Distributed Wind – Competitiveness Improvement Project

Special Notice: Distributed Wind: Competitiveness Improvement Project November 9, 2020 The U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) intends to release a request for proposals (RFP) under the Competitiveness Improvement Project (CIP) in early 2021. The CIP awards cost-shared subcontracts and technical support via a competitive process to: (1) innovate optimized designs for increased energy production and grid support, (2) conduct turbine and component testing to national standards to verify performance and safety, and (3) develop advanced manufacturing processes to reduce hardware costs. The CIP is designed to support small businesses in multiple phases of the product development cycle—from paper design through commercial test unit, including supporting innovation of existing product models. The goals of the CIP are to make wind energy cost-competitive with other distributed energy resources, improve interoperability with other distributed energy resources, and increase the number of wind turbine designs certified to national testing standards. NREL will also seek proposals from companies developing new applications of wind energy development, allowing distributed wind technologies to more widely support future distributed energy needs. The RFP planned for 2021 will include cost-share requirements. Offerors must provide evidence of incorporation in the United States, demonstrate strong team skills and capabilities, and provide financial information. Work funded under this effort is expected to take place in the United States and/or U.S. territories unless otherwise justified. For further detailed information about the project, visit the project website a nd related fact sheet. https://www.nrel.gov/wind/competitiveness-improvement-project.html https://www.energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2020/02/f72/cip-fact-sheet-2020.pdf NREL also invites interested parties to attend a virtual workshop on the CIP on December 8, 2020. For more information and to register for the event, please visit to following link: https://nrel.webex.com/nrel/k2/j.php?MTID=ta74ae101af5c2974583be3d13de6d460. For any questions relating to the workshop, please contact Cyndi Edgley ([email protected]). To receive a direct notification when the RFP is released, please contact Procurement Office Subcontract Administrator Kyndall Jackson ([email protected] ) .