of what DOE intends to fund.
What kinds of data and validation activities are implied?
The NOI points to improving tidal and current RDandD by validating device performance, reliability, operations and maintenance approaches, and survivability in real ocean or river conditions. It also highlights collecting high-quality performance and environmental data to strengthen the evidence base for investors, regulators, and utilities.
Does the opportunity emphasize environmental monitoring?
Yes. The NOI specifically mentions environmental monitoring frameworks as part of the shared infrastructure typically needed for marine energy RDandD sites, and it stresses the value of high-quality environmental data alongside performance data.
What kinds of partnerships does DOE appear to encourage?
The NOI highlights working with local partners and building on state clean energy strategies. It also explicitly references participation from local agencies, tribes, and universities, indicating a preference for projects that are locally coordinated and include broad stakeholder involvement.
How important is alignment with state energy strategies?
DOE notes goals that include building on state clean energy strategies and working with local partners. That points to a preference for projects that align with state decarbonization plans and energy resilience needs, rather than operating as isolated pilot efforts.
Does the NOI mention supply chain or workforce considerations?
Yes. The NOI stresses building site infrastructure and supply chains with increased participation at the state level. It also frames the effort as a way to build durable local capacity, referencing partnerships with ports and marine service providers, regional fabrication and assembly capability, workforce development and training pathways, and long-term monitoring and research collaboration.
Is DOE expecting a business model, or only technical work?
The NOI includes an explicit goal of establishing a working business model that spans from site development to commercial scale. This signals that proposals will likely be expected to address operational and financial sustainability beyond the initial federal investment, not just engineering and demonstration.
What is meant by a "working business model" in this context?
The NOI suggests that sustainability could involve approaches such as service fees, staged expansion plans, repeatable permitting approaches, and predictable pathways for additional device deployments. The overall point is that the site should have a credible plan to function and grow beyond the initial award period.
Who is expected to lead the site development effort?
The NOI indicates the RDandD site is preferably led by a U.S. project or site developer.
Who is the issuing agency and office?
The issuing agency is the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), and the notice lists the DOE Golden Field Office. The programmatic offices referenced are DOE EERE and WPTO.
What is the legal/programmatic authority mentioned?
The opportunity is tied to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), specifically Section 41006(a)(2), as described in the NOI summary provided.
What is the funding type and assistance listing information provided?
Administrative details in the notice describe this as discretionary funding and associate it with the energy domain, CFDA 81.087.
Who is eligible to apply?
The notice summary describes eligibility as open (unrestricted), subject to any clarifications that appear in the full FOA once it is released.
Where will the official FOA be posted?
DOE directs interested parties to the EERE eXCHANGE portal at https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/ for the complete NOI and for subsequent FOA materials when released. Applicants typically register there, download the FOA, and submit required application materials through that system.
Will DOE answer questions now, during the NOI stage?
No. DOE states it will not answer questions about the notice itself. DOE plans to provide a formal question-and-answer process once the full FOA is released.
What is the purpose of the teaming partner list?
DOE is compiling a teaming partner list connected to the NOI to encourage broad participation. The list is intended to help organizations with relevant capabilities signal interest and connect with potential lead applicants before the FOA submission window opens.
What types of organizations or capabilities might be relevant for teaming?
The NOI describes capabilities such as technology development, marine operations, environmental monitoring, permitting, grid integration, research expertise, community engagement, and tribal coordination as examples of roles that may be helpful in forming strong project teams.
What should organizations do now if they want to participate?
Based on the NOI, organizations can monitor the EERE eXCHANGE portal for the FOA release and consider joining the teaming partner list to connect with potential applicants and collaborators.
Will the final requirements (cost share, review criteria, submission steps) be available in the NOI?
The NOI indicates that key details such as requirements, cost share expectations, merit review criteria, and compliance obligations are typically provided in the final FOA rather than in the NOI.
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| Notice of Intent to issue Funding Opportunity Announcement No. DE-FOA-0002788 entitled Buildings Energy Efficiency Frontiers & Innovation Technologies (BENEFIT) - 2022 Apply for DE FOA 0002787 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002787 Agency: Department of Energy, Golden Field Office Category: Energy Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
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| POWERING UNELECTRIFIED TRIBAL BUILDING(S) - 2022 Apply for DE FOA 0002771 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002771 Agency: Department of Energy, Golden Field Office Category: Energy Funding Amount: $4,000,000 |
| CLEAN ENERGY TECHNOLOGY DEPLOYMENT ON TRIBAL LANDS - 2022 Apply for DE FOA 0002774 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002774 Agency: Department of Energy, Golden Field Office Category: Energy Funding Amount: $4,000,000 |
| Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL): Request for Information (RFI) Energy Efficiency Materials Pilot for Nonprofits Apply for DE FOA 0002879 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002879 Agency: Department of Energy, Golden Field Office Category: Energy Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| BIPARTISAN INFRASTRUCTURE LAW: LONG-DURATION ENERGY STORAGE DEMONSTRATIONS FUNDING OPPORTUNITY ANNOUNCEMENT Apply for DE FOA 0002917 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002917 Agency: Department of Energy, Golden Field Office Category: Energy Funding Amount: $70,000,000 |
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| Request for Information on BIL titled Carbon Dioxide Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation (CIFIA) Program: Future Growth Grants Apply for DE FOA 0002894 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002894 Agency: Department of Energy, National Energy Technology Laboratory Category: Energy Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Request for Information Carbon Storage Technology Operations & Research CarbonSTORE Apply for DE FOA 0002900 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002900 Agency: Department of Energy, National Energy Technology Laboratory Category: Energy Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
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| Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) DE-FOA-0002828: To Address Key Deployment Challenges for Offshore, Land-Based, and Distributed Wind Apply for DE FOA 0002828 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002828 Agency: Department of Energy, Golden Field Office Category: Energy Funding Amount: $8,000,000 |
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