Climate Change Rebate Projects Overview
IntroductionIn 1995, Congress appropriated funds for the Office of the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense, Environmental Security (ODUSD-ES) to establish a competitive, cost-shared, near-term Climate Change Fuel Cell Project (H.R. 103-747). The overall goal of this incentive project is to expedite the market introduction of fuel cell systems. Currently, the project provides up to $1,000 per kilowatt of power plant capacity with a not to exceed limit of one-third of the total project cost (capital and installed costs, pre-commercial operation).
Grants for the project have totaled $37.5 million. The funding breakdown by fiscal year is as follows:| FY04 | $1.4M | FY03 | $6.0M |
| FY02 | $2.8M |
| FY01 | No Funding |
| FY00 | $2.0M |
| FY99 | $2.3M |
| FY98 | $4.1M |
| FY96/97 | $10.6M (combined project) |
| FY95 | $8.4M |
- Enables early adopters to participate in demonstrations and field tests.
- Facilitates manufacturer cost reductions through increased production quantities.
- Encourages financial project support from other supporting agencies.
- Expands options for distributed generation technologies needed to meet growing electricity demand.
Funding for the project is allocated annually. Once an announcement has been made, applicants must submit forms and documents supporting their request for funding. A general overview of project submission guidelines is provided below.
- Applicant must demonstrate a commitment to purchase and use fuel cell power plants with a rated capacity of at least 3 kW.
- Applicant cannot be a fuel cell vendor, manufacturer or developer.
- Priority is given to projects sited at DoD installations.
- All fuel cell technologies are acceptable with no restrictions on fuel type.
- Projects representing diverse sizes, applications, fuels and locations are desirable.
- The applicant's fuel cell vendor must offer a full one year commercial warranty on fuel cell operation.
- Projects must comply with all National Environmental Policy Act and other regulatory requirements.
Applicants must have a signed contract or purchase order, with the only allowable contingency being receipt of a rebate grant to be considered responsive to the solicitation. Applications for grants are evaluated using the following selection criteria:
- DoD Relationship (40%) - preference given to (1) DoD installations; (2) DoD related installation/other federal government facilities; (3) educational, state or local government, or commercial institutions supporting DoD; (4) other installations in the U.S.; (5) other installations in a foreign country.
- Uniqueness of Project (30%) - use of novel fuels, thermal utilization of heat or other unique factors contributing to advancement of fuel cell applications.
- Firmness of Financial Commitment (15%) - including funding sources, soundness of site selection and commitment, proposer's previous project experience, letters of intent, etc.
- Site Information (15%) - preference given to early scheduled completion dates. Operational interfaces (thermal/electric), environmental factors, installation issues also considered.
Signed, non-contingent contracts are required within 60 calendar days of an applicant being notified of an award. 70% of the grant is paid after the awardee submits a signed factory or site acceptance test form. The remaining 30% is dispersed after receipt of an acceptable report covering a full year of fuel cell operation.
RecipientsTo view the locations of participants, please see the site map. A list of the grant awardees is provided in the recipient list.