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. The opportunities outlined below are offered through federal funding opportunities, including those funded by the Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act (IIJA).?

Executive Order 22-22: Directing state agencies to pursue federal funding for clean hydrogen market development in Minnesota

As part of the state?s continued effort to reduce carbon emissions and expand the clean energy economy, Governor Tim Walz signed Executive Order 22-22 on October 25, 2022, directing state agencies to pursue federal funding for clean hydrogen market development in Minnesota.

?The development of clean hydrogen provides a unique opportunity to reduce emissions and mitigate climate impacts for future generations,??said Governor Walz.??Through this Executive Order, Minnesota will be ready to meet the changing needs of the energy, transportation, and agriculture industries, while continuing to create new jobs and grow our economy.?

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act provided the U.S. Department of Energy with $8 billion to fund regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs, networks of clean hydrogen producers, consumers, and connective infrastructure. The Inflation Reduction Act, recently signed into law by President Biden, creates a tax credit for hydrogen production, which will make clean hydrogen competitive with fossil fuels.

Minnesota has signed onto two separate Memoranda of Understanding, the?Heartland Hydrogen Hub?coalition of four states and the?Midwest Hydrogen Coalition?of seven states. Both coalitions are working to bring these federal dollars to the region to build the clean hydrogen economy.

This Executive Order comes after Governor Walz announced a?sweeping plan?to fight climate change last month. Created with the input of thousands of business, conservation, and climate leaders, the Climate Action Framework identifies immediate and long-term actions Minnesota can take to achieve the state's vision to help communities reduce pollution that contributes to climate change and to prepare for extreme weather events caused by a changing climate.

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 IIJA and IRA Requests for Information (RFI):

40103c: Energy Improvements in Rural and Remote Areas (ERA)
- Responses due:?11 am CST,? November 28, 2022
- DE-FOA-0002841_RFI

U.S. Department of Energy?s (DOE) Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations (OCED) is requesting public input to?inform DOE?s implementation of the Energy Improvements in Rural and Remote Areas funding program.? The goal of the ERA Program is to demonstrate innovative and replicable approaches to?improve the resilience, safety, reliability, and availability of, and reduce the adverse impacts from,?energy generation by rural or remote areas.

The DOE is seeking public input to help inform DOE?s program?implementation strategies for the?ERA Program. This RFI seeks input on:
? Outcomes the program should seek to deliver for residents of rural or remote areas, and the?types of innovative energy projects that achieve those outcomes and meet the authorization language,
? Considerations that could impact programmatic design or strategy,
? Community benefits, including energy and environmental justice (EEJ), diversity, equity
inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) considerations; and quality jobs, and,
? Ways to broadly share knowledge gained and impacts.

40124: Rural and Municipal Utility Advanced Cybersecurity Grant and Technical Assistance (RMUC) Program
- Responses due: 4:00 pm CST, December 19, 2022
- DE-FOA-0002877 Amdmnt 1

The DOE Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response (CESER) is requesting public input to?inform DOE?s implementation of the Rural and Municipal Utility Advanced Cybersecurity Grant?and Technical Assistance (RMUC) Program.? ?The goal of the RMUC Program is to enhance the security posture of rural, municipal, and small?investor-owned electric utilities through investments in operational capabilities, services,?technology deployments, and increased participation in threat intelligence information-sharing?programs.

40314: National Clean Hydrogen Strategy and Roadmap (DRAFT)?
- Responses due:?December 1, 2022
- Submit comments via email to?[email protected].?

The DOE is seeking public comments on the DRAFT?DOE National Clean Hydrogen Strategy and Roadmap, which can be viewed by clicking on the document title.?

U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm announced the release of the draft?Strategy and Roadmap?at the Global Clean Energy Action Forum in September. The?Strategy and Roadmap?provides a comprehensive overview of the potential for hydrogen production, transport, storage, and current and potential use in the United States and outlines how clean hydrogen can contribute to national decarbonization and economic development goals.

The foundation of this draft roadmap is based on prioritizing three key strategies to?ensure that clean hydrogen is developed and adopted as an effective decarbonization?tool and for maximum benefits for the United States. DOE will:?

? Target strategic, high-impact uses for clean hydrogen,
? Reduce the cost of clean hydrogen,
? Focus on regional networks.

Additional information and resources can be found here.? The DOE may issue additional stakeholder feedback opportunities through the use of workshops or sessions, which will then be used to finalize the document and develop updates.?Feedback opportunities will be included in this newsletter as they become known.?

--Non-IIJA Requests for Information (RFI)

Enabling Technologies for Improving Fusion Power Plant?Performance and Availability?
- Responses Due: 4 pm CST, November 21,?2022
- DE-FOA-0002874

The DOE Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) has published a RFI entitled Enabling Technologies for Improving Fusion Power Plant?Performance and Availability. This RFI seeks broad input on two overarching themes: (A) Improving fusion power plant performance
and (B) Increasing fusion power plant availability. While power plant performance and availability are?intertwined in determining the cost of electricity, theme (A) includes technologies targeting the?efficiency of plasma heating schemes, and advanced laser driver technologies, as well as economic and?high-gain targets for inertial fusion energy (IFE). Theme (B) focuses on ?designer? materials for plasma-facing and structural components.??Specifically, this RFI focuses on three technology areas for developing this?pathway towards economically competitive fusion energy. The areas are:
? Efficient and low-cost drivers for plasma heating and assembly;
? Novel first-wall and structural materials;
? Low-cost, high-performance targets for inertial fusion energy (IFE).

