Ohio Bipartisan Job Stimulus Plan

Ohio Bipartisan Job Stimulus Plan - Advanced Energy Program

The Application Process

Proprietary and Trade Secret Information

OCDO has the authority and responsibility to protect and keep confidential trade secrets and other proprietary information. In the event that the materials or data submitted are deemed to consist of trade secrets or other proprietary information, as defined by the ORC 1333.61 and as set forth in ORC 1555, then only those portions of the document can be kept confidential by OCDO. It is solely the applicant’s responsibility to conspicuously mark such items. A proposal may be submitted with certain sections labeled as confidential. However, only that information that is deemed to be trade secret under the aforementioned ORC sections shall be required to be kept confidential. Entire proposals or entire pages so labeled shall not be deemed as proprietary and confidential. The public abstract must not contain any trade secret information. Please note OCDO cannot, and does not, provide confidentiality for any material transmitted via e-mail.

We respect the privacy of your data. Proprietary, business confidential information should not be submitted on-line. It should be submitted in hard copy and an electronic copy on a CD with the confidential information clearly marked. Ohio law does not contemplate designation of an entire proposal as confidential. It is the responsibility of the applicant to precisely and clearly identify information to be held confidential.

Proposal Submittal

The application process begins when an applicant registers and creates a user name and password, and continues with a multi-step process outlined below:

1 – Applicant Profile. Applicant provides basic business identification information.

2 – Letter of Intent (LOI). This form is designed to determine the eligibility of the project and seeks preliminary information about the project. The form will also provide an opportunity for a one page discussion of job creation estimates and a one page discussion of how the proposal relates to the eligible clean coal technology topics. OCDO intends to respond with an eligibility determination as quickly as possible. Historically, ODCO project applications have been detailed a large in content. As such, applicants will download the LOI, complete it and upload the completed LOI to the website.

3 – Application Fee. Following a notification from OCDO that eligibility requirements are satisfied, an application fee of $750 is required to partially defray the cost of the technical review of the proposal. All fees must be submitted as checks made payable to: “Ohio Air Quality Development Authority.” The Proposal Application Fee must be submitted to OCDO before further information can be submitted to the online application. The application fee is non-refundable whether or not the project is ultimately approved for funding. The check must be accompanied with a copy of the LOI that is signed by someone authorized to legally bind the applicant. An original signature, not a stamp, is required.

4 – Full Application. Following notification that OCDO has received the application fee, applicants will download the full application, complete it and upload the completed application to the website for comment and review. The Full Application must include the following items:

4A – Public Abstract. A public abstract of approximately 500 words must be included. The abstract must contain the project objective, the specific technology/technique to be studied, a description of the project (including the size and location), the type(s) and tonnage per year of Ohio coal to be used, the sponsoring organization(s), the project duration, the total cost and the anticipated contributions of each project participant and number and level of jobs created. This abstract may be released to the public in whole or in part at any time. It is therefore required that the abstract contains no trade secret data or confidential business information.

4B – Project Objective(s). The specific technical objective(s) of the proposed project, its expected results and overall benefits to Ohio coal, to the environment, to the user and/or ratepayer and to the state of the art, must be clearly and logically detailed. The relevance to OCDO objectives and the potential for increased use/markets for Ohio coal (in tons per year) because of this process or technology must be discussed. The estimated number of jobs created or retained must be discussed.

4C – Technical Approach. The proposal must contain a full description of the technology or technique(s) and the proposed project. At a minimum, the detailed technical discussion must contain:

process flow diagrams;
energy and mass balances;
equipment layout schematics;
general and unique design specifications;
a detailed description of quality assurance/quality control procedures to be followed in the project;
a detailed description of the monitoring and sampling procedures to be followed; and
a discussion of procedures for establishing baseline data, where appropriate.

The proposal must include a discussion of the unresolved technical, economic and environmental factors that are proposed for investigation in this project, and the target goals this project anticipates answering. This must include a discussion of the wastes or products generated by the process, and their disposal or reuse. The identified specific technical risks inherent in the project must be described, along with a discussion of the specific evaluation criteria for determining their resolution.

Finally, this section must include a discussion, where appropriate, of the scale-up required in order to move to a larger-sized application. The market commercialization significance of data (technical performance, environmental and economic) obtained in this project should be discussed.

