The U.S. Department of Energy‘s U.S. Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO) announced the addition of a $10 million topic area to its funding opportunity proposed by President Biden’s historic Bipartisan Infrastructure Act. This funding will be occupied to advance tidal and stream energy systems. This new issue area will support at least one tidal or tidal stream energy planning and implementation project in the United States. A community-based organization or a local or municipal government entity preferably led them.
Energy Transitions Initiative Partnership Project
This topic area builds on the success of community-led technical assistance programs, such as the Energy Transitions Initiative Partnership Project (ETIPP). It will help advance projects from energy resilience design to technology validation.
Several ETIPP projects have helped communities understand, assess and optimize the potential of marine energy systems to support decarbonization. Projects funded in this thematic area are intended to leverage technical assistance from ETIPP and other similar programs.
With the addition of this topic area, the Water Power Technologies Office funding opportunity will advance a comprehensive approach to tidal and stream energy development in the United States, which ranges from funding community-led planning and project implementation to making the first large-scale investment in tidal research and development and demonstration site.
These critical investments will help advance U.S. leadership in tidal and tidal stream energy development while meeting community energy priorities and developing the industry’s supply chain and workforce.
The overall objectives of this FOA are:
- Build on state clean energy strategies with local partners.
- Attract competitive tidal/current developers for on-site technology integration.
- Enhance tidal/recent Research and Development (R&D).
- Build site infrastructure and supply chains, with increased state-level participation, including involvement of local, tribal, and university research agencies.
- Establish a working business model covering commercial-scale site development.
DOE is compiling a list of “teaming” partners to facilitate broad participation in this FOA. This list allows organizations with subject matter expertise to express their interest to potential applicants and explore potential partnerships.
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