The U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Technology Transitions (OTT), Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations (OCED), and Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) have collaborated to launch the Solutions for Lasting, Viable Energy Infrastructure Technologies (SOLVE IT) Prize.
Donor Name: U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)
State: All States
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Awards and Prizes
Deadline: 04/13/2024
Size of the Grant: More than $1 million
Grant Duration: Grant Duration Not Mentioned
Details:
The SOLVE IT Prize aims to empower communities to identify and implement innovative clean energy solutions in a way that works for their unique needs and challenges.
The prize is part of the American-Made program and is administered by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. SOLVE IT is funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) through the Technology Commercialization Fund (TCF).
The SOLVE IT Prize was designed to support communities as they identify and implement innovative clean energy solutions in a way that works best to address their unique needs and challenges. In doing so, the SOLVE IT Prize looks to promote the commercialization of promising energy technologies that will lead to an equitable and just energy transition.
The prize will award competitors with a demonstrated history of productive work with communities. Competitors will work collaboratively with stakeholders interested in community-scale (neighborhood-, town-, or city-scale) planning around clean energy to engage their communities, build a network of support for clean energy or decarbonization projects, and develop plans for carrying out these projects.
Over three phases, competitors will work with communities to develop a credible path forward on clean energy projects that help address local challenges:
- Embark Phase: Competitors will identify a community, a challenge facing that community that can be addressed by a clean technology solution, and a clear plan for engaging with the community. Competitors will demonstrate that they have what it takes to carry out their project.
- Engage Phase: Teams will engage with their community stakeholders to develop the community’s vision for their future clean energy or decarbonization project.
- Establish Phase: Teams will create plans for carrying out at least one specific, technically novel clean energy or decarbonization project. Winners will demonstrate proof that they have obtained the confirmed commitments needed to carry out their projects.
Prize Information
The total prize pool is $5 million, with each team able to win up to $730,000 across these three phases.
- Embark Phase: Approximately 25 winners will receive $80,000 each and move on to the second phase.
- Engage Phase: Approximately 10 teams will receive $150,000 each and move on to the Establish phase.
- Establish Phase: Approximately three winners will receive $500,000 each.
All Phase Eligibility
The competition is open to individuals or entities that work collaboratively with communities to develop and carry out projects that benefit communities and reflect their priorities. Competitors should have knowledge and resources (or access to knowledge and resources) to promote clean energy projects in their communities. Eligible competitors include but are not limited to individuals, private entities (for-profits and nonprofits), consortia, academic institutions, labor unions, nongovernmental organizations, and nonfederal government entities (such as tribes, states, counties, and municipalities) in the United States, subject to the following requirements:
- An individual prize competitor (who is not competing as a member of a group) must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.
- A group of individuals competing as one team may win, provided that the online account holder of the submission is a U.S. citizen or permanent resident. Individuals competing as part of a team are eligible to participate if they are legally authorized to work in the United States.
- Private entities must be incorporated in and maintain a primary place of business in the United States.
- Academic institutions must be based in the United States.
For more information, visit DOE.
