DE-FOA-0002021: Notice of Intent to Issue Funding Opportunity Announcement No. DE-FOA-0002022 | DE FOA 0002021

Opportunity Information: Apply for DE FOA 0002021

DE-FOA-0002021 is a Department of Energy (DOE) Notice of Intent (NOI) stating that the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), on behalf of the Fuel Cell Technologies Office (FCTO), planned to release a future Funding Opportunity Announcement: DE-FOA-0002022, titled "Fiscal Year 2019 H2@Scale Funding Opportunity Announcement." The NOI itself is not a solicitation and does not accept applications; its main purpose is to alert potential applicants that a competitive funding opportunity related to hydrogen technologies was expected to open soon, with full details to be provided only when the FOA was officially issued.

The opportunity is framed around DOE's broader "all-of-the-above" energy strategy, emphasizing hydrogen as a versatile energy carrier and industrial input that can support transportation, stationary power, and industrial uses. The notice highlights that the United States already produces more than 10 million metric tons of hydrogen each year, largely for petroleum refining and fertilizer manufacturing, but argues there is significant room to expand hydrogen production and use beyond these traditional markets. The underlying message is that hydrogen could be scaled up as both a fuel and a feedstock, with benefits that include energy security, resilience, and economic growth tied to emerging technologies.

A central theme of the planned FOA is the H2@Scale initiative, which focuses on making hydrogen generation, transport, storage, and utilization affordable and reliable at large scale across multiple sectors. The notice points to grid-integrated pathways as an example of the kind of cross-sector value hydrogen can provide. In particular, it describes how electrolyzers can produce hydrogen by splitting water during periods when electricity supply exceeds demand. This concept is positioned as a tool to reduce renewable energy curtailment, better utilize baseload resources such as nuclear power, and support overall grid stability and resiliency, while simultaneously creating hydrogen that can be used later as an energy source or industrial input.

The NOI also describes a broader systems view where hydrogen produced using existing baseload assets could be stored and distributed, then used across multiple end-use categories. Examples called out include transportation fuel, stationary power generation, process heat or building heat, and industrial applications such as steel manufacturing. By tying hydrogen production to existing generating assets and then connecting it to diverse markets, the notice suggests hydrogen can create additional revenue streams for power producers while enabling decarbonization and flexibility in sectors that are otherwise hard to electrify directly.

From a programmatic standpoint, the effort sits within FCTO's mission to fund research, development, and innovation that advances hydrogen and fuel cell technologies for transportation and other applications. The intended outcome is technology progress that supports domestic energy resilience and a strong U.S. economy built around next-generation clean energy industries. While this NOI does not list specific topic areas, performance targets, or cost-share requirements, it signals that the eventual FOA would be focused on practical pathways to scale hydrogen infrastructure and end-use adoption, including enabling technologies like electrolysis and integrated storage and distribution concepts.

Administratively, the notice provides several key grant mechanics and limitations. The funding instrument type is identified as a cooperative agreement, which typically means DOE anticipates substantial involvement during the project period compared with a standard grant. The activity category is Energy, the CFDA number is 81.087, and the issuing agency is DOE's Golden Field Office. Eligibility is listed as unrestricted (open to any type of entity), subject to any additional clarifications that would appear in the final FOA text. The NOI notes that EERE planned to release the actual FOA in January or February 2019 through the EERE Exchange portal (eere-exchange.energy.gov), and that applications would be accepted only through that system. It also stresses that EERE would not answer questions about the NOI itself; questions and official communications would only be handled once the FOA was released, and interested parties were encouraged to register in EERE Exchange to receive official updates.

Finally, the notice emphasizes that everything in the NOI was subject to change, which is typical for a pre-solicitation announcement. The listing includes administrative fields such as an award ceiling value and expected awards count, but because this is only an NOI, these fields should be treated as placeholders rather than reliable indicators of final funding levels or award volume. The practical takeaway is that DE-FOA-0002021 serves as an early heads-up for a forthcoming hydrogen-focused competitive funding opportunity under the H2@Scale umbrella, with the real application requirements, deadlines, and technical priorities to be defined in the subsequent FOA (DE-FOA-0002022) posted on EERE Exchange.

• The Department of Energy, Golden Field Office in the energy sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "DE-FOA-0002021: Notice of Intent to Issue Funding Opportunity Announcement No. DE-FOA-0002022" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 81.087.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jan 17, 2019.
• Applicants must submit their applications by This is a Notice of Intent only. Applications will not be accepted through this Notice of Intent.. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $2.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility.

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