4D – Statement of Work for Projects. A detailed statement of work is critical to a successful review of a proposal. This is a logically sequenced, detailed step-by-step presentation of the project phases and their work tasks, including major milestones that are necessary in order to successfully complete the work. It is also the basis for negotiations of a legal agreement, should the proposal be accepted for funding. Thorough, complete statements of work will hasten the legal agreement process and therefore the project’s start date.

4D-1 – Projects Requesting Grants. The Statement of Work for proposals requesting a grant from OCDO should include the following:

The quantified goal and objective(s) and the general nature of the work to be performed, including the location and the responsible party (ies);
The sequence and timeline (Gantt) chart showing the tasks, phases and significant milestones, by month. (Describe these as “Month 1,” “Month 2,” not “November,” “December”) The timeline/Gantt chart should show all work tasks and all reporting deliverables, including a draft final report due 60 days prior to the Project Completion Date, and a revised final report by the Project Completion Date;
A detailed description of the major tasks which comprise the phase, and, where applicable, a description of the diagnostic and data collection equipment and techniques which are part of the task. Test matrices should be included where appropriate;
A discussion of the evaluation parameters that are proposed for assessing the results and success of the work in the phase;
A description of the deliverables and accomplishments resulting from the completion of the phase;
The estimated cost of the phase; and
A list of major equipment items to be purchased, the estimated cost of each piece, and a justification for each piece.

4D-2 – Proposals Requesting Loans or Loan Guarantees. If the project involves construction of a facility for a commercial business activity, this discussion should identify major steps in the construction project, schedules for completion, schedules for hiring employees, and schedules for bringing the new facility online as a commercial enterprise. Also, the statement of work should present a business plan showing when and how the loan will be repaid.

4E – Management and Budget Discussion. This section of the proposal must include the following elements.

4E-1 – Project Participants. All institutional and corporate participants in the proposed project must be identified. For each, the institution or company name, address, contact person, telephone number and email address must be specified. The role and extent of participation of each party, both technical and financial, including all co-applicants and major sub-contractors must be described. For each co-applicant, documentation of contributions (financial, personnel, equipment, etc.) must be included, along with a letter-of-intent signed by an authorized official validating such contributions.

4E-2 – Project Personnel. The proposal must include for the prime applicant and each of the co-applicants, key project personnel, their general duties and responsibilities and their qualifications relative to this project (e.g., résumé or curriculum vitae). (Extensive C.V.s are discouraged.)

4E-3 – Project Management Experience and Capability. The experience (including results) of the prime sponsor with projects involving similar or related technologies or techniques, and other projects of similar complexity and scale must be described. This should include relevant experience in the development of commercial technologies preceded by pilot or demonstration plant work. Applicants must describe the capability of their organization to manage a project or technology of the scale and complexity proposed technically, fiscally and financially, as well as to ultimately market it commercially.

4E-4 – Detailed Project Budget. All applicants and project participants are expected to provide significant cost-sharing in the project. The budget discussion must describe the type and amount of participation of the prime applicant and each co-applicant. To the extent that in-kind contributions (such as existing equipment) are included, the source, percentage of use in the project, date of acquisition, original cost, present value and depreciation status must be included. Zero value must be ascribed to fully amortized or expensed facilities and equipment.

A full, detailed project budget must be included with the proposal. It must show the total project budget, the prime applicant’s (awardees) budget, each co-applicant’s budget and the proposed OCDO budget. The summary format shown in Attachment 1 must be used, although additional pages providing further detail to aid in review and understanding of the budget are encouraged. The budget must be prepared in line-item (e.g., personnel, overhead, equipment, supplies, etc.) detail. OCDO will not reimburse a fee or a profit, nor will it reimburse any costs incurred due to lobbying or proposal preparation. Overhead and general/administrative charge rates will be carefully scrutinized and should be kept to a minimum.

Applicants must also submit an OCDO Cash Drawdown projection by month. OCDO requires this of all its projects in order to have sufficient cash on hand to support its full census of projects and so that the State can better manage its overall bond debt. Invoices are paid on a cost reimbursable basis, so cash projections must closely integrate with the project time line and overall project budget, including cost share.

