Opportunity Information: Apply for DE FOA 0002788
The Buildings Energy Efficiency Frontiers and Innovation Technologies (BENEFIT) 2022/2023 funding opportunity (DE-FOA-0002788) is a U.S. Department of Energy initiative issued by the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) on behalf of the Building Technologies Office (BTO). It is designed to push forward practical, high-impact building technologies and approaches that can cut carbon emissions, lower energy costs for building owners and occupants, and improve how buildings respond to changing conditions on the electric grid (flexibility) and disruptions (resilience). The FOA anticipates investing a total of roughly $15.35 million to $45.2 million across multiple awards, using a cooperative agreement structure, which typically means DOE expects active involvement during the project period (for example, technical direction, milestone reviews, and coordination to ensure results align with program goals).
The BENEFIT FOA is organized into five topic areas that cover major opportunities for reducing building energy use and electrification-related emissions. Topic 1 targets heating, ventilation, air conditioning (HVAC), and water heating. The focus is on advancing materials, components, and equipment designs, while also addressing real-world barriers like manufacturing cost, installation complexity, and engineering constraints. In other words, the program is not only looking for performance improvements, but also for innovations that make advanced HVAC and water heating technologies easier and cheaper to produce and deploy at scale.
Topic 2 focuses on thermal energy storage (TES), specifically next-generation, plug-and-play TES products. The intent is to develop and validate storage solutions that can be installed with less hassle, deliver better cost and performance, and speed up market adoption in HVAC applications. This topic reflects the growing importance of shifting heating and cooling loads over time, so buildings can take advantage of cleaner or cheaper electricity periods, reduce peak demand, and maintain comfort during grid stress or outages when paired with appropriate systems.
Topic 3 addresses battery energy storage systems (BESS) for buildings and their connection to the grid. The FOA calls for development, validation, and demonstration of product innovations that reduce the cost and complexity of integrating batteries into buildings, improve coordination between distributed batteries and grid needs, and support building decarbonization targets. This includes the practical reality that batteries are often held back not only by cell costs, but by integration challenges such as controls, safety, interconnection, commissioning, and the ability to provide grid services reliably while still serving the building.
Topic 4 is aimed at plug loads and lighting, with an emphasis on integrating plug load controls with connected lighting systems in commercial buildings. The goal is to achieve this with minimal added cost and complexity, supporting broader building electrification and more intelligent energy management. Since plug loads (computers, office equipment, appliances, and miscellaneous devices) can represent a large and growing share of electricity use, integrating their control with lighting systems that already have sensors, networking, and control infrastructure is a strategy to capture savings without requiring a completely separate control platform.
Topic 5 concentrates on the opaque building envelope (non-window elements such as walls, roofs, and foundations). It supports development, validation, and demonstration of affordable, high-impact retrofit and diagnostic technologies for envelope improvements. This is important because envelope upgrades can lock in long-term energy savings, improve comfort, and reduce HVAC sizing needs, but they are often limited by high retrofit costs, labor intensity, uncertainty about in-field performance, and challenges in diagnosing where the building is actually losing heat or gaining unwanted heat.
Eligibility is broadly described as unrestricted (open to any type of entity), subject to any clarifications in the FOA text. Individual project awards have an award ceiling listed at $2,500,000. The opportunity was posted by DOE's Golden Field Office, with a creation date of December 14, 2022, and an original application deadline of April 5, 2023. Applications are required to be submitted through the EERE eXCHANGE system, which requires applicants to register and create an account before submission. The FOA also notes that BTO is compiling a teaming partner list to encourage collaboration, allowing organizations with relevant expertise to signal interest to prospective prime applicants and form partnerships aligned to the five topic areas. For full requirements, submission instructions, and points of contact for both technical questions and submission issues, applicants are directed to the complete FOA posted on EERE eXCHANGE at https://eere-exchange.energy.gov.Apply for DE FOA 0002788
- The Department of Energy, Golden Field Office in the energy sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Buildings Energy Efficiency Frontiers & Innovation Technologies (BENEFIT) – 2022/2023" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 81.086.
- This funding opportunity was created on Dec 14, 2022.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Apr 05, 2023. (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 $2,500,000.00 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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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is the BENEFIT 2022/2023 funding opportunity (DE-FOA-0002788)?
The Buildings Energy Efficiency Frontiers and Innovation Technologies (BENEFIT) 2022/2023 funding opportunity (DE-FOA-0002788) is a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) initiative issued by the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) on behalf of the Building Technologies Office (BTO). It supports practical, high-impact building technologies and approaches intended to reduce carbon emissions, lower energy costs for building owners and occupants, and improve building flexibility and resilience.
