Federal funds expected for tribal clean energy projects

The U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Indian Energy Policy and Programs has announced its intent to make $50 million available this spring for clean energy technology deployment on tribal lands. 

The Energy Policy Act of 2005 authorized the Department of Energy to establish the Office of Indian Energy, which is directed and authorized to provide, direct, foster, coordinate, and implement energy planning, education, management, development, and efficiency. Its mission is to maximize the development and deployment of energy solutions for the benefit of American Indians and Alaska Natives.

On January 26, 2023, the Office of Indian Energy issued a Notice of Intent (NOI) to release a $50 million Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) later this year, to support clean energy technology deployment on tribal lands. Through the anticipated FOA, the Office of Indian Energy plans to solicit applications from Indian Tribes, which include Alaska Native Regional Corporations and Village Corporations, Intertribal Organizations, and Tribal Energy Development Organizations to: 

• Install clean energy generating system(s) and/or energy efficiency measure(s) for Tribal Building(s) (Area of Interest 1);
• Deploy community-scale clean energy generating system(s) or energy storage on Tribal Lands (Area of Interest 2);
• Install integrated energy system(s) for autonomous operation (independent of the traditional centralized electric power grid) to power a single or multiple essential tribal buildings during emergency situations or for tribal community resilience (Area of Interest 3); or
• Power unelectrified Tribal Buildings (Area of Interest Area 4).

Except for Area of Interest 4, the NOI indicates that awards are intended for Tribal Buildings that are either (1) grid-connected (connected to the traditional centralized electric power grid), or (2) connected to an integrated energy system(s) that operates autonomously from the grid (not connected to the traditional centralized electric power grid). Area of Interest 4 is intended to deploy integrated energy system(s) or energy infrastructure to provide electricity to Tribal Buildings which otherwise would be unelectrified, where “unelectrified” means Tribal Buildings that are not connected to (1) the traditional centralized electric power grid, or not connected to (2) an integrated energy system(s) operating independent of the traditional centralized electric power grid. 

According to the announcement, awards are anticipated to range from $100,000 to as much as $5 million, depending on its Area of Interest.

The NOI, formally named Clean Energy Technology Deployment on Tribal Lands – 2023 (DE-FOA-0002974), is available on the Office of Indian Energy's funding opportunities website.