4E-5 – Financial History. If the prime sponsor is other than an institution of higher learning, certified financial statements for the past two years must be included. Financial statements for the past two years must also be included for each major contributor to the project also, if other than an institute of higher learning.

4E-6 – Audit. A copy of the latest audit for each major participant must be included as an attachment to the proposal.

4F – Marketability Discussion. The final section of the proposal must include the following.

4F-1 – Environmental, Health and Safety Aspects. This section must contain a discussion of the anticipated environmental benefits of the proposed project, including a comparative risk assessment with currently available technology. This comprehensive discussion should address not only the pilot or demonstration project, but also subsequent commercial applications. The following topics should be included in the discussion:

identification of hazardous or toxic gaseous, liquid or solid substances integral to the process and the safeguards proposed for their containment and ultimate disposal;
the compatibility of the proposed process with existing and anticipated environmental laws and rules;
identification of all process products, their classification with respect to environmental and health and safety rules and methods proposed for their disposition; and
compatibility of the technology/technique with other emission control technologies and the anticipated emission reduction performance when combined with such technologies.

4F-2 – Technology/Process Economics. The anticipated cost of the commercial application of the technology or process must be estimated, in dollars per ton of pollutant reduced at the source (power plant or other end producer/user). Product or reuse credits and energy efficiency improvement credits, where applicable, should be specifically identified. The calculated costs should be compared to competing existing or emerging technologies. Also, where appropriate, the levelized busbar cost (mills/kilowatt-hour) must be estimated. All cost-estimation assumptions and procedures must be clearly detailed.

4F-3 – Market Application, Penetration, and Ohio Applicability. The proposal must include a quantified discussion of the proposed technology’s marketability and commercialization, particularly in Ohio, and how the technology’s application will affect the continued and increased use of Ohio coal on an estimated tonnage per year basis. Items to be discussed include the following (if applicable):

a description of the subject technology’s competitive advantage; for example, competing technologies and fuels that will be displaced by the proposed technology, including cost comparisons of the technologies;
the potential total market geographic distribution of the market, with particular emphasis on Ohio. Specific attention should be given to Ohio’s end users, and to existing Ohio sources using high-sulfur Ohio coal, identifying equipment types amenable for retrofit or repower applications with this technology;
the expected technology characteristics that will facilitate commercial plant construction, such as use of shop fabrication, modular construction, siting flexibility, etc;
the projected penetration of the proposed technology into the market described above, including a time-phased estimate in terms of relative penetration (percent) and absolute penetration (e.g., tons of Ohio coal per year, MWe generated per year, etc.);
a discussion of how the Clean Air Act (as amended) and other federal and state air quality rules and regulations will affect the commercial adoption of the technology;
a discussion of how the technology addresses the control, capture and storage of green house gases, particularly carbon dioxide;
the types of Ohio coal that can be commercially utilized by this technology and the potential increase in the use of Ohio coal in tons per year;
a characterization of the energy or clean fuel product ;
the amount and characteristics of products and by-products, and how they will affect the marketability of the technology; and
a discussion of the participant’s marketing plan for the technology.

4F-4 – On-going Commitment to Ohio Coal Use. The proposal must include a description of the long-term commitment to Ohio coal at the host site, including estimated life of the unit and anticipated annual tonnage of Ohio coal to be used.

4G – Tables, Figures and Charts. All tables, figures and charts must be placed at the end of the document if they are not to count in the fifteen page text limit.

5 – Part B Exceptions. Upon receipt of the proposals, Part B (see below) of the proposal will be reviewed first. Major exceptions to the grant agreement template will delay technical review until those issues can be resolved. Minor exceptions may be addressed during or after technical review.

Proposal Review

OCDO staff will conduct preliminary reviews to confirm that the application is complete, meets the text page limit and that there are no causes for rejection (listed below). If issues are found in the application, OCDO staff will prepare a brief statement of issues which will be provided to applicants. Applicants will then be given one opportunity to revise the application for a second submittal. If there are still issues after the second submittal, the application will not receive further consideration.

