Golden Field Office; Supplemental Announcement to the Broad Based Solicitation 2000 (DE-PS36-00GO10482) for Financial Assistance Applications Involving Research, Development and Demonstration for the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy

Under this Supplemental Announcement, DOE is seeking research and development proposals that can advance current market opportunities for biobased products and bioenergy systems, and facilitate the development of existing and new markets. A fundamental requirement of this solicitation will be to perform research, development, and demonstration that results in integrated co-products addressing at least two of the three major areas of chemicals, fuel, and/or power, where power can be electricity and/or heat. A primary objective is to develop and demonstrate low-cost, value- added process streams such as gases, liquids and solids from the initial conversion process as precursors to producing power, steam, fuels, chemicals, and consumer products. A second primary objective is to develop the biomass feedstock handling, process chemistry, biochemistry, separation and recovery technologies, and power generation knowledge to upgrade these streams to final products. A dual approach is envisioned whereby biomass feedstocks can be utilized in their existing form or upgraded to value-added streams which can then be processed to recover end products. This Supplemental Announcement will solicit projects in either of two different phases. Each phase is characterized by a goal of achieving and proving different levels of technology maturity. Phase A is intended to result in a minimum of a laboratory-scale demonstration of the proposed technology. Phase B will advance the technology through proof of prototype-scale hardware and complete a detailed design for a pilot-scale facility. Each applicant will be required to elect one of the two phases for consideration of an award for any given conversion process. Awards under this Supplemental Announcement will be Cooperative Agreements that will have a term of 12 months or potentially longer. The total amount of DOE funds available under this Supplemental Announcement is $4.3 million. Between two and four individual awards are anticipated in each of the two phases. The exact number of awards is subject to the results of the Merit Review process including the application of Program Policy Factors. Issuance of the solicitation is planned for early January, 2000, with responses due on March 7, 2000.