The US Department of Energy (DOE) Fuel Cell Technologies Office (FCTO), on behalf of the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), intends to issue a funding opportunity FOA titled “Clean Energy Supply Chain and Manufacturing Competitiveness Analysis for Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies” (DE-FOA-0000854).

FCTO’s Manufacturing R&D Program aims to improve processes and reduce the cost of manufacturing components and systems for hydrogen production and delivery, hydrogen storage, and fuel cells for multiple applications.

In addition, cross-cutting technologies and capabilities such as metrology and quality control, standardization, modeling and simulation tools for efficient manufacturing processes, and the development of a domestic supplier base are necessary for a robust, domestic hydrogen and fuel cell manufacturing industry.

As the market for hydrogen and fuel cells grows, the need to develop a robust supply chain to fuel mass production of these systems grows as well, FCTO says. In addition, key opportunities must be identified in the hydrogen and fuel cell supply chain where the US can achieve or maintain a competitive advantage.

The new FOA will solicit outreach- and analysis-type projects to:

1. Conduct outreach to develop strategies and new approaches to facilitate the development and expand the domestic supply chain of hydrogen and fuel cell related components in the US.
2. Conduct an extensive global manufacturing competitive analysis for hydrogen and fuel cell-related technologies.

The ultimate goal for both topic areas is to identify and capitalize on key opportunities in the hydrogen and fuel cell supply chain where the US can achieve or maintain a competitive advantage and increase US manufacturing competitiveness.