Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and other federal funding announcements

The Minnesota Department of Commerce is seeking to work with and facilitate connections with local and Tribal governments, utilities, businesses, communities and other entities interested in energy-related partnerships. Funding opportunities outlined below are offered through the federal funding opportunities, including those funded by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA).??

Minnesota receives $1.4 billion and 109 projects in IIJA funding

Federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) fund are already arriving in Minnesota, with many more opportunities to come. To date, $1.4 billion in IIJA funding has been announced and is headed to Minnesota with more than 109 specific projects identified for funding with $1.2 billion for transportation to invest in roads, bridges, public transit, ports and airports and more than $116 million for clean water. More projects will be added in the coming months, as funding opportunities become grant awards and as formula funds become specific projects.?Learn More

Action requested: survey to inform the MN Grid Resilience Plan

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) includes the distribution of grants within Minnesota to enhance electric grid resilience. The Department of Commerce is asking for feedback on methods for grant award criteria. Please see the two separate surveys and respond by August 19, 2022. (Coordinated responses within companies/organizations appreciated):

• Grid resilience grant program feedback 01: Survey for non-utility stakeholders.
• Grid resilience grant program feedback 02: Survey for utility stakeholders.?

Thank you for your time and attention in helping shape the Minnesota 40101(d) Grid Resilience State Plan.

Recent and expected federal funding activity

The federal government issues a variety of announcements related to federal funding opportunities:? Requests for Information (RFI); Notices of Intent (NOI); and Funding Opportunity Announcements (FOA). More information can be found on the Commerce IIJA web page or by clicking the links below.

--Open Funding Opportunity Announcements (FOA):

• Section 41007 (b) & (c) Solar and Wind Grid?Services and Reliability Demonstration?
  • Concept Paper Due Date: September 1, 2022, 4pm CDT
  • Full Application?Due Date: November 10, 2022, 4pm CDT.
  • DE-FOA-0002745;?CFDA Number: 81.087

This funding opportunity, issued by DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable?Energy (EERE) on behalf of the Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO)?and Wind Energy Technologies Office (WETO), will?provide funding to demonstrate the capability of large-scale solar and wind plants to provide grid services to the bulk power grid as well as improving grid reliability. Projects? will support the development of controls and methods for inverter-based resources like solar and wind to provide the same grid services as traditional generation.? Applications are sought under two topic areas:

Topic 1: Wind and Solar Grid Services Design, Implementation, and Demonstration

Topic 2: Protection of Bulk Power Systems with High Contribution from Inverter-Based Resources

A Webinar will be held August 17th from 12 Noon -? 1pm.? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ??Register

Q&A and information on the Teaming Partners list being assembled by DOE can be found under the FOA number on fedconnect.gov; the FOA itself is linked under FOA number above.

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• Section 41007(c)(1) Advancing Equity?Through Workforce?Partnership?
  • Letter of Intent Due Date: September 13, 2022 4pm CDT
  • Concept Paper Due Date:?September 20, 2022 4pm CDT
  • Full Application?Due Date: December 5 2022, 4pm CDT.
  • DE-FOA-0002769? ?CFDA Number: 81.117

On behalf of SETO, EERE is also announcing the Advancing Equity through Workforce Partnership funding opportunity to provide $10,000,000 in funding to "support multi-stakeholder high-road workforce development?partnerships that help accelerate the deployment of solar energy while?advancing the Administration?s priorities around worker empowerment, quality?jobs with a free and fair choice for workers to join a union, and Energy and?Environmental Justice (EJ) and Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility?(DEIA) in the clean energy workforce."

Q&A and information on the Teaming Partners list being assembled by DOE can be found under the FOA number on fedconnect.gov; the FOA itself is linked under FOA number above. Also watch the fedconnect page for the posting of the recording from the August 4 Webinar on the funding opportunity.?

--Recent Notice of Intent (NOI):

Complete information on recent NOI, and in most cases, information on Teaming Partner lists can be found by clicking on the opportunity links below:

• Carbon Capture Demonstrations Program??(FOA expected 4Q22)
• Regional Direct Air Capture Hubs??(FOA expected 4Q22)
• Battery Material Processing Grants??(FOA expected 3Q22)
• Battery Manufacturing and Recycling Grants??(FOA expected 3Q22)
• Funding Opportunity in Support of the Hydrogen Shot and a University Research Consortium on Grid Resilience??(FOA release TBD)
• Regional Initiative to Accelerate Carbon Management Deployment: Technical Assistance for Large Scale Storage Facilities and Regional Carbon Management Hubs? (FOA expected 1Q23)

--Open Requests for Information (RFI):?

• Section 40209 Advanced Energy Manufacturing and Recycling Grant Program
  • Responses due by 4:00 pm CDT September 16, 2022.
  • DE-FOA-0002810 ??

The DOE has issued this RFI to solicit feedback on issues related to design and implementation of the Advanced Energy Manufacturing & Recycling Grant Program.?Projects?will be categorized by the following:

- Clean Energy Property Projects?to re-equip or expand existing manufacturing or recycling facilities, or establish new facilities, to produce or recycle clean energy technologies or products.

-??Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction Projects?to re-equip existing industrial or manufacturing facilities with equipment designed to substantially reduce greenhouse gas emissions below current best practices.?

The DOE seek input from a broad array of stakeholders, and will hold a webinar on Tuesday, August 16, 2022 from 10:30 - 11:30 am CDT.? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ??? ? ? ? ??Register

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• Sections 40332 & 40333 Maintaining and Enhancing Hydroelectricity Incentives?and Hydroelectric Efficiency Improvement Incentives
  • Responses due by 10:59 pm CDT September 6, 2022.
  • DE-FOA-0002762

The DOE is seeking public feedback to inform the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law?s nearly $630 million in investments in hydropower facilities. Upcoming funding IIJA programs ?Maintaining and Enhancing Hydroelectricity Incentives? and ?Hydroelectric Efficiency Improvement Incentives? will support modernization of the nation?s hydropower facilities and produce more clean, affordable power. The funding will cover capital improvement projects to? make hydropower facilities more energy efficient and resilient.?

