ITV - Industrial Technology Validation Program

The Industrial Technology Validation (ITV) Program, administered by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), offers a unique opportunity for technology developers and industrial facilities to collaborate on evaluating innovative energy and performance-enhancing technologies in real-world environments. The ITV initiative is designed to overcome one of the primary hurdles to adopting emerging industrial technologies: the uncertainty of performance and return on investment. Through this program, DOE, in partnership with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), provides a rigorous, unbiased assessment of emerging or underutilized technologies within operational industrial settings, enhancing confidence in performance outcomes and facilitating broader adoption across the sector. Funded directly by DOE, the ITV Program targets the research, development, and early-stage demonstration of efficient and cost-effective industrial technologies that can bolster the global competitiveness of the U.S. industrial sector. The program supports both cross-cutting and sector-specific technologies applicable to diverse areas including data center efficiency, industrial artificial intelligence, flexible load management, process heating, membrane separations, and water treatment. Specific industrial sectors of interest include iron and steel, cement, chemicals and refining, food and beverage, forest products, and more. The technologies must be pre-commercial, early commercial, or underutilized in U.S. markets, and demonstrate measurable performance benefits. Applicants must form joint teams comprising a technology developer and an industrial host site. Host sites must be operational industrial facilities such as manufacturing plants, water or wastewater treatment centers, or data centers. Each joint team must submit a unified application for technology validation. Notably, DOE national laboratories cannot serve as technology developers. The host and developer must also meet the definition of a domestic entity, and any foreign-owned participants must demonstrate they are not subject to control by countries of risk, including China, Russia, North Korea, or Iran. The ITV Program consists of three project phases: Planning, Installation, and Analysis. Awards of up to $400,000 are disbursed across these phases, with payments issued upon completion of project milestones. Importantly, cost share is required only in Phase 2 (Installation), where awardees must contribute 50% of the costs, either through internal capital or approved financing sources. Eligible expenses must be supported by documentation, and cost share cannot come from federal sources. Phases 1 and 3 are fully funded without match. Awardees also commit to regular check-in meetings and must provide baseline and post-installation performance data, enabling LBNL to produce a public Measurement and Verification (M&V) report. The application window runs from September 16, 2025, to January 29, 2026, at 3:00 PM Eastern Time. Applicants must upload all required forms—budget, project schedule, and commitment letters for both host and developer—via the Submittable portal, with all files under 5MB and submitted in Word, Excel, or PDF formats. Late submissions will not be accepted. Webinars and Office Hour sessions provide additional guidance, with the final Q&A session scheduled for January 8, 2026. Evaluation criteria include validation readiness, technology impact, replicability, and how DOE funding accelerates commercialization. Projects must be implementable within 12 months of award notification, and applications are judged on the clarity of proposed performance metrics, expected outcomes, and ability to replicate results at scale. All technologies must produce measurable benefits such as reduced energy or water use, improved operational efficiency, or enhanced product quality. Projects typically span 18–24 months from selection to completion.

Projects must be operational within 12 months and demonstrate measurable improvements; data sharing is mandatory for verification.