New award: university of illinois at urbana-champaign 3405-1519 FOA number: DE-FOA-0003405 - technologies to emend and obviate synthetic nitrogen's toll on emissions (teosynte) uiuc proposes to create…

The Department of Energy Advanced Research Projects Agency awarded a $5.021 million cooperative agreement to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign on April 15, 2026, under the Advanced Research Projects Agency—Energy program (CFDA 81.135) to develop NSAVE Maize, a genetically enhanced corn variety designed to reduce nitrous oxide emissions and improve nitrogen use efficiency through trait stacking.

The University will combine genes and alleles for biological nitrification inhibition, biological denitrification inhibition, and a novel NRT1.1B mutation to create maize that reduces N2O emissions by over 50% while improving nitrogen use efficiency with no yield loss. Preliminary field trials have demonstrated reductions in nitrification and N2O emissions exceeding 40%. Performance occurs in Champaign, Illinois, with an ultimate completion date of April 14, 2030. ARPA-E supports high-potential energy technologies at an early stage of development unsuitable for private-sector investment, advancing novel approaches to energy generation, storage, and use.

New award: university of illinois at urbana-champaign 3405-1519 FOA number: DE-FOA-0003405 - technologies to emend and obviate synthetic nitrogen's toll on emissions (teosynte) uiuc proposes to create nsave maize (N2O suppression and ammonium availability enhancement) by stacking innovative traits to reduce N2O emissions by over 50% and improve NUE. We will combine genes or alleles for biological nitrification inhibition (BNI), biological denitrification inhibition (BDI), and alleles such as a novel NRT1.1B mutation that enhance NUE (NUE+). Preliminary field trials of maize with nsave traits show significant reductions in nitrification and N2O emissions (over 40%) with no yield loss.