Unlocking New Levels of Output and Capacity for Key Subsurface Resources (UNLOCK)

Updated Oct 23, 2026

Cooperative agreement or Other from the Advanced Research Projects Agency Energy, open to any type of applicant. Closes Nov 20, 2026, 28 days left.

Who can apply

• Unrestricted: any type of applicant

See Section II.A. of the NOFO.

Description

NOFO Number: DE-FOA-0003630 - Unlocking New Levels of Output and Capacity for Key Subsurface Resources (UNLOCK) To obtain a copy of the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) please go to DOE eXCHANGE at exchange.energy.gov/.

To apply to this NOFO, Applicants must register with and submit application materials through DOE eXCHANGE (exchange.energy.gov/Registratio...).

For detailed guidance on using DOE eXCHANGE, please refer to the DOE eXCHANGE User Guide (exchange.energy.gov/Manuals.aspx). ARPA-E will not review or consider application materials submitted through other means. For problems with DOE eXCHANGE, email [email protected] (with NOFO name and number in the subject line).

Questions about this NOFO? Check the Frequently Asked Questions available at arpa-e.energy.gov/faq.

For questions that have not already been answered, email [email protected]. Agency Overview: The Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy (ARPA-E), an organization within the Department of Energy (DOE), is chartered by Congress in the America COMPETES Act of 2007 (P.L. 110-69), as amended by the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2010 (P.L. 111-358), as further amended by the Energy Act of 2020 (P.L. 116-260).

ARPA-E issues this Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) under its authorizing statute codified at 42 U.S.C. § 16538. The NOFO and any cooperative agreements or grants made under this NOFO are subject to 2 C.F.R. Part 200 as supplemented by 2 C.F.R. Part 910. ARPA-E funds research on, and the development of, transformative science and technology solutions to address the energy and environmental missions of the Department.

The agency focuses on technologies that can be meaningfully advanced with a modest investment over a defined period of time in order to catalyze the translation from scientific discovery to early-stage technology. For the latest news and information about ARPA-E, its programs and the research projects currently supported, see: arpa-e.energy.gov/. ARPA-E funds transformational research.

Existing energy technologies generally progress on established “learning curves” where refinements to a technology and the economies of scale that accrue as manufacturing and distribution develop drive improvements to the cost/performance metric in a gradual fashion. This continual improvement of a technology is important to its increased commercial deployment and is appropriately the focus of the private sector or the applied technology offices within DOE.

In contrast, ARPA-E supports transformative research that has the potential to create fundamentally new learning curves. ARPA-E technology projects typically start with cost/performance estimates well above the level of an incumbent technology. Given the high risk inherent in these projects, many will fail to progress, but some may succeed in generating a new learning curve with a projected cost/performance metric that is significantly better than that of the incumbent technology.

ARPA-E will provide support at the highest funding level only for submissions with significant technology risk, aggressive timetables, and careful management and mitigation of the associated risks. ARPA-E funds technology with the potential to be disruptive in the marketplace. The mere creation of a new learning curve does not ensure market penetration.

Rather, the ultimate value of a technology is determined by the marketplace, and impactful technologies ultimately become disruptive – that is, they are widely adopted and displace existing technologies from the marketplace or create entirely new markets. ARPA-E understands that definitive proof of market disruption takes time, particularly for energy technologies. Therefore, ARPA-E funds the development of technologies that, if technically successful, have clear disruptive potential, e.g., by demonstrating capability for manufacturing at competitive cost and deployment at scale.

ARPA-E funds applied research and development (R&D). The Office of Management and Budget defines “applied research” as an “original investigation undertaken in order to acquire new knowledge…directed primarily towards a specific practical aim or objective” and defines “experimental development” as “creative and systematic work, drawing on knowledge gained from research and practical experience, which is directed at producing new products or processes or improving existing products or processes.”

Applicants interested in receiving financial assistance for basic research (defined by the Office of Management and Budget as “experimental or theoretical work undertaken primarily to acquire new knowledge of the underlying foundations of phenomena and observable facts”) should contact the DOE’s Office of Science (science.energy.gov/).

Office of Science national scientific user facilities (science.energy.gov/user-facilit...) are open to all researchers, including ARPA-E Applicants and awardees. These facilities provide advanced tools of modern science including accelerators, colliders, supercomputers, light sources and neutron sources, as well as facilities for studying the nanoworld, the environment, and the atmosphere.

Projects focused on early-stage R&D for the improvement of technology along defined roadmaps may be more appropriate for support through the DOE applied energy offices including: the Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation (CMEI) (energy.gov/cmei/office-critical...), the Hydrogen and Geothermal Energy Office (energy.gov/hgeo/hydrocarbons-an...), the Office of Nuclear Energy (energy.gov/ne/office-nuclear-en...), and the Office of Electricity (energy.gov/oe/office-electricity).

ARPA-E encourages submissions stemming from ideas that still require proof-of-concept R&D efforts as well as those for which some proof-of-concept demonstration already exists. Submissions can propose

The description continues in the full announcement.

Full announcement and how to apply on Grants.gov

Opportunity zone benefits grants right now

There are 3 open federal grants in opportunity zone benefits that small businesses may apply for; 2 close within 30 days. The median award ceiling is $5.0 million; this grant offers up to $5.0 million. The agencies offering the most are Advanced Research Projects Agency Energy.

Who has won this program before

• Bwxt Advanced Technologies LLC $30.9 million · from Mar 8, 2022
• ION Storage Systems, Inc. $20.0 million · from Sep 13, 2024
• Niron Magnetics Inc $20.0 million · from Feb 17, 2023
• Lithios Inc $20.0 million · from Jul 24, 2026
• Natron Energy, Inc. $19.9 million · from Feb 22, 2021

The largest grants and cooperative agreements under assistance listing 81.135 with funding activity since Oct 1, 2025, from USAspending.gov. Amounts are each award's total.

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Under assistance listing 81.135, the federal program this grant is paid from.

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