FundOpp_DE-FOA-0003546.pdf

This is a Notice of Intent (NOI) only. MESC may issue a funding opportunity as described herein, may issue a funding opportunity that is significantly different than the funding opportunity described herein, or MESC may not issue a funding opportunity at all.

Template Version 06/23/22

Notice of Intent No. DE-FOA-0003546

Notice of Intent to Re-Issue Funding Opportunity Announcement No. DE-FOA-0003099

This “Notice of Intent” is for informational purposes only. All the information contained in this Notice is subject to change. MESC is not seeking comments on the information in this notice and will not respond to questions concerning this Notice. Upon release of a funding opportunity, MESC will provide an avenue for potential Applicants to submit questions.

Background The Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains (MESC) intends to issue a second opening of Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) DE-FOA-0003099 entitled “Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Battery Materials Processing and Battery Manufacturing.” Projects awarded under this funding opportunity will be funded, in whole or in part, with funds appropriated by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, more commonly known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL). This represents the third release of a competitive announcement supporting BIL Sections 40207(b) and (c).

Over the last several years, Congress has appropriated more than $85.5 billion to the Department of Energy (DOE). This funding has been effectively used to enable the private sector to rebuild a strong, resilient foundation for America’s energy independence while laying the foundation for a skilled 21st century energy workforce; deliver reliable, efficient, and affordable power to more Americans; and build the technologies of tomorrow through deployment and demonstration.

MESC will invest more than $6 billion in the battery supply chain to drive economically competitive sourcing of critical minerals from primary, secondary, and unconventional sources, including end-of-life battery collection and recycling.

The activities to be funded support BIL Sections 40207 (b) & (c) and the broader government-wide approach to upgrading and modernizing infrastructure, which includes strengthening critical domestic manufacturing and supply chains to maximize national and economic security.

Projects from this program will ensure the United States has a viable critical materials supply chain and a reduced reliance on foreign competitors. This funding will increase domestic manufacturing of battery supply chains for defense, transportation, and grid resilience. The high-capacity battery supply chain consists of five main steps, including: 1) raw material production,

2) material refinement and processing, 3) battery material manufacturing and cell fabrication, 4) battery pack and end use product manufacturing, and 5) battery end-of-life and recycling.

In awarding grants to entities under the program, DOE will give priority to applicants that (1) will not use battery material supplied by or originating from a Foreign Entity of Concern (FEOC), and

(2) will not export recovered critical materials to a FEOC. In May 2024, the Department issued final interpretive guidance1 on the statutory definition of FEOC in Section 40207 of the BIL.

Opportunity Details MESC expects to make a total of approximately $725 million of federal funding available for new awards under this funding opportunity, subject to the availability of appropriated funds. MESC anticipates making approximately 3 to 14 awards under this funding opportunity. MESC may issue one, multiple, or no awards. Individual awards may vary between $50,000,000 and $200,000,000. The estimated period of performance for each award will be approximately 24-60 months. The overall funding opportunity scope may include capital and operational support for demonstration and/or commercial facilities supporting battery-grade precursor materials, constituent materials, battery components, and cell manufacturing and recycling. Applicants should consider and identify potential downstream domestic customers of their material or product.

It is anticipated that the funding opportunity may include the following Areas of Interest for domestic facilities, with a focus on facilities that support the energy independence of the United States through circularity and secure sourcing:

• Battery Cathode and Anode Materials. Create U.S. manufacturing and recycling capacity to produce cathode critical minerals and materials or anode materials.

• Battery Electrolyte and Electrolyte Salts. Create U.S. manufacturing capacity to produce electrolyte and/or electrolyte salts, which remain a supply chain investment gap as nearly all electrolyte salt today is sourced through FEOC supply chains.

• Pre-Industrial Scale Cell Manufacturing. Accelerate pathways to commercialization of new battery and domestic manufacturing equipment/machinery technologies by supporting and increasing the availability of shared-access battery production lines.

• Materials, Processing, and Manufacturing Open Topics. Create U.S. manufacturing capacity to produce battery materials, components, or enable process technologies such as precursors; materials processing; catalysts; binders; separators; conductive additives;

and current collector materials, structures, and treatments.

Industry feedback from MESC’s May 2024 Request for Information (RFI) on critical material market dynamics highlighted the challenges and volatility in the market and various tools DOE could utilize to support critical materials projects. A particular challenge for domestic processors is the time and cost required to successfully complete qualification for new production capacity, given current market volatility. Applications to this anticipated funding opportunity may also

1 The statutory definition of FEOC can be found in the Federal Register at the following URL -https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2024/05/06/2024-08913/interpretation-of-foreign-entity-of-concern address pre-production validation and qualification of commercial-scale facility output to secure offtake agreements.

SUBMISSION AND REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS

MESC plans to issue the funding opportunity spring 2025 via the Infrastructure Exchange (https://Infrastructure-Exchange.energy.gov). If Applicants wish to receive official notifications and information from MESC regarding this funding opportunity, they should register in Infrastructure Exchange. When the funding opportunity is released, applications will be accepted only through Infrastructure Exchange.

In anticipation of the funding opportunity being released, Applicants are advised to complete the following steps, which are required for application submission:

• Register and create an account in Infrastructure Exchange (https://Infrastructure- Exchange.energy.gov). This account will allow the user to apply to any open MESC funding opportunities that are currently in Infrastructure Exchange.

It is recommended that each organization or business unit, whether acting as a team or a single entity, use only one account as the contact point for each submission. Questions related to the registration process and use of the Infrastructure Exchange website should be submitted to: InfrastructureExchangeSupport@hq.doe.gov

• Register with the System for Award Management (SAM) at https://www.sam.gov.

Designating an Electronic Business Point of Contact (EBiz POC) and obtaining a special password called an MPIN are important steps in SAM registration. Please update your SAM registration annually. Upon registration, SAM will automatically assign a Unique Entity ID

(UEI).

• Register in FedConnect at https://www.fedconnect.net/. To create an organization account, your organization’s SAM MPIN is required. For more information about the SAM MPIN or other registration requirements, review the FedConnect Ready, Set, Go! Guide at https://www.fedconnect.net/FedConnect/Marketing/Documents/FedConnect_Ready_Set_ Go.pdf

• Register in Grants.gov to receive automatic updates when Amendments to a funding opportunity are posted. However, please note that applications will not be accepted through Grants.gov. http://www.grants.gov/. All applications must be submitted through Infrastructure Exchange.

https://infrastructure-exchange.energy.gov/ https://infrastructure-exchange.energy.gov/ https://infrastructure-exchange.energy.gov/ mailto:InfrastructureExchangeSupport@hq.doe.gov https://www.sam.gov/ https://www.fedconnect.net/ https://www.fedconnect.net/FedConnect/Marketing/Documents/FedConnect_Ready_Set_Go.pdf https://www.fedconnect.net/FedConnect/Marketing/Documents/FedConnect_Ready_Set_Go.pdf http://www.grants.gov/