The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), through its Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM) and the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), has announced a forthcoming Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) titled “Improving Efficiency, Reliability, and Flexibility of Coal-Based Power Plants.” This initiative, expected for release in October 2025, responds to urgent national concerns about electric grid reliability, aging thermal generation, and increasing energy demand from critical sectors such as defense, manufacturing, and data infrastructure. The program aims to advance technical solutions that extend the service life and improve the environmental and operational performance of the U.S. coal fleet, while supporting national energy security.
The 2025 DOE Resource Adequacy Report identified accelerating retirements of firm thermal generation as a major reliability risk, a challenge compounded by the rapid rise of intermittent renewables and high compliance costs. Executive Order 14156 (January 2025) declared a national energy emergency, authorizing DOE to implement measures that preserve reliable generation capacity. Coal-fired facilities remain a key component of the U.S. power mix, and the program targets approximately 100 gigawatts of the existing 203 GW fleet as candidates for refurbishment and efficiency enhancement to stabilize the grid in the near term.
DOE anticipates allocating approximately $100 million in federal funding across three topic areas. Topic Area 1 supports the development and implementation of advanced wastewater management systems to enhance water recovery, reduce costs, and improve byproduct recovery. Topic Area 2 will fund engineering and implementation of dual-firing retrofits that enable plants to alternate between coal and natural gas, improving fuel flexibility and reducing emissions. Topic Area 3 supports development and testing of natural gas cofiring systems that can achieve significant reductions in CO₂, SOx, NOx, and mercury emissions while maintaining cost-effectiveness. Each project will follow a phased, stage-gated approach—conceptual design, detailed design, and demonstration—with DOE decision points between phases.
Funding awards under this program are expected to range up to $50 million per project depending on topic area, with no more than five awards per area. A non-federal cost share of at least 20% is anticipated for design phases and 50% for demonstration phases. The total period of performance for projects will be capped at five years. Detailed cost and performance reporting will be required to verify scalability and economic feasibility of funded technologies.
Eligibility is expected to include a broad range of U.S.-based entities with capabilities in energy systems design, engineering, or operation. While full eligibility details will be outlined in the forthcoming NOFO, participants must maintain active registrations in SAM.gov and Grants.gov and have a valid Unique Entity Identifier (UEI). DOE eXCHANGE will serve as the electronic submission platform. No concept papers or applications are currently being accepted under this Notice of Intent (NOI), and all information is subject to change upon release of the official NOFO.
Interested applicants are encouraged to complete all required registrations early, as processing through SAM.gov and eXCHANGE can take several weeks. The forthcoming NOFO will specify submission instructions, evaluation criteria, and contact mechanisms for inquiries. This program represents a strategic federal investment in revitalizing existing thermal assets while advancing U.S. leadership in clean, flexible, and secure energy production.
Start registration early; SAM.gov and eXCHANGE may take weeks.
