Deadline Approaching for National Labs to Apply for Technology Commercialization Funding: This year’s Technology Commercialization Fund Base Annual Appropriations National Laboratory Call closes for applications on March 17, 2023. The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO) is partnering with the Office of Technology Transitions and several additional offices for this year’s laboratory call. Potential topics for funding include a market needs assessment, curation of intellectual property, matchmaking, technology-specific partnerships, streamlining laboratory processes, and increasing external partnerships. 

Closing Soon: $4 Million Fish Passage Technology Funding Opportunity: The application window is closing for a funding opportunity to enhance innovative fish passage and protection technologies. Improvements in technology to help fish move safely through hydropower facilities will support efforts to reduce environmental impacts and restore fish population levels. Full applications are due March 27, 2023, and are only being accepted from applicants who submitted a concept paper by the Dec. 5, 2022, deadline.

WPTO Adds $10 Million to Proposed Funding Opportunity to Advance Tidal and Current Energy Systems: WPTO announced the addition of a $10 million topic area to a proposed funding opportunity to advance tidal and current energy systems, bringing its total funding to $45 million. With the addition of this topic area, this funding opportunity, expected to be released in the coming weeks, will advance a comprehensive approach to tidal and current energy development in the United States, ranging from funding community-led planning and project execution to making the first large-scale investment in a tidal research, development, and demonstration site.

DOE Announces $50 Million to Support Clean Energy Deployment on Tribal Lands: DOE’s Office of Indian Energy is accepting applications from tribes looking to install clean energy technologies on tribal lands. This opportunity seeks applications to:

• Install clean energy generating systems and/or energy efficiency measures for tribal buildings.
• Deploy community-scale clean energy generating systems or community energy storage on tribal lands.
• Install integrated energy systems for autonomous operation to power a single or multiple essential tribal buildings during emergency situations or for tribal community resilience.
• Provide electric power to tribal buildings that otherwise would be unelectrified. 

The deadline to apply for this funding opportunity is May 16, 2023.

ETIPP Now Accepting Applications: DOE is accepting applications for technical assistance through ETIPP, which works alongside remote and island communities seeking to transform their energy systems and increase energy resilience. The deadline to submit an application is May 19, 2023. For more information, register for the informational webinar on April 11, 2023.

Pumped Storage Hydropower Projects Eligible for $450 Funding Opportunity for Clean Energy on Mine Land: DOE Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations intends to issue a funding opportunity for up to $450 million to demonstrate the technical and economic feasibility of deploying clean energy projects on lands of current (operating) and former (abandoned or inactive) mines. Eligible clean energy technologies include solar power; microgrids; geothermal energy; direct air capture; fossil-fueled electricity generation with carbon capture, utilization, and sequestration; energy storage; and advanced nuclear power technologies.

DOE Announces $315 Million to Advance Clean Energy in Rural and Remote Communities: DOE's Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations announced $300 million for projects that increase energy affordability and promote climate resilience and $15 million for a prize competition to help rural communities build the capacity needed for clean energy development and deployment. Concept papers for the funding opportunity are due by April 14, 2023, and submissions for the first round of the prize are due May 24, 2023.

Apply for a Communities to Clean Energy In-Depth Partnership: Communities to Clean Energy In-Depth Partnerships is a multiyear program from DOE to help communities develop realistic road maps to achieve their clean energy goals and/or address key challenges. The four to five partnerships include program funding ranging from $500,000 to $3 million, as well as access to modeling, innovative testing, and other technical assistance from DOE’s national laboratories. Community teams consisting of representatives from local government, community-based organizations, and electric utilities are encouraged to apply. Applications are due May 17, 2023.

WPTO Releases 2021–2022 Accomplishments Report: WPTO recently released its 2021–2022 accomplishments report, providing a glimpse into the important work happening across the Hydropower and Marine Energy programs. The report highlights a variety of WPTO-funded projects with partners at national laboratories, academic institutions, companies, and other organizations.

DOE Announces Recipient of 3.7 Million in Bipartisan Infrastructure Funds: DOE announced $3.7 million in funding through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for a project that aims to strengthen relationships between hydropower and river stakeholders to better incorporate community priorities in hydropower research and development activities. This investment seeks to expand collaboration on the dual goals of maintaining hydropower as a key source of renewable energy and preserving healthy rivers to support communities and the environment.