Funding, News and Announcements

The Offshore Energy Research Association (OERA) has a 'Open Proposal Program' available three (3) times a year for potential research funding in the areas of marine renewable energy, petroleum geosciences and seismic & marine sound.

The OERA is an independent, not-for-profit contract research organization that was established in 2006, and capitalized by the Nova Scotia Department of Energy, to support offshore geoscience, environmental and marine renewable energy research and development. Its mission is to lead energy research that enables the sustainable development of Nova Scotia’s offshore energy resources through strategic partnerships with academia, government and industry. OERA’s purpose is to reduce the risks related to investments in Nova Scotia’s offshore energy resources through the provision of a range of research initiatives.
 
The following proposal guideline will be used for funding considerations.  The rationale behind this program is to capture modestly budgeted research projects at different times of the year that fall outside OERA’s standard Competitive Research Call and RFP processes.

Upcoming Open Proposal Deadline:  January 15, 2016

Program specifications:

• Proposals will be accepted three times annually and vetted by external peer reviewers with funding recommendations made to the OERA Board of Directors.
• Proposals will be due to OERA on the 15th day of January, May and October of any given year.  Proposals not received by the specified  due dates will be carried forward to the next available review period.
• Proposed work must be to conduct research in marine geosciences, marine renewables (tidal), and seismic & marine sound.
• Program impetus is to build research capacity in Nova Scotia.  A minimum of 50% of the proposed budget support Highly Qualified Personnel (HQPs).
• An OERA Proposal Form must be submitted in both a Word document and PDF format.

Criteria:

• Proposed work supports and/or advances an OERA research priority area; or is an extension of existing research previously funded by OERA; or is deemed important and timely to advancing Nova Scotia’s offshore energy sector.
• Proposal budget must be a maximum of $20,000 CAD per project (inclusive of academic overhead where applicable).
• A minimum of 50% of the proposed budget must be spent in Nova Scotia.
• Proposed work must be completed within one (1) year.
• Project leveraging (cash and/or in kind) and collaborative initiatives are strongly encouraged.

Eligible Budget Items:

• Minimum 50% of proposed budget to support HQP stipends.
• Modest equipment costs (excluding office equipment) and software, to a maximum of 5% of project value.
• Administrative costs up to a maximum of 10% of project value.
• Modest travel costs for field work only.
• Modest materials and supplies costs.

*Please note, conference fees, workshops, administrative software, office equipment or faculty honoraria are not eligible costs under this program.
OERA will notify all applicants of the outcome of their proposal within 90 days of the closing date.

For more information please visit our website at www.oera.ca or contact:
 
Nalani Perry
Operations Manager
Offshore Energy Research Association
Tel:  902-406-7012   
Email:  nperry@oera.ca