Notice2024-08391
Notice of Request for Information (RFI) on Critical Materials Market Dynamics
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
April 19, 2024
Issuing agencies
Energy Department
Abstract
The Department of Energy (DOE or the Department)'s Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains seeks public comment on market dynamics for critical materials, including non-competitive practices and price volatility, to identify potential ways DOE can help address these concerns.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 77 (Friday, April 19, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 77 (Friday, April 19, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 28759-28761]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-08391]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Notice of Request for Information (RFI) on Critical Materials
Market Dynamics
AGENCY: Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains, Department of
Energy.
ACTION: Request for information.
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SUMMARY: The Department of Energy (DOE or the Department)'s Office of
Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains seeks public comment on market
dynamics for critical materials, including non-competitive practices
and
[[Page 28760]]
price volatility, to identify potential ways DOE can help address these
concerns.
DATES: Responses to the RFI are requested by May 20, 2024.
ADDRESSES: Interested parties may submit comments electronically to
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#3578706676545b54594c465c46755d441b515a501b525a43"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="d8959d8b9bb9b6b9b4a1abb1ab98b0a9f6bcb7bdf6bfb7ae">[email protected]</span></a> and include ``Critical Materials Market
Dynamics RFI'' in the subject line of the email.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Further questions may be addressed to
Charles Yang, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#400d051303212e212c393329330028316e242f256e272f36"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="9ed3dbcdddfff0fff2e7edf7eddef6efb0faf1fbb0f9f1e8">[email protected]</span></a> or (202) 586-6116.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
This is an RFI issued by the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE)
Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains (MESC). This RFI seeks
public input on market dynamics and price volatility in critical
materials processing, refining, and recycling. This RFI will inform
DOE's development of critical materials strategies and measures to more
effectively mitigate market volatility as critical materials
processing, refining, and recycling are scaled up in the United States
and allied countries.
MESC seeks input from all types of critical material market
participants:
<bullet> Companies that process, refine, or recycle critical
materials;
<bullet> Groups that supply feedstock for such processors or
recyclers (e.g., miners, scrap collectors);
<bullet> Offtakers of critical materials (e.g., automobile
manufacturers, battery manufacturers, other clean energy manufacturers,
utilities, heavy industries);
<bullet> Investors in critical material projects (e.g., project
finance investors, banks, commodity traders, brokers, private equity);
<bullet> Not-for-profit organizations (e.g., entities capable of
operating demand-side support mechanisms to scale up critical material
processing, refining, and recycling);
<bullet> State, local, and tribal government entities; and
<bullet> Other interested entities (e.g., trade associations,
market-clearing organizations).
II. Purpose
On July 31, 2023, DOE released its Critical Material Assessment,\1\
which identified critical materials in the near and medium term that
will face supply-demand imbalances. This assessment also informed the
DOE's Critical Material List.\2\
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\1\ <a href="https://www.energy.gov/sites/default/files/2023-07/doe-critical-material-assessment_07312023.pdf">https://www.energy.gov/sites/default/files/2023-07/doe-critical-material-assessment_07312023.pdf</a>.
\2\ The following materials are on the DOE critical material
list: aluminum, cobalt, copper, dysprosium, electrical steel,
fluorine, gallium, iridium, lithium, magnesium, natural graphite,
neodymium, nickel, platinum, praseodymium, silicon, silicon carbide
and terbium. <a href="https://www.energy.gov/cmm/what-are-critical-materials-and-critical-minerals">https://www.energy.gov/cmm/what-are-critical-materials-and-critical-minerals</a>.
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MESC is committed to securing the energy supply chains needed to
support a clean and stable energy transition, which will be fueled by
critical materials. This RFI will help inform the development of the
U.S. Department of Energy's and its Office of Manufacturing Energy
Supply Chain's strategy towards securing critical materials for the
energy sector industrial base.
The purpose of this RFI is to solicit feedback on market dynamics
in the critical material supply chain and how the Federal Government
can play a role in supporting market stability and price transparency.
DOE is specifically interested in information on:
<bullet> Market dynamics for critical material producers and
implications of those market dynamics for securing a secure and
resilient critical material supply chain; and
<bullet> What kind of Federal Government support or coordination
would be essential to scaling up domestic critical material processing,
refining, and recycling, particularly to mitigate market volatility.
You may answer as few or as many of the questions below as you
would like. Please use the question number in your response to help
reviewers. Please also provide detailed responses.
III. Questions
1. For a given critical material, are there particular market
dynamics DOE should be aware of?
a. Are there specific critical materials that have experienced
significant market volatility and price instability?
b. For a given critical material, are there differences in cost of
production domestically versus cost of production in other countries?
How are those differences in cost of production reflected in prices?
c. What, if any, impact has market volatility and price instability
had on various market participants?
d. For those critical materials that have experienced significant
market volatility and price instability, what are the underlying
causes?
e. Are there particular critical materials where processing,
refining, or recycling projects struggle to attract investment
specifically because of demand-side uncertainty and/or lack of firm
offtake (vs., e.g., concerns about competitiveness on price or lengthy
qualification processes)?
f. How do these market dynamics implicate the ability of domestic
critical material producers to sign offtake agreements with end users?
How does this impact DOE investments in the critical material industry
and the path to securing a resilient supply chain?
2. What measures can DOE take to promote market stability within a
given critical material market?
a. How can DOE facilitate market adoption and maturity as a
stakeholder (e.g., facilitating market information sharing, encouraging
price transparency, supporting consortiums)?
b. How can DOE support critical material projects beyond capital
grants and loans? Are there particular programs or policy mechanisms
DOE should leverage with existing statutory authority to support
critical material projects and successful project offtake? Are there
particular aspects of the supply chain that DOE should focus on?
c. In operations without co-located vertical integration across
extraction (or production) and processing, what specific federal
support would be most useful to provide operational stability?
