The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has issued a notice of intent under the Competitiveness Improvement Project (CIP) calling for U.S. manufacturers of small- and medium-sized wind turbine technology to develop project ideas and teams in preparation for a 2024 request for proposals (RFP).
Managed by NREL on behalf of the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Wind Energy Technologies Office, CIP awards cost-shared subcontracts and national laboratory technical support to component suppliers and manufacturers of small- and medium-sized wind turbines.
By working with industry to advance and accelerate commercialization and deployment of distributed wind technology, CIP helps expand where it can be used to provide local energy services—with or without being paired with other renewable technologies, such as solar and battery storage systems. CIP supports innovation to advance wind energy as a low-cost distributed generation technology option by:
- Reducing technology costs
- Supporting product innovation
- Optimising wind turbines for distributed applications
- Ensuring that distributed energy consumers have wind technology options that are certified for performance and quality
- Developing advanced manufacturing processes to reduce hardware costs and meet growing demand
- Supporting distributed wind technology commercialisation.