OCDO will conduct technical reviews through its staff and its proposal review team, which is composed of independent, experienced coal professionals under contract to OCDO. The comments of the technical reviewers will be compiled and sent to applicants. If major technical or economic issues are raised by the review, OCDO staff will consult with applicants regarding additional information to resolve questions or if reviews are overwhelming negative, recommend that the application be withdrawn. Following a favorable review, a copy of the compiled review comments and possible additional information obtained in discussions between OCDO staff and applicants will be provided to the statutorily established Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) approximately two weeks before the next TAC meeting. Then applicants will be invited to make a 12-minute presentation before the TAC at a date and time to be determined. Subsequently, the TAC will determine which proposals it recommends for funding and present those recommendations to the OCDO Director. Based upon all reviews and the TAC recommendations, the OCDO Director will prepare recommendations for submission to the OAQDA The OAQDA will make any grants, loans or loan guarantee awards contingent upon the successful conclusion of grant/loan/guarantee agreement negotiations.

OCDO may find it necessary to seek additional information from an applicant to aid in the review. However, once a proposal is submitted, do not send supplements to it, unless asked. Proposals are mailed to reviewers shortly after receipt, and unexpected supplements to the proposals cannot be accommodated. Be certain that the proposal is complete and correct before submitting it.

Alignment with Other Ohio Programs

Applicants will be required to explore and report on existing, planned or possible relationships with other research and development programs sponsored by the State of Ohio. If any of these other programs are pertinent to the successful applicant’s area of research and development, the grantee must pursue contact, funding, technical and/or other assistance from these programs.

Diversity

Applications from, or including, minority or woman owned or otherwise certified Ohio EDGE companies are highly valued.

Causes for Rejection

OCDO reserves the right to accept or reject in whole or in part—without incurring liability of any kind—any or all proposals submitted pursuant to this solicitation. Incomplete proposals, including proposals which do not include the required Proposal Application Fee, will be automatically rejected without review. Other specific causes for rejection without additional review include, but may not be limited to:

the project is not a coal research and development project (as required by the Ohio Constitution and defined above);
the project does not advantage Ohio coal;
the project does not use Ohio coal;
the project is not located within Ohio;
the applicant is ineligible for OCDO funding;
the applicant failed to meet all requirements of a previous loan or grant agreement from OCDO or other agency of the State of Ohio;
the applicant owes outstanding taxes or other debt to the State of Ohio;
the applicant is not financially strong enough to sustain the project;
the applicant’s team does not have the technical capability to sustain the project;
the project budget is inadequate or incomplete;
the statement of work is inadequate or incomplete;
the proposal represents a duplication of effort (work must not duplicate efforts previously sponsored by USEPA, USDOE, EPRI or others);
the proposal is for a commercially guaranteed, “off-the-shelf” technology for its normal, usual use (however, application of an existing technology in a new, unique, improved manner may be considered);
the proposal does not contain both Parts A & B; and
any major exceptions to conditions of grant award that cannot be resolved quickly.

Funding Agreement Requirements

1 - Grants. Basic requirements of a grant from OCDO include, but are not limited to the following:

1A – Royalty/Payment Agreement
Before a grant agreement for a pilot or demonstration-scale project can be executed, it is necessary to negotiate a royalty/payment agreement. Through such agreement, the State of Ohio, through the OAQDA/OCDO will be paid, over an extended period of time, a commercially reasonable portion of gross revenues, including but not limited to those revenues derived from the sales of equipment, services or patents, equipment leases or a portion of royalties and licensing fees. Such payment is in recognition of the risk the State of Ohio takes in granting research and development funding and is used to help defray principal and interest payments of Ohio’s coal research and development bonds. This requirement does not apply to awards of loans or loan guarantees.

1B – Award Deliverables

Status reports, describing technical progress, must be prepared monthly according to a prescribed format and received by OCDO by the 5th day of the following month.
Financial reports, in a standard OCDO format, must be submitted summarizing the project financial status, including actual expenditures to date, and grantee cost share. These may be submitted with periodic invoices or as part of the monthly project status reports. Invoices may be submitted no more frequently than monthly and no less frequently than quarterly. All invoices must bear sufficient documentation to validate both charges to the grant and the total cost share expended.
Milestone reports may be required for OCDO approval prior to initiating work for particular phases of a project. These must also conform to a specified format.
Administrative reports, indicating project employment and cost projections, must be submitted semi-annually.
An end-of-year project abstract must be submitted annually.
A comprehensive draft final report and revised final report, including all elements of standard OCDO final reports, is due upon completion of the project, and is subject to review and comment prior to acceptance.
Note carefully: failure to meet certain reporting deadlines and the final negotiated OCDO cash draw down schedule may result in penalties to the project.