3. What indicators of market volatility demonstrate the need for
support? What are effective measures or guiding principles DOE or the
Federal Government could take to support critical materials?
a. What are important considerations in exploring reverse auctions,
advanced market commitments, contracts for difference, direct
procurement, pooled offtake vehicles, or other support measures?
b. What are implementation approaches for DOE to facilitate demand-
side support for critical materials through existing grant and loan
authorities and/or public-private partnerships?
4. What are the benefits and drawbacks of physical offtake of
critical material products for stockpiling compared to other measures
that do not involve physical offtake? What existing mechanisms could be
used and what concerns should be considered in terms of implementation?
5. How would setting up alternative market exchanges or indices
with international partners for critical materials enable price
transparency, market stability, and/or reduce emissions from critical
material production?
a. What premium would firms be willing to pay for validated
attributes such as ESG standards and supply chains sourced from
domestic/allied
[[Page 28761]]
countries? How could DOE or the Federal Government support greater
demand for higher standard materials?
b. How might environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards
or critical material grades specific to energy applications be
incorporated into an exchange and what are the conditions needed for
successful implementation?
6. What other tools outside of market exchanges could support price
transparency, market stability, and/or reduce emissions from critical
material production?
a. What actions could the United States take in collaboration with
its international partners to enhance price transparency and stability?
b. Which country partners would be ideal collaborators?
c. Are there established international fora that are better suited
to have an impact on these challenges? (i.e., International Energy
Agency, G7, OECD, etc.)
IV. Response Guidelines
Commenters are welcome to comment on any question. RFI responses
shall include:
1. RFI title;
2. Name(s), phone number(s), and email address(es) for the
principal point(s) of contact;
3. Institution or organization affiliation and postal address; and
4. Clear indication of the specific question(s) to which you are
responding.
Responses to this RFI must be submitted electronically to
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#97dad2c4d4f6f9f6fbeee4fee4d7ffe6b9f3f8f2b9f0f8e1"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="a4e9e1f7e7c5cac5c8ddd7cdd7e4ccd58ac0cbc18ac3cbd2">[email protected]</span></a> with the subject line ``Critical Materials
Market Dynamics RFI'' no later than 5:00 p.m. (ET) on May 20, 2024.
Responses must be provided as attachments to an email. It is
recommended that attachments with file sizes exceeding 25 MB be
compressed (i.e., zipped) to ensure message delivery. Responses must be
provided as a Microsoft Word (*.docx) or Adobe Acrobat (*.pdf)
attachment to the email, and no more than 10 pages in length, 12-point
font, 1-inch margins. Only electronic responses will be accepted.
A response to this RFI will not be viewed as a binding commitment
to develop or pursue the project or ideas discussed. MESC may engage in
pre- and post-response conversations with interested parties.
Confidential Business Information
Because information received in response to this RFI may be used to
structure future programs and/or otherwise be made available to the
public, respondents are strongly advised NOT to include any information
in their responses that might be considered business sensitive,
proprietary, or otherwise confidential.
Pursuant to 10 CFR 1004.11, any person submitting information that
he or she believes to be confidential and exempt by law from public
disclosure should submit via email two well-marked copies: one copy of
the document marked ``confidential'' including all the information
believed to be confidential, and one copy of the document marked ``non-
confidential'' with the information believed to be confidential
deleted. Failure to comply with these marking requirements may result
in the disclosure of the unmarked information under the Freedom of
Information Act or otherwise. The U.S. Government is not liable for the
disclosure or use of unmarked information and may use or disclose such
information for any purpose. If your response contains confidential,
proprietary, or privileged information, you must include a cover sheet
marked as follows identifying the specific pages containing
confidential, proprietary, or privileged information:
Notice of Restriction on Disclosure and Use of Data:
Pages [list applicable pages] of this response may contain
confidential, proprietary, or privileged information that is exempt
from public disclosure. Such information shall be used or disclosed
only for the purposes described in this RFI. The Government may use or
disclose any information that is not appropriately marked or otherwise
restricted, regardless of source.
In addition, (1) the header and footer of every page that contains
confidential, proprietary, or privileged information must be marked as
follows: ``Contains, Confidential, Proprietary, or Privileged
Information Exempt from Public Disclosure'' and (2) every line and
paragraph containing proprietary, privileged, or trade secret
information must be clearly marked with [[double brackets]] or
highlighting. Submissions containing CBI should be sent to:
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#c18c849282a0afa0adb8b2a8b281a9b0efa5aea4efa6aeb7"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="cf828a9c8caea1aea3b6bca6bc8fa7bee1aba0aae1a8a0b9">[email protected]</span></a>.
Signing Authority
This document of the Department of Energy was signed on April 12,
2024, by Giulia Siccardo, Director, Office of Manufacturing and Energy
Supply Chains, pursuant to delegated authority from the Secretary of
Energy. That document with the original signature and date is
maintained by DOE. For administrative purposes only, and in compliance
with requirements of the Office of the Federal Register, the
undersigned DOE Federal Register Liaison Officer has been authorized to
sign and submit the document in electronic format for publication, as
an official document of the Department of Energy. This administrative
process in no way alters the legal effect of this document upon
publication in the Federal Register.
Signed in Washington, DC, on April 16, 2024.
Treena V. Garrett,
Federal Register Liaison Officer, U.S. Department of Energy.
[FR Doc. 2024-08391 Filed 4-18-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P
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