Notice of Intent : FY20 Bioenergy Technologies Office Multi-Topic Funding Opportunity Announcement | DE FOA 0002202

Opportunity Information: Apply for DE FOA 0002202

This Notice of Intent (NOI) signals that the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), through the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) and specifically the Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO), planned to release a competitive, multi-topic Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) called the "FY20 Bioenergy Technologies Multi-Topic FOA" (Funding Opportunity Number: DE-FOA-0002202). Because it is an NOI rather than the full FOA, it mainly serves as an early heads-up to organizations that DOE expected to open funding in the near term, and it emphasizes that details could change once the official FOA was published.

The core purpose of the upcoming FOA was to fund high-impact research and development focused on technologies that convert domestic biomass and waste resources into fuels, products, and power. BETO framed this work as part of a broader U.S. energy strategy aimed at strengthening energy supply, supporting domestic job creation, maintaining U.S. leadership in bioenergy technologies, and improving national energy security. In practical terms, the intent was to move promising bioenergy and bioproduct pathways closer to economic viability while also aligning with broader sustainability priorities.

The planned topic areas were tied to three major performance and cost goals that BETO regularly uses to steer its portfolio. First, the FOA was expected to support work that reduces the minimum fuel selling price for "drop-in" biofuels, meaning renewable fuels that can directly substitute for petroleum-based fuels within existing engines and infrastructure without requiring major modifications. Second, it aimed to lower the cost of biopower, which generally refers to producing electricity and heat from biomass and related feedstocks in a more cost-competitive way. Third, it targeted technologies that enable the production of high-value products from biomass or waste resources, reflecting an emphasis on improving overall economics by making fuels alongside valuable chemicals, materials, or intermediates. The NOI also explicitly connected the FOA to growth of the broader bioeconomy and to the Circular Energy Economy Initiative, highlighting an interest in pathways that reuse carbon and materials, reduce waste, and extract more value from domestic resources.

In terms of eligibility and administrative basics, the listing indicates eligibility was unrestricted (open to any entity type), unless the eventual FOA text added additional limits or clarifications. The awarding agency was DOE's Golden Field Office, and the activity category was Energy under CFDA 81.087. The opportunity was labeled discretionary, and the instrument type was listed as "Other," which often means the specifics would be defined in the full FOA (for example, it could involve cooperative agreements or other DOE assistance instruments depending on the topic and structure). The listing shows a creation date of December 11, 2019, and an original closing date of February 21, 2020, though as an NOI those dates can function more as placeholders tied to the anticipated FOA schedule than as final submission deadlines. The source data also shows an award ceiling value of 2 and expected awards of 0, which is another sign that this entry was not the final competition details and that actual funding levels, number of awards, and award sizes would be specified in the released FOA.

The NOI makes several process points that matter for applicants. DOE stated it would not respond to questions about the NOI itself. Instead, once the FOA was officially released, DOE would provide a formal way for applicants to submit questions. Applications would be accepted only through EERE Exchange (https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/), which is DOE EERE's portal for publishing FOAs, handling registrations, and receiving application packages. Organizations that wanted official updates were advised to register in EERE Exchange so they would receive notifications when the FOA was posted and when amendments or clarifications were issued.

Overall, this opportunity was essentially an advance announcement that DOE BETO intended to fund R&D that makes bio-based fuels, power, and products more affordable and scalable, with a strong emphasis on cost reduction, performance improvements, and creating value from biomass and waste streams. The NOI was meant to give potential applicants time to start planning partnerships, technical approaches, and internal approvals, while making clear that the definitive requirements and evaluation criteria would appear only in the final FOA posted to EERE Exchange.

• The Department of Energy, Golden Field Office in the energy sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Notice of Intent : FY20 Bioenergy Technologies Office Multi-Topic Funding Opportunity Announcement" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 81.087.
• This funding opportunity was created on Dec 11, 2019.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Feb 21, 2020. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $2.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility.

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