Opportunity Information: Apply for DE FOA 0001443
Apply for DE FOA 0001443
- The DOE-GFO in the energy sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Request for Information (RFI): PV Lifetime Project" 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 Oct 28, 2015 and posted on Oct 28, 2015.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Nov 19, 2015. (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 $1.00 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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Opportunity Summary:
The U.S. Department of Energy, through its Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), issued this notice as a Request for Information (RFI) for the "PV Lifetime Project" (Funding Opportunity Number DE-FOA-0001443, CFDA 81.087). It is not a traditional grant competition and it is not a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA). In other words, DOE is not offering funding through this notice, does not expect to make awards, and is not accepting applications. Instead, EERE is collecting input from the broader photovoltaic community to shape and improve a public-facing effort focused on understanding how PV modules and systems age and degrade over time.
The central purpose of the RFI is to gather feedback from industry, universities, research laboratories, government agencies, and other stakeholders on how to build a stronger, more useful dataset for PV reliability and lifetime performance. EERE specifically wants to expand the amount of data available to the public and improve the quality of that data by emphasizing measurements taken over shorter time intervals and using repeatable, standardized test methods. The underlying idea is that more frequent measurements and consistent testing approaches will allow researchers and practitioners to calculate degradation profiles for representative PV modules and PV systems with greater accuracy (closer to the true degradation behavior) and greater precision (less uncertainty and variability in the estimates).
EERE frames the PV Lifetime Project around two main objectives. First, the project aims to determine and clearly communicate how PV modules differ from one another in terms of service lifetime, meaning how long modules can be expected to perform acceptably under real-world conditions and what factors contribute to longer or shorter lifetimes across different module designs, materials, manufacturing practices, and deployment environments. Second, the project aims to determine and communicate PV degradation profiles along with the uncertainty associated with those profiles. This is an important distinction because stakeholders do not just need an average degradation rate; they also need to understand the confidence bounds and the conditions under which degradation behavior may shift, accelerate, or vary across sites and system configurations.
A key emphasis in the RFI is the practical value of the resulting information for financial decision-making, particularly calculations of return on investment (ROI) for both existing PV fleets and future installations. By improving degradation characterization and uncertainty quantification, the resulting dataset and analysis could help investors, developers, asset owners, insurers, lenders, and operators make better-informed assumptions about energy yield over time, warranty risk, operations and maintenance planning, repowering decisions, and long-term project economics. The RFI signals that DOE is especially interested in responses that can inform these ROI-related calculations, which implicitly includes topics like performance loss rates, failure modes, measurement protocols, statistical methods for uncertainty, and ways to compare module types fairly across environments.
From an administrative standpoint, eligibility is listed as unrestricted, meaning any type of entity could submit information as long as it fits any clarifications DOE may have included in the full text. However, because this is an RFI rather than a funding solicitation, "eligibility" mainly relates to who may provide feedback rather than who may receive an award. The submission instructions are straightforward: responses had to be submitted electronically to PVReliability@EE.Doe.Gov as email attachments by 5:00 PM Eastern Time on November 19, 2015. The notice was created and posted on October 28, 2015, and it lists an award ceiling of $1 with expected awards of zero, reinforcing that the purpose is information gathering rather than funding.
Overall, this RFI is best understood as DOE/EERE attempting to improve the evidence base for PV lifetime and reliability by collecting stakeholder input on how to generate, standardize, and share higher-resolution degradation data. The intended outcome is a stronger public dataset and clearer, more defensible degradation and lifetime comparisons that translate into more credible long-term performance expectations and better financial modeling for solar projects.
PV Lifetime Project (DOE/EERE) RFI - Frequently Asked Questions
1) What is this opportunity?
This notice is a Request for Information (RFI) from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), for the "PV Lifetime Project" (Funding Opportunity Number DE-FOA-0001443, CFDA 81.087). It is a request for input from stakeholders, not a funding competition.
2) Is this a grant or a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA)?
No. DOE explicitly states this is not a traditional grant competition and not a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA). DOE is not offering funding through this notice.
3) Is DOE accepting applications or planning to make awards?
No. DOE does not expect to make awards and is not accepting applications under this notice. The purpose is to collect information and feedback.
