Grants / Department of Energy / Advanced Research Projects Agency Energy

DE-FOA-0003356: Request for Information (RFI)-Future Innovation needs for Responsible Mining of Critical Minerals (FIRM-CM)

Closed Closed May 14, 2024 Opportunity DE-FOA-0003356 ☆ Save

This grant is closed. A newer notice from the same program is open now: Unlocking New Levels of Output and Capacity for Key Subsurface Resources (UNLOCK) (DE-FOA-0003630). Status: Closes November 20, 2026 (13 days left). It is in our archive of Advanced Research Projects Agency Energy notices from 2024.

• Award amountsNot given on Grants.gov
• Cost sharingNot required
• Funding typeCooperative Agreement

Key dates

Who can apply

This opportunity was open to any type of organization.

• Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled "Additional Information on Eligibility"

This is a Request for Information (RFI) only. This RFI is not seeking applications for financial assistance. THIS NOTICE DOES NOT CONSTITTUE A FUNDING OPPORTUNITY ANNOUNCEMENT (FOA). NO FOA EXISTS AT THIS TIME.

More grants for nonprofits, colleges and universities, state and local governments, tribes, small businesses, businesses, individuals.

Is this a realistic fit?

• Most of the program's money (43% over five years) went to colleges and universities.
• No cost sharing or match is required.

What the grant funds

This is a Request for Information (RFI) only. This RFI is not accepting applications for financial assistance. The purpose of this RFI is solely to solicit input for ARPA-E consideration to inform the possible formulation of future programs. The purpose of this Request for Information (RFI) is to solicit input for potential future ARPA-E research programs focused on innovative technologies and approaches for resource exploration, discovery, appraisal, mining, and processing of critical minerals. Goals of the potential programs could include: • Increased recovery rates of critical minerals; • Minimized hazardous mine tailings; • Reduced energy consumption from any/all stages of mineral development; • Minimal carbon emissions from any/all stages of mineral development; • Minimal aquifer and hydrological disturbance on the mining sites; • Rapid data development/use for permitting and mine planning from governments and local communities; • Autonomous operation in remote environments; and • Increased access to deeper, more diffuse, hotter, lower grade resources. The domestic supply of critical minerals in the United States (U.S.) has been a national security and economic concern since the U.S. Critical Minerals Stockpiling Act was enacted in 1939. However, the capacity for U.S. mineral resource exploration and mining has been significantly reduced over the last several decades and the U.S. has become increasingly dependent on the international supply of critical minerals. Critical minerals such as nickel, copper, cobalt, lithium, rare earth elements, and platinum-group elements are key ingredients in many advanced technologies. Uses for these critical metals include computers and information services, defense industry applications, batteries for electric vehicles, and other clean energy industry technologies. The transition from fossil fuels to clean energy will depend on the extensive supplies of critical minerals for the products related to energy production, storage, and use. As a result, the annual demand for critical minerals is increasing rapidly. For example, nickel demand from the electric vehicle sector is expected to grow globally from 92 kilotons in 2020 to 2.6 megatons in 2040. With the combination of high demand due to rapid technological advancements and uncertain supply due to geopolitical risks, the U.S. domestic mineral supply is increasingly insufficient to support the transition from fossil fuels to renewable, clean energy sources.

Category: Opportunity Zone Benefits, Science and Technology and other Research and Development.

Applying now

This notice no longer takes applications. Apply under the newer notice, DE-FOA-0003630, which is open now.

The notice on Grants.gov keeps its full text and attachments, which is useful for planning a resubmission.