A Webinar will be held August 17th from 12 Noon -? 1pm.? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?Register

Q&A and information on the Teaming Partners list being assembled by DOE can be found under the FOA number on fedconnect.gov; the FOA itself is linked under FOA number above.

Non-IIJA?Announcements

• Funding Opportunity Announcement: Innovative Methane Measurement, Monitoring, and?Mitigation Technologies (iM4 Technologies)

  • FOA submission Due Date: October 4, 2022?10:59 pm CDT
  • DE-FOA-0002616? ?CFDA Number: 81.089

Announced by the DOE Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM), and as part of the U.S. Methane Emissions Reduction?Action Plan, the FECM-?Division of Methane Mitigation Technologies is?focused on developing accurate, cost-effective, energy efficient technology solutions?and best practices to identify, measure, monitor, and mitigate methane emissions
from these sources. Research projects are sought in five topic areas:?

? Mitigation of Methane Emissions from Upstream/Midstream Sources
? Surface-based Methane Monitoring and Measurement Network Pilot?Demonstration
?? Basin-Specific Methane Emissions Inventory via Field Assessments
?? Integrated Methane Monitoring Platform Design
?- Storage Tank Emissions Assessment and Quantification (STEAQ)

• Request for Information: Low-Income Community Solar Subscription Platform
  • Responses due by 4:00 pm CDT August 31, 2022.
  • DE-FOA-0002817? ?

DOE Solar Energy Technology Office (SETO), in partnership with the U.S. Department of Health and?Human Services (HHS), on the development of a new platform to identify and make community?solar with verified savings more accessible to Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program?(LIHEAP) recipients. SETO is interested in responses from all stakeholders.?

Tribal Funding Opportunity

Grid Alternatives' Tribal Solar Accelerator Fund (TSAF)

• Grant Application due September 15th, 2022 by 6 p.m. CDT

The tribal-led TSAF exists to provider tribes with philanthropic capital for solar projects via a competitive grant process. Projects successful in receiving a TSAF grant will clearly focus on building?renewable energy infrastructure by proposing feasible and cost-effective projects having broad?tribal community participation. Energy leadership, educational scholarships, workforce development, and training components are also important in?of TSAF-funded projects and programs.?

Grants are for tribal solar projects?on tribal buildings/facilities/housing. Examples of eligible projects include solar plus battery storage, solar charging stations, etc. and which are funded with federal, state, or other leveraged funding and require tribal cost-share.? ?TSAF funds are intended to provide "gap" funding to assist with the tribal cost-share need. Applicants may apply for up to $250,000.? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?Learn more and Apply

IIJA funding and supporting topics webinars

• DOE Justice 40 Initiative Implementation Kick-off Webinar
  • Wednesday, August 17th, 1:00 - 2:30 pm CDT

The Justice40 Initiative (also called J40) is an integral component of all IIJA funding opportunities.? To understand more about J40, join Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Jennifer M. Granholm and DOE Director of the Office of Economic Impact and Diversity (OCED) Shalanda Baker for an introduction on how the DOE is implementing the Initiative. The webinar will feature representatives from offices across the Department of Energy who will highlight their programs, including those funded by the historic Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?Register

• The Health and Environmental Justice Impacts from Peaker Power Plants in Boston, Philadelphia, and Detroit
  • Tuesday, August 16th, 12 Noon

More than 4.4 million people in urban areas in the United States live within one mile of a peaker power plant and are unnecessarily and directly exposed to air pollutants that cause significant health problems and increased morbidity. Learn about the?environmental justice and public health impacts of peaker power plants in a webinar hosted by the Clean Energy Group, recapping findings of the Clean Energy Group/Stratagen report,?The Peaker Problem: An Overview of Peaker Power Plant Facts and Impacts in Boston, Philadelphia, and Detroit.? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ??Register

• Taking Advantage of Federal Funds: Local Energy Efficiency Policies and Programs to Consider
  • Tuesday, September 20th, 1:00? PM CDT

This hour-long webinar, organized jointly by the?Sustainable States Network (SSN) and the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) will showcase leading energy efficiency programs from across the country that communities can learn from and replicate as they prepare to leverage new federal funding opportunities.? ? ? ? ?Register

• ACEEE?s Self-Scoring Tool: Results from the Community Energy Challenge? ?
  • Thursday, September 29th, 12 Noon CDT? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?

This ACEEE/SSN webinar will show communities how to use ACEEE?s latest self-scoring tool to measure their community's energy efficiency and clean energy progress, and highlight results from the most recent cohort of SSN?s Community Energy Challenge.? ? ?Register

Federal IIJA resources

Bipartisan Infrastructure Law ?How-To? Guidebook Available from White House.?

The White House released a?Bipartisan Infrastructure Law guidebook?to help potential applicants plan and prepare to apply. This guidebook is a roadmap on upcoming funding opportunities, as well as an explanatory document on program-level direct federal spending. The link to the guidebook is also found on the IIJA Build.gov web-site.

Visit the MN Commerce?Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act and the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law web page for a full list of resources, including additional resources for Tribal Nations.

Ask us! The MN Commerce Department is your partner for IIJA? energy-specific funding opportunities

Interested in partnering with the Department of Commerce around funding opportunities? Have questions? Send an email, detailing the program, your organization and contact information to IIJA Initiatives Project Manager, Kellye Rose:?[email protected].

Sign up for future email updates from the Department of Commerce.?