ARPA-E aims to support the development of timely, commercially viable fusion energy.[1] Based on numerous studies examining the cost challenges facing advanced nuclear energy,[2] which shares some attributes with fusion such as unit size, capital cost, and power-generation characteristics, ARPA-E believes that a commercial fusion power plant should target an overnight capital cost (OCC) of <US$2B and <$5/W.[3] If a grid-ready fusion demonstration can be realized within approximately twenty years while satisfying these cost metrics, then, as a firm low-carbon energy source, fusion can contribute to meeting global, growing low-carbon energy demand and cost-effective deep decarbonization[4] in the latter half of the century.
This program addresses the need to lower the costs of development and eventual deployment of commercial fusion energy by supporting R&D to increase the performance and number of credible, lower-cost fusion concepts. Full Applications are invited in the three research categories[5] described in Section I.D of the FOA. Criteria and metrics are described in Section I.E of the FOA. The technology-to-market (T2M) component of this program, via a number of planned activities at the project and program levels, aims to build and smooth the path to fusion commercialization to include public, private, and philanthropic partnerships.
Deadline: Jan. 14, 2020
Applicants must select one of three technical research categories:
A. Concept Development ($150k–$10M/project, not including cost share): each project in this category will develop a specific, lower-cost fusion concept as measured against the performance-based milestones in Table 1 of Section I.E of the FOA.
B. Component Technology Development (up to $4M/project, not including cost share): projects will conduct component-technology development, up to prototype demonstration of the component technology, that can significantly reduce the capital cost of a specific, more-mature, higher-cost fusion concept, such as but not limited to the tokamak, stellarator, reversed-field pinch (RFP), or inertial confinement fusion (ICF).
C. Capability Teams (up to $2.5M/project, not including cost share): projects will improve/adapt and apply an existing capability to support multiple teams in Category A to lower the overall costs of the program.
This FOA is open to U.S. universities, national laboratories, industry, and individuals.
ARPA-E is not limiting the number of submissions from Applicants. Applicants may submit more than one application to this FOA, provided that each application is scientifically distinct.
Individual awards may vary between $150,000 and $10 million, not including cost share.
