Technology-to-Market Summer Scholar - Identifying and Characterizing Market Opportunities for Seaweed
Identifying and Characterizing Market Opportunities for Seaweed
Background
The Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) is an agency within the U.S. Department of Energy that funds creative, out-of-the-box, transformational energy technologies that are too early stage for private investment. ARPA-E programs provide top energy researchers with funding, technical assistance, and tech-to-market guidance to radically improve U.S. energy security, energy efficiency, and environmental well-being. The driving question behind all ARPA-E programs is “If it works, will it matter?”
ARPA-E recruits summer scholars who have a unique combination of technical and business skills to assist in defining commercialization pathways for high-impact technology development programs. This internship opportunity offers experience in advancing the transition of cutting-edge energy technologies to market applications in a fast-paced environment.
Opportunity
ARPA-E is currently funding a major effort to demonstrate the feasibility of ocean farming of macroalgae (seaweed) on a scale and at a product cost that will make it competitive with biomass from terrestrial farms for bioenergy applications. Through its program called MARINER (MacroAlgae Research Inspiring Novel Energy Resources), ARPA-E has committed about $50M in funding to about 20 teams around the United States to develop methods for sustainable growth and harvest of several species of seaweed in a number of marine environments.
While the long term goal is the production of large volumes of biomass for bioenergy applications, ARPA-E recognizes that it will take many years for macroalgae mariculture to achieve the scale, efficiency and production cost necessary to support a seaweed-to-fuels industry. ARPA-E is therefore interested in exploring the utility of macroalgae in shorter term applications – including in human food, animal feed, agricultural fertilizers, industrial products, etc., - as well as in the potential for macroalgae farming for environmental remediation in coastal waters.
While there are many anecdotal examples of seaweed being used for such purposes, there has not yet been a systematic effort to characterize this applications landscape. ARPA-E seeks a summer scholar to evaluate potential market opportunities for seaweed, focusing on the following topics:
· Current uses of seaweed in different commercial applications, with descriptions of current sources of supply and volume estimates.
· Profiles of the market leaders and other key stakeholders in these markets
· The potential for future growth in selected applications (existing and new), based on availability and economics of seaweed product supply
· Supply chains in these downstream markets
· Potential economic, regulatory, competitive or market barriers to adoption and growth of seaweed in these applications, especially those where seaweed is not currently widely used.
Specific activities to be performed as part of this work include:
· Reviewing secondary information sources, including published market research reports, conference proceedings and journal articles for relevant information
· Direct surveys of representatives of different stakeholder groups, primarily via phone or email and/or with in person meetings where justified.
· Analyzing the findings and preparing a written report and a summary presentation
ARPA-E’s Summer Scholars Program is designed to prepare ARPA-E-funded technologies to achieve maximum impact and return on investment for ARPA-E project teams, stakeholders, and our Nation’s taxpayers. This internship provides a unique opportunity to work under and interface with the ARPA-E Technology-to-Market team, ARPA-E Program Directors, and ARPA-E Fellows.
The ideal candidate(s) will have a bachelor’s degree in a relevant field (e.g. engineering, agriculture, food science, economics, etc), be in the midst of completing a graduate level degree, preferably M.S. or MBA, and have relevant work experience to include:
· Experience with technoeconomic analysis
· Familiarity with market research approaches
· Ability to conduct outreach and engage in direct information gathering from primary sources
Applicants should be prepared for deep immersion into the project and must be comfortable working independently. Job requirements include strong analytical, written and oral communication abilities.
Selected Summer Scholar(s) will be paid a weekly stipend and travel costs; length of stay can be negotiated, but typically ranges from 8-12 weeks. The position will be based at ARPA-E’s headquarters in Washington, DC. This opportunity is available only to U.S. citizens.
Highly motivated candidates should submit a CV, a cover letter, and two references at
https://arpa-e.energy.gov/jobs. Questions can be directed via email to ARPA-E-jobs@hq.doe.gov with the words “Energy Scholars” in the subject heading.
Applications are due no later than Friday, January 31, 2020, and will be processed on a rolling schedule. Interested parties are encouraged to apply early.