[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 31 (Wednesday, February 15, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9876-9878]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-03199]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY


Request for Information--Foundation for Energy Security and 
Innovation (FESI)

AGENCY: Office of Technology Transitions, Department of Energy.

ACTION: Request for information (RFI).

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) publishes the following 
questions regarding potential engagement with the Foundation for Energy 
Security and Innovation (FESI), directed to be established under the 
CHIPS and Science Act. The purpose of this RFI is to seek input on how 
DOE stakeholders may engage with the FESI directly, and how DOE may 
engage with

[[Page 9877]]

the FESI and the communities it will serve. Interested parties are 
requested to answer some or all of the questions at their discretion.

DATES: Responses to the RFI must be received no later than 5 p.m. (ET) 
on March 27, 2023.

ADDRESSES: Interested parties are to submit comments electronically to 
[email protected] with the subject line ``FESI RFI Response'' no 
later than March 27, 2023. All responses must be submitted as a 
Microsoft Word document (.doc/.docx) of no more than 5 pages in length, 
with black, Times New Roman, 12 point font, and 1 inch margins as an 
attachment to an email. The document cannot exceed 2MB in size. Only 
electronic responses to the above email address will be accepted. DOE 
will not consider responses submitted by any other means.

    Note: If clicking on the above link gives you an error message, 
you must CUT AND PASTE the URL into your browser to reach the web 
page.


FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mary Yamada, (240) 888-4568, 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: DOE is renowned for its research prowess, 
technology expertise, and ability to leverage American ingenuity to 
invent early-stage clean energy technologies. To help meet the 
Administration's climate, jobs, and economic goals, it is imperative 
that our early-stage technologies are successfully guided through to 
demonstration and deployment. Only then will DOE-invested technologies 
activate their fullest potential to help combat the global climate 
crisis. The Office of Technology Transitions (OTT) works to develop 
policies, share lessons learned, and improve the Department's ability 
to commercialize. At the highest level, commercialization is the 
process of taking an idea and bringing it to market--or progression 
across the research, development, demonstration, and deployment (RDD&D) 
continuum to obtain market viability. The RDD&D continuum provides a 
useful framework for mapping the stages of a technology's progression 
to commercialization--starting with research into an innovative idea 
and ending with commercial scale deployment.
    The commercialization pathway for clean technologies is nonlinear 
and often fails because of inadequate support infrastructure including 
capital, tooling, as well as market, manufacturing, and industry 
expertise--not because of the technology's fundamentals. 
Commercialization support infrastructure on a national, regional, and 
local scale are essential to ensuring economics are addressed and 
critical ecosystem players are onboard. The economic and business model 
requirements for deployment, as well as a technology's societal 
considerations, can and should shape the technical problem definition 
and design of solutions at all stages of the RDD&D continuum. OTT is 
charged with thinking through this problem set and working 
collaboratively across DOE to maximize our commercialization outcomes. 
Given the importance and complexity of OTT's commercialization mandate, 
it is essential the DOE explore and leverage all authorities granted to 
the Agency. This includes a new DOE opportunity in the CHIPS and 
Science Act of 2022--the Foundation for Energy Security and Innovation 
(FESI).
    There has been much interest in the establishment of this new 
foundation, and DOE has received inquiries regarding future activities 
with FESI. In order to obtain a wide array of perspectives from 
stakeholders, DOE, through this RFI, is seeking input on how it might 
engage with the FESI and the communities it will serve.
    The FESI is to be established as an independent non-profit entity 
by the DOE pursuant to authorization in the CHIPS and Science Act of 
2022 (section 10691) (Pub. L. 117-167), signed into law by President 
Biden on August 9, 2022. The mission of FESI is two-fold: (1) to 
support the mission of the Department of Energy generally; and more 
specifically, (2) to increase private and philanthropic sector 
investments to accelerate the commercialization of energy technologies. 
The statute provides FESI with broad authority to carry out its 
mission.
    To accomplish this mission, Congress authorized the FESI to engage 
with the private sector to raise funds that support efforts to 
``create, characterize, develop, test, validate, and deploy or 
commercialize innovative technologies that address crosscutting 
national energy challenges''.\1\
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    \1\ Section 10691, CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 (Pub. L. 117-
167).
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    To facilitate establishment of FESI so it may begin achieving its 
mission, Congress has mandated that DOE appoint and convene a Board of 
Directors to include statutorily required ex officio non-voting members 
from DOE, as well as appointed voting members. The CHIPS and Science 
Act of 2022 identified the DOE ex officio members of the Board as the 
Secretary of Energy, the Under Secretary for Science, the Under 
Secretary for Nuclear Security, and the DOE Chief Commercialization 
Officer.
    To assist with identifying potential initial voting members of the 
Board, Congress mandated DOE consult with the National Academies of 
Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to develop a list of well-qualified 
individuals that represent a diverse set of stakeholders.
    Following appointment of the initial Board of Directors and 
establishment of FESI, the Department of Energy's Secretary will also 
appoint liaisons from across DOE, including from the Office of 
Technology Transitions (OTT) and the Undersecretaries for and 
Infrastructure, among others, to collaborate and coordinate with the 
Foundation. As specified in the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022, 
collaboration and coordination with OTT and other relevant DOE offices 
is essential to ensure that the FESI supports the DOE mission without 
duplicating existing commercialization and other activities and 
programs carried out by the DOE.
    Questions seeking input on potential objectives and activities for 
DOE engagement with the FESI:
    To help identify and prioritize opportunities for DOE to engage and 
partner with the FESI, DOE is seeking information from potential 
stakeholder groups including, but not limited to:
     Philanthropic and non-profit organizations.
     Community stakeholders.
     DOE's National Laboratory foundations.
     Potential investors in companies developing technologies 
aligned with the DOE mission.
     Industry stakeholders, especially those representing 
diverse regions, sectors, and communities.
     Other potential stakeholders or collaborators of FESI.
    1. Which aspects of the DOE mission \2\ and energy technology 
commercialization \3\ can you identify as potentially benefitting from 
FESI's involvement?
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    \2\ DOE's mission statement can be found at the following link: 
https://www.energy.gov/mission.
    \3\ See commercialization description.
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    2. Once the FESI is established, what mission areas would you 
recommend DOE prioritize working on with the FESI?
    3. In what ways would you recommend DOE seek support of the FESI to 
carry out the mission areas identified?
    4. To assist DOE in understanding and potentially better aligning 
with stakeholder interest, in what ways would you recommend DOE engage 
with organizations to determine what they seek to accomplish?

