The Solar Market Pathways funding opportunity announcement (FOA) seeks to support regional, state, tribal, and locally-driven efforts to develop multi-year solar deployment plans that will help provide business certainty and establish a clear path for the next five to ten years of solar deployment. Specifically, this FOA is intended to enable replicable multi-year strategies that spur significant solar deployment, drive down solar soft costs, support local economic development efforts, and address the potential challenges arising from increased solar penetration on the electrical grid. Awardees are expected to convene stakeholder processes to develop their plan, and subgroups could address specific topics such as the net benefits and costs of solar electricity (to and from the grid), and/or develop solar deployment programs including, but not limited to, commercial property assessed clean energy financing, shared solar, and/or incorporating solar within their emergency response plans.

The total federal funding for this opportunity will be about $15 million with a minimum 20% required awardee cost share. Individual awards are expected to range from $100,000 to $4 million.

Prior to submitting a full application for this opportunity, a brief, mandatory concept paper is due on May 28, 2014. See all application dates below.

FOA Issue Date:April 17,2014
Informational Webinar:April 22, 2014
Submission Deadline for Concept Papers:May 28, 2014; 5:00pm ET
Submission Deadline for Full Applications:July 11, 2014; 5:00pm ET
Reviewer Comments to Applicants:August 5, 2014
Submission Deadline for Replies to Reviewer Comments:August 8, 2014; 5:00pm ET
Expected Date for EERE Selection Notifications:September 2014
Expected Timeframe for Award Negotiations: September 2014

Download the full funding opportunity.

Read the DOE press release about the FOA.

For FOA-specific support, contact SolarMarketPathways@go.doe.gov.