DE-FOA-0002946: FY23 Conversion Research and Development Funding Opportunity Announcement
Closed
This grant is closed. A newer notice from the same program is open now: Accelerating Scale-up and Pre-piloting of Emerging Chemical Technologies (ASPECT) (DE-FOA-0003647). Status: Closes December 1, 2026 (24 days left). It is in our archive of Golden Field Office notices from 2023.
Golden Field Office offered grants of up to $4.0 million (at least $1.3 million) to nonprofits, colleges and universities, state and local governments, tribes, small businesses and businesses. It expected to make about 11 awards worth $14.0 million in total. Applications closed on June 23, 2023.
From the official notice on Grants.gov, last changed June 13, 2023. Checked November 7, 2026.
- Award ceiling$4.0 million
- Award floor$1.3 million
- Total funding$14.0 million
- Expected awards11
- Cost sharingRequired
- Funding typeCooperative Agreement
Key dates
| Posted | March 21, 2023 |
|---|---|
| Deadline | June 23, 2023 |
| Archived by Grants.gov | July 23, 2023 |
Who can apply
This opportunity was open to nonprofits, colleges and universities, state and local governments, tribes, small businesses and businesses.
All 13 applicant types the notice lists
- State governments
- County governments
- City or township governments
- Special district governments
- Public and State controlled institutions of higher education
- Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized)
- Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments)
- Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
- Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
- Private institutions of higher education
- For profit organizations other than small businesses
- Small businesses
- Others (see text field entitled "Additional Information on Eligibility" for clarification)
Domestic incorporated and unincorporated consortia. Foreign entities (EERE-approved waiver is required). DOE/NNSA FFRDCs are eligible to apply for funding as a subrecipient. Non-DOE/NNSA FFRDCs are eligible to participate as a subrecipient, but are not eligible to apply as a prime recipient.
Is this a realistic fit?
- Past Renewable Energy Research and Development awards averaged $2.8 million; this notice allows up to $4.0 million per award.
- Most of the program's money (30% over five years) went to colleges and universities.
- The notice requires cost sharing or matching funds, so you must contribute part of the project cost.
What the grant funds
Amendment 000002 - Update the Full Application Submission deadline and the Replies to Reviewer Comments deadline. Amendment 000001 - Update to Appendix H to remove restriction of grain starch for bioproduct generation. Grain starch is allowed for bioproduct generation. The 2023 Conversion R&D FOA supports a main theme core to the BETO Conversion Program’s R&D mission: developing technologies to enable the conversion of waste and renewable resources to fuels and products with substantial greenhouse gas emissions reductions compared to the petroleum incumbent. The FOA addresses two specific technology pathways intended to develop improved technologies for generating clean syngas for upgrading to fuels as well as pathways for renewable chemical production. Each Topic Area seeks to reduce economic and technical risk, enabling BETO to help pave the way for industry to commercialize technologies that may reduce greenhouse gas emissions from hard to decarbonize sectors, such as aviation. Significant R&D is required to reach the ultimate goal of affordable, low-carbon transportation fuels and chemical products. The R&D activities to be funded under this FOA will support the government-wide approach to addressing the climate crisis by driving innovation and deployment of clean energy technologies. The Topic Areas in this FOA seek to address the following R&D needs: • R&D on gasification technologies, with an emphasis on syngas contaminant removal approaches that enable effective upgrading of products derived from gasification of renewable resources to liquid transportation fuels. • R&D on microbial conversion of renewable resources into chemical products, with an emphasis on processes with commercialization potential. Topic Area 1: Overcoming Barriers to Syngas Conversion The goal of this Topic Area is to improve the economics and reliability of gasification and syngas cleanup systems by eliminating technical barriers for conversion of renewable carbon and waste feedstocks to low carbon fuels. While upgrading syngas has been widely investigated, additional challenges remain due to process complexity and feedstock limitations associated with syngas cleanup. Projects selected from this Topic Area will facilitate conversion of acceptable biomass and waste feedstocks into SAF with a 70% reduction in lifecycle GHG emissions.
Who has won Renewable Energy Research and Development grants before
From fiscal 2021 to 2025, Renewable Energy Research and Development (81.087) awarded $2.5 billion across 900 grant awards, an average of $2.8 million per award.
| Recipient | State | Awards | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oregon State University | Oregon | 12 | $112 million |
| University of Utah | Utah | 3 | $107 million |
| Avapco LLC | Georgia | 2 | $103 million |
| Plug Power Inc. | New York | 4 | $75.7 million |
| General Motors LLC | Michigan | 5 | $61.1 million |
Applying now
This notice no longer takes applications. Apply under the newer notice, DE-FOA-0003647, which is open now.
The notice on Grants.gov keeps its full text and attachments, which is useful for planning a resubmission.
Questions people ask
Is DE-FOA-0002946 still open?
No. It closed on June 23, 2023. A newer notice is open: DE-FOA-0003647, closes December 1, 2026 (24 days left).
Who can apply for FY23 Conversion Research and Development Funding Opportunity Announcement?
Golden Field Office accepted applications from nonprofits, colleges and universities, state and local governments, tribes, small businesses and businesses. The notice adds further conditions, so read its eligibility section.
What is the deadline for FY23 Conversion Research and Development Funding Opportunity Announcement?
Closed June 23, 2023. Applications are no longer accepted; the program's newer notices are on this page when there are any.
How much funding is available?
Awards of up to $4.0 million each. About $14.0 million in total across about 11 awards.
Who has won Renewable Energy Research and Development grants before?
The largest recipients over five fiscal years were Oregon State University, University of Utah, Avapco LLC. The program made 900 awards worth $2.5 billion in that time.
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