[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 179 (Monday, September 18, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43531-43532]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-19775]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy


Notice of Request for Information on Solar Energy Technology 
Analysis & Data Needs

AGENCY: Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Department of 
Energy.

ACTION: Notice of request for information.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) invites public comment on 
its Request for Information (RFI) number DE-FOA-0001818 regarding the 
Solar Energy Technology Analysis & Data Needs. DOE's Solar Energy 
Technologies Office (SETO) is requesting input on integrated data and 
analysis needs across the solar value chain to inform near to mid-term 
plans for the development of resources such as information based 
network planning, real time optimization, and bankability tools in the 
context of DOE's SunShot 2030 goals. SETO aims to better understand the 
information-related problems and questions that exist for key 
stakeholders, including manufacturers, project developers, financiers, 
engineering procurement and construction businesses, state and local 
jurisdictions, researchers, analysts, and others supporting the 
technological advancement and wide scale adoption of solar technology.

DATES: Responses to the RFI must be received by October 6, 2017.

ADDRESSES: Interested parties are to submit comments electronically to 
[email protected] no later than 5:00 p.m. (ET) on October 6, 
2017. Include Solar Energy Technology Analysis & Data Needs in the 
subject of the title. Responses must be provided as attachments to an 
email and only electronic responses will be accepted. Please identify 
your answers by responding to a specific question or topic if 
applicable. Respondents may answer as many or as few questions as they 
wish. Respondents are requested to provide the following information at 
the start of their response to this RFI:
     Company/institution name;
     Company/institution contact;
     Contact's address, phone number, and email address.
    The complete RFI document is located at https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions may be addressed to Dr. 
Casey Canfield, ORISE Fellow, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of 
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Solar Energy Technologies 
Office, EE-4S, 1000 Independence Ave. SW., Washington, DC 20585. 
Telephone: 202-287-1783. Email: [email protected]. Further 
instruction can be found in the RFI document posted on EERE Exchange.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: SETO is requesting information about (1) how 
the U.S. solar industry and application

[[Page 43532]]

space use and value existing resources, (2) needs that can be addressed 
with data access, research, and analysis, and (3) opportunities to 
better engage stakeholders on the use and development of these 
resources. Over the past three years, a variety of high-quality 
informational resources on solar energy technology have been created by 
a diverse group of organizations, including universities, consultants, 
companies, technology developers, and the national laboratories. By 
cataloguing the specific information resources that the industry relies 
on, SETO hopes to better understand the vision driving innovation and 
identify gaps in knowledge creation or exchange. SETO is also 
interested in understanding the channels through which stakeholders 
access information so that future SETO-funded analysis can be 
disseminated as widely and effectively as possible. In addition, SETO 
is interested in understanding to what degree stakeholders are 
interested in being engaged in the development process of new tools and 
resources.
    The RFI is available at: https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/.

Confidential Business Information

    Pursuant to 10 CFR 1004.11, any person submitting information that 
he or she believes to be confidential and exempt by law from public 
disclosure should submit via email two well marked copies: One copy of 
the document marked ``confidential'' including all the information 
believed to be confidential, and one copy of the document marked ``non-
confidential'' with the information believed to be confidential 
deleted. DOE will make its own determination about the confidential 
status of the information and treat it according to its determination.
    Factors of interest to DOE when evaluating requests to treat 
submitted information as confidential include: (1) A description of the 
items; (2) whether and why such items are customarily treated as 
confidential within the industry; (3) whether the information is 
generally known by or available from other sources; (4) whether the 
information has previously been made available to others without 
obligation concerning its confidentiality; (5) an explanation of the 
competitive injury to the submitting person that would result from 
public disclosure; (6) when such information might lose its 
confidential character due to the passage of time; and (7) why 
disclosure of the information would be contrary to the public interest.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on September 12, 2017.
Ebony Vauss,
Acting Director, Solar Energy Technologies Office, Energy Efficiency 
and Renewable Energy.
[FR Doc. 2017-19775 Filed 9-15-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6450-01-P