2 – Loans and Loan Guarantees. Reporting requirements will be negotiated at the time of awarding the loan or loan guarantee. Requirements will include reports on construction progress, job creation schedules, and confirming that release of funds to the project is based upon the status of construction schedules.

General Terms and Conditions for Project Awards

Grant agreements, loan agreements or loan guarantees must be construed, interpreted and the rights of parties determined in accordance with laws of the State of Ohio.
All information, data, materials, patents, copyrights and royalties developed under grant awards belong to the State of Ohio unless negotiated otherwise in the applicable agreement.
Wages paid to laborers and mechanics under any grant or loan agreement must be paid at the prevailing rate of wages of laborers and mechanics for the class of work called for in the proposed project. Prevailing wage rates are determined by the Ohio Department of Commerce, and applied to the project in accordance with the requirements of Chapter 4115 of the ORC or as otherwise provided by law.
The State’s “Buy Ohio Policy” strongly encourages that competitive grant and contract solicitations by State of Ohio agencies provide preference for Ohio-based applicants and for work that will be done within Ohio. This shall carry through the grant to any bid for work and/or services made by the grantee.
Expenses for travel, including lodging and meals, will be reimbursed by OCDO up to limits in the final project budget. In no event will international travel be eligible for reimbursement.
The awardee must agree to comply with all federal, state and local laws and regulations in the conduct of work performed on the project, and are responsible for obtaining any and all permits required to install and operate the project.
The awardee must not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, religion, color, sex, national origin, disability or age and shall take affirmative action to ensure that applicants are employed and that employees are treated during such employment without regard to race, sex, national origin, disability or age. The grantee must have an affirmative action program and must so state in the proposal.
The awardee must perform the project in the manner set forth in its statement of work, and for not more than the amount set forth in the proposal.
No pre-award, proposal preparation or grant or loan negotiation costs are eligible for reimbursement under OCDO grants. No expenses for lobbying before or during the agreement period are eligible for reimbursement with state of Ohio funds.
If the host site is a state-owned facility and the project will involve construction, then the awardee shall bid the construction work in accordance with Ohio Department of Administrative Services (DAS) procedures.
An awardee may be subject to a financial audit by the State of Ohio only as it pertains to the project for which it received OCDO funds.

Host Sites

The proposal must contain a letter from an appropriate authority of the potential host site, stating that if the proposal is selected for funding, then the entity authorizes this unit/station as the host site. This letter should also note the estimated in-kind contribution the host site entity will be making to the project. Specifically, this does not include the value of the facility, but rather any labor costs, maintenance costs, etc., that are anticipated to be paid by the host site over the course of the pilot or demonstration’s operations.

Useful References

Further information on OCDO’s overall program, previously funded projects, this solicitation and other information can be obtained by reviewing OCDO’s site on the web at: http://www.ohioairquality.org/coal

Other websites that provide information coal and on coal combustion products are listed below. Please note that this is not intended to be an exhaustive listing.

U.S. Department of Energy
http://www.doe.gov

USDOE National Energy Technology Laboratory
http://www.netl.doe.gov/

Electric Power Research Institute
http://www.epri.com/,

Coal Utilization Research Council
http://www.coal.org/

USDOE Energy Information Administration coal site
http://www.eia.doe.gov/fuelcoal.html.

CCP Ohio
http://ccpohio.eng.ohio-state.edu/ccpohio/

American Coal Ash Association
http://www.acaa-usa.org/

World Coal Institute
http://www.wci-coal.com

International Energy Agency Coal Research
http://www.iea-coal.org.uk/

Ohio Coal Association
http://www.ohiocoal.com

National Mining Association
http://www.nma.org

American Coal Council
http://www.americancoalcouncil.org

Specific Proposal Requirements

Definition of Project “Scale”

Projects under this solicitation should be categorized as full-scale, first-of-a-kind deployment, demonstration-scale, or pilot-scale. Work to be performed in larger-scale projects should build upon and extend the development of processes or technologies that have already been demonstrated in proof-of-concept or pilot-scale facilities. OCDO reserves the right to re-categorize proposals, if it deems necessary.

