Notice of Intent (NOI) to issue Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) titled “Concentrating Solar Flux to Heat and Power.” | DE FOA 0003338

Opportunity Information: Apply for DE FOA 0003338

The U.S. Department of Energy, through the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) and specifically the Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO), has published a Notice of Intent (NOI) indicating that it plans to release a forthcoming Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) titled "Concentrating Solar Flux to Heat and Power." This notice serves as an early heads-up to potential applicants that a competitive grant program is being prepared, giving organizations time to assess fit, line up partners, and begin shaping project concepts before the full FOA is formally issued.

The opportunity is listed as a discretionary grant under Funding Opportunity Number DE-FOA-0003338 and falls under the Energy funding activity category, with CFDA/Assistance Listing number 81.087. The issuing office is the DOE Golden Field Office. As described, the focus is on "concentrating solar flux" technologies and approaches aimed at delivering heat and power. In practical terms, that typically refers to concentrating solar technologies that use optics (such as mirrors or lenses) to concentrate sunlight to achieve higher temperatures, enabling thermal energy delivery for industrial process heat, power generation, or integrated heat-and-power applications. The title signals an emphasis on converting highly concentrated solar energy into usable thermal and electrical outputs, which may include components such as receivers, thermal transfer media, thermal storage concepts, power cycles, and system integration approaches, depending on what the final FOA specifies.

Eligibility is described as "unrestricted," meaning the applicant pool is expected to be broad. In DOE grant contexts, this generally implies that a range of entities may be able to apply, such as universities, national laboratories (often as partners), private companies, non-profits, state and local governments, and other qualified organizations, subject to the detailed rules and any specific eligibility constraints that appear in the final FOA. Because this is an NOI rather than the full solicitation, the definitive eligibility requirements, cost-share expectations, teaming rules, and submission instructions would be provided in the forthcoming FOA.

The notice indicates an anticipated award structure with an award ceiling of $10,000,000 per award and an expectation of roughly 10 awards. That suggests DOE is planning for a portfolio of projects rather than a single large demonstration, with individual projects potentially ranging up to the stated maximum depending on topic area, project scale, and merit. As with most SETO-led competitive funding, applicants should expect a merit-reviewed process where technical approach, potential impact, team qualifications, project management, and cost realism are typically central evaluation themes, though the exact criteria will be spelled out in the FOA.

Key dates included in the listing show a creation date of 2024-02-26 and an "original closing date" of 2024-03-31. Because this posting is an NOI, that closing date may relate to the notice entry itself or anticipated timing associated with the planned FOA, and deadlines can shift once the full solicitation is released. Anyone intending to apply would typically track the official FOA release and any amendments for the final submission deadline, required concept papers (if used), and compliance items.

Overall, the government is signaling near-term funding support for innovations that use concentrated sunlight to produce high-value heat and/or electricity. Organizations working on concentrated solar thermal components, high-temperature receivers, novel thermal-to-electric conversion, durable materials, optical concentration approaches, system controls, integration with industrial heat users, or related enabling technologies would likely see this as relevant. The NOI is not the application itself, but it is an important planning prompt: it tells prospective applicants what technical direction DOE is preparing to fund, the likely scale of awards, and the general administrative framing so teams can begin preparing for the formal competitive announcement.

• The Golden Field Office in the energy sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Notice of Intent (NOI) to issue Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) titled “Concentrating Solar Flux to Heat and Power.”" 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 2024-02-26.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2024-03-31. (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 $10,000,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 10 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted.

Apply for DE FOA 0003338

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