Which DOE office is issuing this FOA?
The opportunity is issued by DOE's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) on behalf of the Building Technologies Office (BTO).
Who posted the opportunity?
The opportunity was posted by DOE's Golden Field Office.
What are the main goals of the BENEFIT FOA?
The FOA is designed to push forward building technologies and approaches that (1) cut carbon emissions, (2) lower energy costs for building owners and occupants, and (3) improve how buildings respond to changing electric grid conditions (flexibility) and disruptions (resilience).
How much total funding does the FOA anticipate investing?
The FOA anticipates investing a total of roughly $15.35 million to $45.2 million across multiple awards.
What is the maximum (ceiling) award amount per project?
The award ceiling listed for individual project awards is $2,500,000.
What type of award instrument will DOE use?
DOE expects to use a cooperative agreement structure.
What does a cooperative agreement imply for awardees?
A cooperative agreement typically means DOE expects active involvement during the project period, such as providing technical direction, conducting milestone reviews, and coordinating with recipients to help ensure project results align with program goals.
How is the BENEFIT FOA organized?
The FOA is organized into five topic areas covering major opportunities for reducing building energy use and electrification-related emissions.
What is Topic Area 1 about?
Topic 1 targets heating, ventilation, air conditioning (HVAC), and water heating. It focuses on advancing materials, components, and equipment designs while also addressing real-world barriers such as manufacturing cost, installation complexity, and engineering constraints. The topic emphasizes both performance improvements and innovations that make advanced HVAC and water heating technologies easier and cheaper to produce and deploy at scale.
What is Topic Area 2 about?
Topic 2 focuses on thermal energy storage (TES), specifically next-generation, plug-and-play TES products. The intent is to develop and validate solutions that reduce installation hassle, improve cost and performance, and speed market adoption in HVAC applications. This topic is tied to shifting heating and cooling loads over time to take advantage of cleaner or cheaper electricity periods, reduce peak demand, and support comfort during grid stress or outages when paired with appropriate systems.
What is Topic Area 3 about?
Topic 3 addresses battery energy storage systems (BESS) for buildings and their connection to the grid. It calls for development, validation, and demonstration of product innovations that reduce the cost and complexity of integrating batteries into buildings, improve coordination between distributed batteries and grid needs, and support building decarbonization targets. It highlights that integration challenges can include controls, safety, interconnection, commissioning, and reliably providing grid services while still serving building needs.
What is Topic Area 4 about?
Topic 4 is aimed at plug loads and lighting, emphasizing integration of plug load controls with connected lighting systems in commercial buildings. The goal is to achieve integration with minimal added cost and complexity, supporting building electrification and more intelligent energy management. The approach leverages the fact that connected lighting systems often already include sensors, networking, and control infrastructure.
What is Topic Area 5 about?
Topic 5 concentrates on the opaque building envelope (non-window elements such as walls, roofs, and foundations). It supports development, validation, and demonstration of affordable, high-impact retrofit and diagnostic technologies for envelope improvements, addressing barriers such as high retrofit costs, labor intensity, uncertainty about in-field performance, and challenges in diagnosing building heat losses or unwanted heat gains.
What types of applicants are eligible to apply?
Eligibility is broadly described as unrestricted (open to any type of entity), subject to any clarifications in the full FOA text.
Where must applications be submitted?
Applications are required to be submitted through the EERE eXCHANGE system.
Do applicants need to register to apply?
Yes. The EERE eXCHANGE system requires applicants to register and create an account before submission.
When was the opportunity created and posted?
The creation date listed for the opportunity is December 14, 2022.
What was the original application deadline?
The original application deadline was April 5, 2023.
Is there a way to find potential collaborators or teaming partners?
Yes. The FOA notes that BTO is compiling a teaming partner list to encourage collaboration. Organizations with relevant expertise can signal interest to prospective prime applicants and form partnerships aligned with the five topic areas.
Where can applicants find the full FOA, requirements, and submission instructions?
Applicants are directed to the complete FOA posted on EERE eXCHANGE at https://eere-exchange.energy.gov for full requirements, submission instructions, and points of contact for technical questions and submission issues.
Where can applicants go for technical questions or help with submission problems?
The FOA indicates that points of contact for both technical questions and submission issues are provided in the complete FOA on EERE eXCHANGE (https://eere-exchange.energy.gov).
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