In the United States, the Departments of Agriculture and Energy have made up to $9 million in funding available through the Biomass Research and Development Initiative.
Aimed at increasing the nation’s energy independence by supporting the development of bioenergy feedstocks, biofuels, and biobased products, projects funded by the BRDI must address any or all of three legislatively mandated technical areas: feedstocks development, biofuels and biobased products development, and biofuels development analysis.
USDA and DOE are soliciting applications from for-profit entities, universities, nonprofits, and national laboratories. DOE expects to give out funds to one to six entities, while the USDA says it will hand out three to 14 awards—all expected to range from $500,000 to $2 million per award.
Concept papers are due by July 7, 2017, with full applications due by September 22, 2017.