The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)'s Grid Deployment Office (GDO) provides up to $5 billion in grants to enhance electric grid resilience against extreme weather, wildfire, and other natural disasters. Funded by Section 40101 of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), these grants are intended for states; federally recognized Indian tribes, including Alaska Native Village and Regional Corporations; U.S. territories; electric grid operators; electricity storage operators; electricity generators; transmission owners or operators; distribution providers; and fuel suppliers.
Additionally, GDO provides technical and other assistance, including facilitating the distribution and sharing of information and distributing consumer-facing information and resources to inform the public of best practices and resources relating to reducing the likelihood and consequences of disruptive events.
Technical and other assistance funded through this program is intended to be responsive to state, Indian tribe, territory, and industry needs. Assistance may be available at no additional cost to recipients. Assistance requests are approved at GDO’s sole discretion and are not guaranteed. GDO will evaluate requests according to multiple factors and will give priority to requests that best fulfill the purpose of BIL Section 40101. GDO partners with DOE National Laboratories and other organizations with the expertise and capacity to provide the requested assistance.
How to Apply
To submit a request for assistance please review the information below and complete this webform. This will take approximately 10 minutes or less to complete and will help expedite review of the request. GDO reviews assistance requests regularly and will contact the designated representative on the request form after reviewing the request.
Eligibility
The following entities are eligible to request assistance:
- Designated lead agency from states and territories (such as a State Energy Office or Public Utilities Commission)
- Federally recognized Indian tribes, including Alaska Native Village and Regional Corporations
- Eligible entities as defined in BIL Section 40101, including electric grid operators; electricity storage operators; electricity generators; transmission owner or operators; distribution providers; and fuel suppliers.
- Other relevant organizations, as determined by GDO.
Assistance requests can be made for multiple entities that would like to collaborate on and jointly benefit from an assistance project. Only one request should be submitted per group and the request should describe the entities involved in the request. Assistance requests will be reviewed and may be approved at GDO’s sole discretion.
Types of Assistance
GDO will work with grant recipients to determine the appropriate type of assistance to meet recipient needs. Assistance generally could take the following forms:
Program and planning assistance may involve a consultation to discuss best practices around program or project design as well as strategic grid resilience planning.
Capacity building may involve assistance with grant applications, as well as connecting grant recipients with DOE workforce development programs.
Training may involve organizing webinars or workshops on topics such as prioritizing and valuing grid investments, measuring the impacts of grid investments, learning to use climate modeling software, understanding risks to critical infrastructure, and engaging stakeholders and the community in grid planning.
Technical analysis may involve research, assessments of historic data, climate risk assessments, power system modeling, simulation, or forecasting.
Stakeholder engagement and coordination may involve convening and connecting disparate stakeholders and efforts for greater impact.
Submit an Assistance Request
By submitting an assistance request, you are agreeing that:
- You, as the requestor, have the authority to request assistance on behalf of the requesting organization.
- The request applies specifically to enhancing electric grid resilience.
- A designated contact will be available and responsive to DOE’s and/or its technical assistance provider’s requests.
- The designated contact will be available to participate on a call to discuss the scope of the assistance.
- The designated contact will provide any additional information requested in a timely manner.