2025 Concept Paper Q&A
Please submit your questions about Concept Papers to poweramerica@ncsu.edu. As we receive questions, we will post the answers to them here. This Concept Paper Q&A page will close on Monday, Dec. 1, at 5 p.m. EST.
Funding Limits for Academic Institutions
- Academic institutions may receive up to $230K in total IIP funding as a lead on one and/or sub on multiple Focus Area 1 and 2 Concept Papers. An academic institution may additionally receive up to $230K in total for Focus Area 3 IIP Concept papers as a lead or sub.
- Member Initiated Projects (MIPs) are totally separate, and academic institutions in good standing (i.e., up-to-date in membership dues) may submit one MIP Concept Paper for an additional total of up to $150K.
- Therefore, the grand total amount of funding an academic institution may receive is $610K.
When are Concept Papers due?
Concept Papers must be submitted by COB Dec. 12, 2025. This application deadline is firm.
For non-Member Initiated Projects (i.e., DOE funds and 1:1 cost-match), does PowerAmerica still claim IP?
PowerAmerica does not claim IP on RFP projects. IP belongs to the entity carrying out the research.
Can non-PowerAmerica organizations collaborate on projects as suppliers of parts, consumables, or technical advice?
You can purchase parts and consumables from vendors that are not PowerAmerica members. But any organization that receives funds, including as a subawardee, must be or become a PowerAmerica member.
Are there restrictions on cost-matching? Can in-kind contributions like tuition fee waivers, overhead reduction, etc., be used as cost-matching?
In-kind contributions, including tuition waivers, release time, etc., are allowed.
If an academic institution submits a Concept Paper for Focus Area 1 or 2 and a Concept Paper for Focus Area 3, would the $230K have to be split across those two projects if both were selected for negotiation?
In this case, the full funding in Focus Area 1 and Focus Area 3 would be available to the applicant.
If an academic institution submits Concept Paper as a lead in Focus Area 1 or 2, can it also be a lead on a separate Member Initiated Project (MIP) Concept Paper?
Yes. MIPs are independent of IIPs (the latter being DOE-funded). The only restriction for submitting an MIP is being a PowerAmerica member in good standing (i.e., up-to-date in dues). MIPs have no limitations stemming from or in connection to the IIP submissions and funding.
Academic institutions that are members in good standing can be awarded up to $150K in additional funding for MIPs, which are independent of proposals submitted in Focus Areas 1, 2, or 3.
If an academic institution submits more than one proposal, does the funding cap apply to the combined total value of awards? If an academic institution applies to lead one project and partner on another, does the total allowed award amount include subaward funding?
Universities and other academic institutions are allowed to submit a total of two Concept Papers as the lead organization — one Concept Paper in either Focus Area 1 or 2 and one Concept Paper in Focus Area 3 — and can participate in an unlimited number of proposals as subs. Academic institutions can be awarded up to $230K for proposals in either Focus Area 1 or 2 (both as lead or sub), and an additional $230K can be awarded for proposals in Focus Area 3 (both as lead or sub). Therefore, academic institutions can be awarded a grand total of up to $460K for all proposals in either Focus Area 1 or 2, or Focus Area 3.
If an industry or national lab organization submits a proposal to lead one project and partners with another organization on a separate proposal, does the total allowed award amount include subaward funding?
Yes. If an Industry or National Lab organization submits multiple proposals (both as lead or sub), the maximum total funding it can be awarded is $1 million.
Can an industry partner serve as a subrecipient for Focus Area 3 when an academic institution is the lead?
Yes, an industry organization can partner with an academic institution as a subrecipient for Focus Area 3.
NOTE: We apologize for any confusion caused by the previous answer to this question, which was revised on Nov. 25, 2025.
Does each partner need to contribute to the cost share individually, or is it acceptable as long as the total combined cost share exceeds the required PowerAmerica contribution?
Acceptable if total combined cost share meets or exceeds the PA contribution. One partner can put in all the cost share for example.
If an academic institution leads a proposal in Focus Area 1 or 2 with an industry partner that provides the required 1:1 cost match but does not receive any funding from PowerAmerica, does the industry partner still need to become a PowerAmerica member?
If an industry partner provides the cost match for an academic institution but does not receive any PowerAmerica funding, then the industry partner is not required to join PowerAmerica.
My academic institution has no centralized mechanism to track which proposals individual PIs submit; as a result, it is likely that the total funding requested will exceed the $610K limit. How will this be handled? Is there anything the PIs should do to address this?
We recognize this concern and encourage you to coordinate with colleagues at your institution to the extent possible in effort to avoid this occurring. However, when PowerAmerica receives Concept Papers totaling greater than $610K from a single academic institution, we will contact the affected PIs and allow them to decide which proposals should advance to the review stage. Re-submission to combine Concept Papers will not be allowed. Therefore, responding in a timely manner will be important.
What is meant by a “non-Member Initiated Project”? Can a non-member (industry or academia) be a lead applicant? Do applications from PowerAmerica members get any preference over non-member applications?
Two types of projects are described in the RFP: Member Initiated Projects (MIPs), which are member-funded with 50% cost match required, and Institute Initiated Projects (IIPs), which are DOE-funded with 1:1 cost match required.
Non-members can only apply as a lead on IIPs. If a non-member is selected for an award, they will then be required to join PowerAmerica as a condition of receiving funding. Proposals will be judged on merit; membership status is not a factor.
According to the RFP, Member Initiated Projects (MIPs) require at least 50% cost match; for a proposal targeting $150K in PowerAmerica funding, does 50% cost match equate to $75K or $150K?
For MIPs, the required cost match is $75K minimum.
For a project on which an industry organization is the lead, with two academic institutions as partners, what is the maximum total funding the two partners can request?
Each academic institution can receive up to $230K in funding, so the maximum combined total would be $460K in this case.
Can industry organizations use in-kind contributions (e.g., salary, components/materials) as cost-matching?
Yes, in-kind contributions are an acceptable form of cost match.
Can the use of facilities be included as part of the required cost match? If so, is there an approved method for determining the dollar value of this contribution? For example, if our laboratory is used for project-related testing for 100 hours, or an office is used for 100 hours, how would that usage be converted into an allowable cost-match value? Additionally, does this apply to both university and industry partners?
Lab hours can be included in cost match if the lab is set up as a service center with an hourly fee. Keep in mind there is a negotiated overhead (52% for many universities) that is charged on the contract to cover office and lab overhead costs — which applies to both university and industry.
For subcontractors working from a home office, can the value of their home office be used as in-kind cost match?
Home office costs can’t be used as in-kind cost match.
DOE has announced it plans to cap indirect cost rates at 15%. Would the 15% cap apply to this solicitation?
The DOE’s announcement of a 15% indirect cost rate cap does not apply to PowerAmerica projects stemming from this RFP. You should use your organization’s indirect federal negotiated rate.
For an Institute Initiated Project, does the 1:1 cost match have to be spent in the U.S., or can it be spent overseas?
The 1:1 cost match must be spent in the United States.