SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The BIL invests $335 million over the five-year period (Fiscal Years 2022-2026) in the lithium ion battery recycling programs outlined in Sections 40207 (e), 40207 (f)(2), (f)(3), (f)(4) and 40208. The purpose of this RFI is to solicit feedback from industry, manufacturers, minority-owned businesses, academia, research laboratories, institutes, government agencies, State and local officials, labor unions, Tribes, community-based organizations (CBOs), environmental justice organizations, retailers and other stakeholders on issues related to design and implementation of the Battery Recycling Provisions.

• Section 40207(e) titledLithium-Ion Battery Recycling Prize covers the continuation of the Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Prize Competition for additional rounds after completion of the current round.
• Section (f)(2) titled Battery Recycling Research, Development, and ( printed page 56045) Demonstration Grants will total $60M for FY2022 to FY2026. DOE shall award multiyear grants to anticipated eligible entities for research, development, and demonstration projects to create innovative and practical approaches to increase the reuse and recycling of batteries.
• Section (f)(3) titledState and Local Programs will total $50M for the period of FY2022 to FY2026. It is anticipated that DOE shall establish a program which will award grants, on a competitive basis, to the following anticipated entities of States and units of local government to assist in the establishment or enhancement of State battery collection, recycling, and reprocessing programs.
• Section (f)(4) titledRetailers As Collection Points will total $15M for the period of FY2022 to FY2026. DOE shall award grants, on a competitive basis. It is anticipated that these grants will be restricted to retailers that sell covered batteries or covered battery-containing products to establish and implement a system for the acceptance and collection of covered batteries and covered battery-containing products, as applicable, for reuse, recycling, or proper disposal.
• Section 40208 titledElectric Drive Vehicle Battery Recycling and Second-Life Program will total $200M for the period of FY2022 to FY2026. The DOE shall carry out a program of research, development, and demonstration of second-life applications for electric drive vehicle batteries that have been used to power electric drive vehicles; technologies and processes for final recycling and disposal of the [electric drive vehicle batteries] Specific questions can be found in the RFI. The RFI [DE-FOA-0002833] is available at: https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/​.

Confidential Business Information: Pursuant to 10 CFR 1004.11, any person submitting information that he or she believes to be confidential and exempt by law from public disclosure should submit via email two well-marked copies: one copy of the document marked “confidential” including all the information believed to be confidential, and one copy of the document marked “non-confidential” with the information believed to be confidential deleted. Submit these documents via email. DOE will make its own determination about the confidential status of the information and treat it according to its determination. Further instructions and disclaimers related to the disclosure, identification, and handling of proprietary or otherwise confidential business information, as well as the full Freedom of Information Act disclosure, can be found in the RFI [DE-FOA-0002833], available at https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/​.

To the extent that the Federal Register Notice conflicts with or otherwise contradicts the guidelines set forth in the RFI, the language in the RFI is controlling and should be followed

Signing Authority: This document of the Department of Energy was signed on August 31, 2022, by David Howell, Acting Director and Principal Deputy Director of the Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains and Director of the Vehicle Technologies Office, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, pursuant to delegated authority from the Secretary of Energy. That document with the original signature and date is maintained by DOE. For administrative purposes only, and in compliance with requirements of the Office of the Federal Register, the undersigned DOE Federal Register Liaison Officer has been authorized to sign and submit the document in electronic format for publication, as an official document of the Department of Energy. This administrative process in no way alters the legal effect of this document upon publication in the Federal Register .

87 FR 56044