Federal Grants
Rural Energy for America Program
The program provides guaranteed loan financing and grant funding to agricultural producers and rural small businesses for renewable energy systems or...
Long-Duration Energy Storage Pilot Program
Discover up to $100 million in federal funding for long-duration energy storage pilot projects aimed at advancing non-lithium technologies for a clean energy future.
GrantMatch Team
Sep 25, 2024
Up to $100 Million in Federal Funding Available: Long-Duration Energy Storage Pilot Program
The U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations (OCED) is offering up to $100 million in federal funding for pilot-scale long-duration energy storage projects. This initiative is part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and is aimed at accelerating the development of non-lithium energy storage technologies that can discharge for 10+ hours. The goal is to move these technologies toward commercial viability, supporting the transition to a carbon-free clean energy economy.
eLIGIBILITY cRITERIA
Applicant teams must include at least one technology provider. Priority will be given to projects that involve utility, developer, and/or end-user partners, demonstrate the solution in an operational environment, and include plans to secure follow-on investments.
Eligible Entities Include:
- State energy offices
- Indian Tribes
- Tribal organizations
- Institutes of higher education
- Electric utilities (including electric cooperatives, tribal utilities, municipally owned utilities, and investor-owned utilities)
- Private energy storage companies
Eligible Projects and Technologies: Projects must demonstrate energy storage solutions at a pilot scale, with the following areas of focus:
- Electrochemical: Flow and non-flow batteries
- Mechanical: Pressure-based and gravity-based systems
- Thermal: Sensible, latent, and thermochemical heat storage, configured for electrical-to-electrical, electrical-to-thermal, or thermal-to-thermal energy transfer
Funding supports various stages of technology maturation, including:
- Design for manufacturability
- Pilot system development
- Fabrication and installation
- Operational testing and validation
- Commercial-scale system design and supply chain maturatioN
Funding Details
Funding Amount:
- Total Available: Up to $100 million
- Number of Projects: OCED plans to fund 5-15 projects
- Award Range: Between $5 million and $20 million per project
- Cost Share: Each project must provide a minimum 50% non-federal cost share (i.e., for every federal dollar, the recipient must contribute at least one non-federal dollar).
iMPORTANT dATES
Application Deadlines:
- Concept Papers Due: October 16, 2024 (by 5 p.m. ET)
- Full Applications Due: February 13, 2025 (by 5 p.m. ET)
- Anticipated Award Date: Summer 2025