OCDO Funding Limitations

Applicants should know that awards are dependent upon the issuance of general obligation bonds by the State of Ohio. OCDO can only make awards when the Treasurer of the State of Ohio has deposited sufficient monies in the Coal Research and Development Fund from those general obligation bond proceeds.

Applicants are expected to contribute a reasonable amount of cash and/or in-kind funding. OCDO’s contribution and maximum cost share toward a project will generally be based on the anticipated risk and scale of the project. As a guide for projects requesting grants, OCDO limits traditionally have been up to one-third of total project cost and up to $5.0 million for demonstration to full-scale projects; and up to one-half of total project cost and up to $2.5 million for pilot-scale projects. Projects requesting loans or loan guarantees and offering an outstanding value proposition for Ohio will be considered for higher amounts.

Applicants must note whether they are applying for a grant, loan or loan guarantee. Those seeking grants should justify why this is more appropriate than a loan or a loan guarantee.

If a loan or loan guarantee or some combination of a loan, loan guarantee and a grant is sought, OCDO grant limits will be negotiated with applicant and will depend on leveraging of the OCDO contribution with other cost share contributions, the numbers of jobs created and other financial factors.

Monies expended or costs incurred prior to OCDO award - including the proposal preparation and grant/loan negotiation costs - shall not be charged to OCDO - nor count toward the applicant/co-applicant cost share. In no event shall OCDO reimburse any lobbying costs.

Criteria for Project Evaluation by OCDO (Not Rank Ordered)

OAQDA and the OCDO understand that general criteria for both the coal and non-coal portions may overlap with criteria specific to coal projects.

AWARD CRITERIA GUIDELINES
While job creation is the primary goal, awards will be based on a review of all aspects of the applications. OAQDA Guidelines for considering applications are summarized below.

*Selection Criteria*	*Description*	*Guidelines*
A. Workforce Impact
Jobs	How many direct jobs will be created within the first three years and after?	The most valued jobs will be new permanent full-time positions, job retention will also be considered but at a lower value.
Timing of Jobs	When will the jobs be created?	Accelerated job creation within the first three years is critical. Jobs created after three years will be considered.
Wages	What is the average wage of new jobs?	Hourly wages above $18 an hour are favored.
Cooperative Work Opportunities	Are internships or work co-op programs appropriate for the Project?	Commitment to creating opportunities for Ohio students and utilizing the Ohio First Co-Op/Intern program is highly valued.
B. Business Objective and Relevance in Supply Chain
Supply Chain Position	How does the Project's business objective enhance Ohio's existing economic base?	Projects that demonstrate how they strengthen the Ohio-based supply chain are highly valued.
C. Market Opportunity and Customer(s) Assessment
Product Risk	How certain is the Project to be technically successful?	Projects based on proven technologies in manufacturing applications or successful commercialization demonstrations are highly valued. Evidence of independent third party validation is critical for new to market technologies.
Customers	How certain is the Project to meet its stated business goals?	Sales orders or customers identified with documented interest in product are highly valued; communications with the customer base will also be considered.
Sustainable Advantage	Does the Project or product have a competitive advantage in the marketplace?	Demonstration of a distinct competitive advantage in the marketplace will be highly valued. Understanding of direct competitors is important.
D. Financial Leverage Proposal
Leverage	What additional new debt or equity funding will support the application?	In general, a higher match is preferred. Award requests with match in the range of 300% for grants and 150% for loans will be competitive. Matching funds will be measured from the approval of the final award by the OAQDA
Secondary Job Creation	What difference will this project make in creating secondary jobs?	Applications that show beneficial workforce ties to supporting industry will be highly valued.
Other Investment Impacts	How does the Project increase the potential for attracting capital sources to and from within Ohio?	Demonstrated links to diversified capital markets are highly valued.
E. Management Assessment
Management Strength	What is the management experience of the organization's leadership?	Project with management team in place and having demonstrated success in creating new businesses and bringing new products to the market will be highly valued as will third party validation of the project’s business plan.
Technical Expertise	What relevant technical expertise resides within the organization?	Management's ability to support, sustain and progress the technology will be highly valued.
F. Current Capitalization and Organizational Stability
Company History	What is the financial condition of the company?	A minimum of three years of operating history and recent history of positive cash flow is preferred.
G. Other Considerations
Carbon Reduction	Is this a major focus of the application?	Qualitative discussion of means by which project would contribute to carbon reduction goals.
Energy Independence	Does the project contribute?	Qualitative discussion of means by which project would contribute to energy independence.
Corporate Environmental Stewardship	What is the company's record in this area?	Firms with corporate environmental policies are favored.
Environmental and Energy Utilization Impacts	Does the project reduce energy use and or environmental impacts?	Firms with projects that will impact both energy and have multiplier affects on other energy or environmental issues will be scored more favorably.
Speed to Market	How fast will the project create sales?	Project that can be accelerated or will be quick to market will be favored.
Non-traditional Partners	Does the project include minority partners or is it based in an economically disadvantage region?	Participation by Ohio EDGE certified companies is highly valued.
Prior or Complimentary Support from the State of Ohio	Is the project presently supported by or has it received support in the past from the State of Ohio - including but not limited to: Third Frontier, Edison Centers, OAQDA financing, or other state or quasi-public sources?	The OAQDA recognizes the value of building upon past investments by the State in growing companies as well as leveraging of available programs and resources to a given project.
U.S. or International Investment in Ohio	What institutional investors are involved in the project?	Projects that can help to attract other advanced energy investments to Ohio are favored.