4) What is the purpose of the PV Lifetime Project RFI?
The central purpose is to gather feedback from the broader photovoltaic (PV) community to shape and improve a public-facing effort focused on understanding how PV modules and systems age and degrade over time.
5) Who is DOE/EERE trying to hear from?
EERE is collecting input from industry, universities, research laboratories, government agencies, and other stakeholders involved in PV reliability, performance, testing, deployment, and analysis.
6) What is the main focus of the information DOE wants to improve?
DOE wants to build a stronger, more useful public dataset for PV reliability and lifetime performance by expanding how much data is available and improving data quality.
7) Why does the RFI emphasize shorter time-interval measurements?
EERE emphasizes measurements taken over shorter time intervals because more frequent measurements can help calculate PV degradation profiles with greater accuracy (closer to true degradation behavior) and greater precision (less uncertainty and variability in estimates).
8) Why does the RFI stress repeatable, standardized test methods?
Repeatable and standardized test methods are highlighted to improve consistency and comparability across datasets. Consistent testing approaches support more defensible comparisons and uncertainty estimation for degradation behavior.
9) What are the two main objectives of the PV Lifetime Project described in the RFI?
EERE frames the project around two objectives: (1) determine and clearly communicate how PV modules differ in service lifetime under real-world conditions and what factors influence longer or shorter lifetimes; and (2) determine and communicate PV degradation profiles along with the uncertainty associated with those profiles.
10) What does DOE mean by "service lifetime" for PV modules?
In this context, "service lifetime" refers to how long PV modules can be expected to perform acceptably under real-world conditions, and how lifetime may vary based on module design, materials, manufacturing practices, and deployment environments.
11) What does DOE mean by "degradation profiles" and why are they important?
Degradation profiles describe how PV performance changes over time. DOE emphasizes that stakeholders need more than an average degradation rate; they also need the uncertainty bounds and an understanding of when and why degradation behavior may shift, accelerate, or vary across sites and system configurations.
12) Why is uncertainty quantification a key part of the RFI?
DOE highlights uncertainty because decision-makers need confidence bounds, not just point estimates. Understanding uncertainty helps stakeholders evaluate risk and how performance loss may differ by environment, configuration, or over time.
13) How is this RFI intended to support financial decision-making?
The RFI emphasizes practical value for financial decision-making, especially return on investment (ROI) calculations for existing PV fleets and future installations. Better degradation characterization and uncertainty quantification can support more credible long-term energy yield assumptions and economic modeling.
14) What kinds of stakeholders could benefit from the improved dataset and analysis?
The notice indicates the information could help investors, developers, asset owners, insurers, lenders, and operators make better-informed assumptions about energy yield over time, warranty risk, operations and maintenance planning, repowering decisions, and long-term project economics.
15) What types of topics does DOE appear especially interested in for ROI-related modeling?
DOE signals interest in responses that can inform ROI-related calculations, implicitly including performance loss rates, failure modes, measurement protocols, statistical methods for uncertainty, and ways to compare module types fairly across environments.
16) Who is eligible to respond to this RFI?
Eligibility is listed as unrestricted, meaning any type of entity could submit information, subject to any clarifications in the full text. Since this is an RFI, "eligibility" relates to who may provide feedback, not who may receive funding.
17) How were responses to be submitted?
Responses had to be submitted electronically to PVReliability@EE.Doe.Gov as email attachments.
18) What was the deadline for submitting responses?
The submission deadline was 5:00 PM Eastern Time on November 19, 2015.
19) When was this notice created and posted?
The notice was created and posted on October 28, 2015.
20) Does the listed award ceiling mean DOE is providing funding?
No. The notice lists an award ceiling of $1 with expected awards of zero, which reinforces that the purpose is information gathering rather than funding.
21) What is the intended outcome of collecting this stakeholder input?
The RFI is intended to improve the evidence base for PV lifetime and reliability by collecting input on how to generate, standardize, and share higher-resolution degradation data, resulting in a stronger public dataset and clearer, more defensible lifetime and degradation comparisons.
22) What is the overall takeaway for organizations reading this notice?
This notice should be understood as DOE/EERE seeking feedback to improve public understanding and data quality around PV lifetime and degradation, rather than seeking project proposals for funding.
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