--Open IIJA Notice of Intent (NOI):

40541: Renew America's Schools FOA
- ?DE-FOA-0002858 (to issue FOA DE-FOA-2756)

The DOE Office of State and Community Energy Programs (SCEP) announced a NOI to issue the first tranche of $80 million of $500 million in grants authorized by IIJA Section 40541. The FOA is expected to open in November 2022. The grants may be used for investments in energy efficiency, renewable energy, and alternative fuel vehicle infrastructure at K-12 school with the goal of lowering utility costs, improving indoor environmental quality, and reducing carbon emissions. In addition to the?Renew America's Schools grant funding, an ?Energy CLASS? prize program will be offered.?The grant will be available for investments in facilities, while the prize will fund investments in building school facility staff capacity to enable them ?to identify, plan, and implement efficiency and health upgrades in schools?.

Topic Areas for the Renew America's Schools grant program are:

Topic Area 1 ? High-Impact Energy Efficiency and Health Improvements

Topic Area 2 - Innovative Energy Technology Packages

More information is available by clicking on the RFI number above, or by viewing the DOE web-page on Grants for Energy Improvements in Public Schools Facilities

--IIJA Fact Sheet in response to RFI responses

40502 Energy Efficiency Revolving Loan Fund Capitalization Grant Program

The DOE has released a?Fact Sheet responding to responses received during the RFI process for the Energy Efficiency Revolving Loan Grant Fund Program (EERLF) funded at $250 million under IIJA. The EERLF is a formula grant for which States are the sole eligible applicants; the application period for 40502 funding is expected in late 2022 or early 2023.? Items of note in the Fact Sheet, include:??

1)?The federal character associated with these funds will not be in perpetuity (as was the case with American Recovery and Reinvestment Act loan funds);?

2)?Funds may be used for a range of building types and owners, including public facilities owned by state and local governments; and?

3)?A wide range of financing options, including interest rate buy downs, loan loss reserves, and other credit enhancement mechanisms, will be allowed under the program.??

--Non-IIJA Notices of Intent (NOI)

?Buildings Energy Efficiency Frontiers & Innovation Technologies (BENEFIT) - 2022
- ?DE-FOA-0002787?
- FOA DE-FOA-2788 will be issued on or about December 2022

The DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) intends to issue, on behalf of the?Building Technologies Office (BTO), a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) entitled Buildings Energy Efficiency Frontiers & Innovation Technologies (BENEFIT) - 2022.? This potential FOA is expected to support the development, validation, and demonstration of?novel building technologies and retrofit practices that have significant potential for equitable?carbon savings through building electrification, energy efficiency, and demand flexibility. The?FOA will also enhance building and grid resilience, affordability of efficient technologies and?practices, and ensure environmental justice and inclusion of underserved communities. Expected areas of interest are as follows:?

Area of Interest: Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) and Water Heating (WH)

? Subtopic A: Components R&D for Residential and Commercial HVAC/WH Air-Source
Heat Pumps;
? Subtopic B: HVAC/WH Cost Compression Solutions;
? Subtopic C: Commercial Low GWP Cold Climate Rooftop Heat Pump;
? Subtopic D: Commercial Heat Pump Water Heater Development and Demonstration.

Area of Interest: Thermal Energy Storage (TES)
Plug-and-Play Modular Thermal Energy Storage Systems Development

Area of Interest: Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS)

? Subtopic A: Innovative BESS Integration and Coordination Strategies;
? Subtopic B: Net-zero Emissions BESS Validation and Analysis

Area of Interest: Plug Loads/Lighting
Integrating Connected Lighting with Plug Load Control to Support Building Electrification

Area of Interest: Opaque Building Envelope

? Sub-Topic A: R5+ Insulated Cladding for Residential Field Applied Application;
??Subtopic B: Cost Compression Solutions for Building Insulation Retrofit Technologies;
? Subtopic C: Air Leakage Diagnostic and Air Sealing Technologies.

Resources

New DOE report:??Cybersecurity Considerations for Distributed Energy Resources on the U.S. Electric Grid.

On October 6, 2022, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) and the Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response (CESER) released a long-term evaluation of the cybersecurity considerations associated with distributed energy resources (DER), such as distributed solar, storage, and other clean energy technologies, and the potential risks to the electric grid over the next ten years. The report presents strategies that DER operators and electric power entities could undertake to make the grid more secure, as well as policy recommendations for decision makers.

As outlined in the report, DOE intends to fund research on next-generation DER defenses, including security-by-design and the recently released?Cyber-Informed Engineering Strategy, to ensure security in a decarbonized grid.

For more information, see the DOE web page.

DOE National Energy Technology Laboratory Grid Resilience Resources Library

The DOE National Energy Technology Laboratory maintains a Grid Resilience resources library, with the following six sections:

- Integrated Grid Resilience Planning

- Community Resilience Planning

- Objective and Metrics

- Risk and Energy Security Planning

- Energy Storage

- Microgrids

Each section has a number of readings and presentations that may prove helpful as utilities and communities undertake planning of their grid resilience projects and develop? funding-request proposals.? Examples of library readings include:

- Power Sector Resilience Planning Guidebook

- The Resilience Planning Landscape for Communities and Electric Utilities

- Advancing Energy Equity in Grid Planning

FOR Stakeholders Planning on Applying Directly to the U.S. Government for Funding

NOTE: Due to the high demand of UEI requests and SAM registrations, entity legal business name and address validations are taking longer than expected to process. Entities should start the UEI and SAM registration/update process immediately as the processing time to complete a registration/update currently may take weeks to months. This includes address and expired registration updates. If entities have technical difficulties with the UEI validation or SAM registration process they should utilize the HELP feature on SAM.gov. SAM.gov will work entity service tickets in the order in which they are received and asks that entities not create multiple service tickets for the same request or technical issue. Additional entity validation resources can be found here: GSAFSD Tier 0 Knowledge Base - Validating your Entity.

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].

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