Technical

Use of Ohio Coal. The technology will maintain or increase the use of Ohio coal.
Objectives. The proposal has clearly stated objectives; the objectives are well defined and realistic and will advance the state-of-the-art; and the objectives are likely to be achieved in a cost-effective manner.
Technical Merit. Proposal thoroughly and clearly discusses significant technical issues and/or risks/opportunities associated or anticipated with this technology or process; a thorough background discussion is provided describing the technology’s development to date; the project will build upon and not duplicate prior work; and the level of proposed scale-up is appropriate and not over-reaching. Sufficient technical support is provided to substantiate a high probability of success; the proposal contains a very clear, detailed, logically sequenced statement of work with specific performance targets or ranges and identified QA/QC methods; the technology is not “off-the-shelf” or commercially guaranteed for the particular application for which it is proposed; and the project will be completed in a reasonable time frame.
Environmental Performance. The project identifies significant environmental issues associated with its commercial use; the technology is superior in environmental performance to competing technologies; valid performance claims are presented; the technology will meet or exceed requirements of the Clean Air Act (as amended) and other appropriate laws and regulations; the technology addresses a current or anticipated environmental issue; related issues such as by-products, parasitic power use and associated ancillary costs are addressed; and the project identifies and includes any necessary permitting and provides sufficient time in project for same.
Technical and Management Competence. Project sponsor(s) and key personnel have relevant experience and depth and possess the capability both corporately and in personnel knowledge/ability to ensure the project is properly managed (technically and financially), engineered, constructed, and operated, documented and reported within budget. The project team has sufficient technical, managerial and marketing capabilities and skills to undertake a project of this magnitude. The company has enough depth of personnel, funding, and resources to handle a project of this scale, especially if unforeseen problems arise.

Marketability

Applicability to Ohio. This project/technology is applicable to Ohio coal-consuming facilities or is a technology/process likely to be used in Ohio using Ohio coal as a fuel or feedstock; there is likelihood of near-term adoption in the marketplace for demonstration and pilot projects.
Competition and Market. The applicant exhibits a full understanding of the implementation constraints applicable to commercial processes. The applicant demonstrates a clear understanding of the market and this technology’s competition in that market and how this technology surpasses the competition in performance and cost. The applicant is experienced in commercialization of new technologies and presents evidence of same.
Cost-effectiveness. Application of the technology is likely to meet or exceed environmental requirements as established by current and expected law and regulation at an economically competitive cost compared to currently available and/or emerging technologies. The applicant identifies the cost or credit associated with byproduct disposal or sale. The applicant demonstrates a clear understanding of the economic issues that must be addressed in the technical development.
Business/Marketing Plan. Given the level of development (i.e., pilot, demonstration, deployment, etc.) of the technology, an appropriate business/marketing plan is presented. The applicant demonstrates knowledge of the Ohio and overall market, how this will advantage Ohio coal, and how to penetrate the market. Clear steps/plans are presented to commercialize the technology.

