DE-FOA-0003060: Notice of Intent to Issue Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) “Fiscal Year 2023 Advancing U.S. Thin-Film Solar”
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 $2 (at least $1) to businesses. Applications closed on July 14, 2023.
From the official notice on Grants.gov, last changed June 14, 2023. Checked November 7, 2026.
- Award ceiling$2
- Award floor$1
- Cost sharingNot required
- Funding typeOther
Key dates
| Posted | June 14, 2023 |
|---|---|
| Deadline | July 14, 2023 |
| Archived by Grants.gov | August 13, 2023 |
Who can apply
This opportunity was open to businesses.
- For profit organizations other than small businesses
Is this a realistic fit?
- Past Renewable Energy Research and Development awards averaged $2.8 million; this notice allows up to $2 per award.
- Most of the program's money (30% over five years) went to colleges and universities.
- No cost sharing or match is required.
What the grant funds
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) intends to release the Advancing U.S. Thin-Film Solar Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) of up to $36 million for research, development, and demonstration projects on two major thin-film photovoltaic (PV) technologies: metal halide perovskite PV and cadmium telluride (CdTe) PV. This FOA will promote American leadership in thin-film PV technology, and the domestic manufacture of thin-film PV modules. This FOA will also support SETO in meeting Congressional direction provided in fiscal year 2023 to spend no less than $25 million to support the advancement of both perovskite PV and CdTe PV technologies ($50 million in total).The FOA is expected to be released in September 2023 and is expected to be restricted to for-profit lead applicants. Up to $20M will fund projects on industrial perovskite PV research and development to enable future commercialization by reaching specific thresholds of efficiency, long-term reliability, manufacturability, and economic viability. Quantitative guidelines within the NOI describe what a competitive application is expected to include for a given funding level. This information is being communicated through the NOI so potential applicants can take advantage of the intervening time before a FOA is released to identify and fill possible gaps in their capabilities. Up to $16M will fund projects to advance cadmium telluride (CdTe) PV research, development, demonstration, and commercialization across the materials, equipment, installation, and performance monitoring supply chain to improve the competitiveness of the domestic CdTe PV technology industry.¿¿ SETO anticipates to award 3 or more financial assistance awards in the form of cooperative agreements. These awards will last 18-36 months, with $3 million-$20 million federal share per project and a cost share requirement of 20-50%.
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-0003060 still open?
No. It closed on July 14, 2023. A newer notice is open: DE-FOA-0003647, closes December 1, 2026 (24 days left).
Who can apply for Notice of Intent to Issue Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) “Fiscal Year 2023 Advancing U.S. Thin-Film Solar”?
Golden Field Office accepted applications from businesses.
What is the deadline for Notice of Intent to Issue Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) “Fiscal Year 2023 Advancing U.S. Thin-Film Solar”?
Closed July 14, 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 $2 each.
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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