[[Page 9878]]

    5. How would you envision DOE engage with the FESI to:
    a. Better support communities wishing to participate in the energy 
transition?
    b. Better support industry and small businesses wishing to 
participate in the energy transition?
    c. Drive long-term climate and clean energy strategy?
    d. Broaden participation in energy technology development among 
individuals from historically underrepresented groups or regions?
    e. Support the commercialization of energy technologies?
    f. Support workforce development?
    g. Foster collaboration and partnerships with researchers from the 
Federal Government, State governments, institutions of higher 
education, including historically Black colleges or universities, 
Tribal Colleges or Universities, and minority-serving institutions, 
federally funded research and development centers (FFRDCs), industry, 
and nonprofit organizations for the research, development, 
demonstration and deployment of transformative energy and associated 
technologies?
    6. What potential challenges should DOE be aware of to proactively 
manage given the intent to establish the FESI?
    7. What other ways could the establishment of FESI support the DOE 
missions? How could DOE engage effectively with the FESI on these 
activities?
    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. Submit these 
documents via email. DOE will make its own determination about the 
confidential status of the information and treat it according to its 
determination.

Signing Authority

    This document of the Department of Energy was signed on February 9, 
2023, by Vanessa Chan, Chief Commercialization Officer and Director, 
Office of Technology Transitions, pursuant to delegated authority from 
the Secretary of Energy. That document with the original signature and 
date is maintained by DOE. For administrative purposes only, and in 
compliance with requirements of the Office of the Federal Register, the 
undersigned DOE Federal Register Liaison Officer has been authorized to 
sign and submit the document in electronic format for publication, as 
an official document of the Department of Energy. This administrative 
process in no way alters the legal effect of this document upon 
publication in the Federal Register.

    Signed in Washington, DC, on February 10, 2023.
Treena V. Garrett,
Federal Register Liaison Officer, U.S. Department of Energy.
[FR Doc. 2023-03199 Filed 2-14-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P