Financial

Financial Ability. The applicant is financially stable and has sufficient depth of resources to support the project, especially if unforeseen problems arise.
Reasonableness of Budget. The budget is reasonable for the tasks proposed. The ratio of OCDO funds to private and other public contributions (cash and in-kind) is not excessive and is within limits set elsewhere in this document. The project cost and relative investment by the State of Ohio is commensurate with the risk undertaken by the State. The applicant and co-applicants bear an appropriate share of the risk.
Cost-share. The Applicant bears a significant portion of the project’s total cost, with cash and, where appropriate, in-kind contributions.
Past Performance as an OCDO or other Ohio Agency Grant or Loan Recipient. For those applicants who have previously received support from OCDO or another State agency, the adherence to and completion of the requirements of the previous agreement(s) was acceptable. No taxes or other debts to the State of Ohio are outstanding.

Attachment 1 – Project Budget Summary – Download by clicking here.

PART B

OCDO projects are overseen in accordance with the terms and conditions of a legal agreement, which is entered into after project approval by the OAQDA. The agreement can be in the form of a grant, loan or loan guarantee.

Loans or loan guarantees will be individually negotiated after a project is recommended from the technical review process.

OCDO’s standard grant agreement template is included as part of this Guide. Also included are all of the Exhibits that are attached to a final Agreement and become as legally binding as the Agreement itself. Most notable among the Exhibits is the Exhibit H, “Royalty/Payment Agreement.” Applicants are advised to review all of these documents prior to preparing a proposal to OCDO.

By submitting a proposal to OCDO, the applicant agrees to accept the terms and conditions contained in OCDO’s grant agreement template and all of its attached exhibits, unless requests for specific exceptions are made in its proposal to OCDO.

Please note: OCDO understands that the grant agreement template is a model and it may be necessary to make modifications to meet the needs of individual projects. By identifying possible changes in the template early, OCDO hopes to significantly shorten the grant negotiation process. Resolving requested exceptions before any action by OAQDA will allow final negotiations to focus on substantive work statement and budget issues. If you choose to request exceptions, please remember that OCDO will consider them with an eye toward balancing the needs of the project and the stewardship responsibilities of OCDO for its public funds.

A special word about Exhibit H, “Royalty/Payment Agreement”: In recognition of the risk taken by the State of Ohio in entering into research, development and deployment projects, the ORC authorizes the OCDO Director to include royalty or repayment agreements as a condition of OCDO support. OCDO recognizes that determining the amount of this payment can be complicated. If you choose to request an exception in this area, please present a clear business case supporting your alternative language. This will not only help OCDO evaluate your request; it will build a valuable database that improves the State’s ability to craft equitable royalty/repayment agreements in the future.

Industrial Project Grant Template

University Project Grant Template

Requests for Exceptions

The applicant must submit its project proposal to OCDO in two parts:

PART A - The Technical & Marketing Proposal, described above.
PART B - Requested Exceptions to OCDO Grant Agreement

Failure of an applicant to submit both Parts A & B will be cause for rejection of the proposal without review. If an applicant has no exceptions, then a sheet must be included in the proposal clearly identified as “PART B,” that bears the statement, “This applicant has no exceptions to the OCDO grant agreement and its attached Exhibits, including the Royalty/Payment Agreement.”

Exceptions (including minor alterations, additions or deletions) must include an explanation of why the exception is being sought and the effect it would have on the applicant’s ability to perform the project. The exception must also provide suggested alternative language. Any requests for exceptions must identify the Section and Paragraph of the Grant Agreement or the Royalty/Payment Agreement, or the Exhibit by its letter.

Procedure

Part B will be reviewed prior to the technical review of Part A.

Exceptions deemed by OCDO to be major will be reviewed by OAQDA legal counsel before any technical review commences. A diligent and quick attempt will be made to resolve any differences. If, after advice of legal counsel, resolution is not possible, OCDO reserves the right to reject the proposal without further review.

Exceptions deemed by OCDO to be minor will not delay technical review and will be addressed during that review process.

All exception issues (major or minor) must be resolved before any proposal is presented to a meeting of the OAQDA. After thorough discussion with the applicant, OCDO will identify in writing exceptions that have been accepted, modified or rejected. If the applicant wishes to continue, the proposal will proceed through the usual review and approval process.