Management and Operation of the Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI)

The summary for the Management and Operation of the Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI) grant is detailed below. This summary states who is eligible for the grant, how much grant money will be awarded, current and past deadlines, Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) numbers, and a sampling of similar government grants. Verify the accuracy of the data FederalGrants.com provides by visiting the webpage noted in the Link to Full Announcement section or by contacting the appropriate person listed as the Grant Announcement Contact. If any section is incomplete, please visit the website for the National Science Foundation, which is the U.S. government agency offering this grant.

Management and Operation of the Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI): The OOI is a large scale ocean observing system constructed and deployed under NSF sponsorship and oversight as a Major Research Equipment and Facilities Construction (MREFC)Project. The systemincludes an integrated network of cabled and uncabled arrays of instrumentation, distributed in various coastal and global ocean locations, to facilitate Ocean Science research. Since construction was completed in 2016, the OOI has been in operational status at an approximate funding level of $55,000,000 ($55M) per year. The existing Cooperative Agreement (CA) for Construction and Initial Operation of the facility extends from September 2009 through April 2017. A National Research Council (NRC) review commissioned by NSF to examine the balance of Ocean Science research and infrastructure costs over the next decade resulted in NSF developing an implementation planthat will require significant changes to the facility operation envisioned by the current CA.The new approaches required for managing and operating theOOI in the best interest of U.S. science willmost effectivelybe implemented by a new operating model that encourages greater efficiency, innovation,and collaboration. <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">This solicitation seeks the services of a qualified organization to provide scientific and technical management and operation of the OOI consistent with National Science Board policy and NSF's decisions regardingNRC recommendations. The initial period of the award is intended to cover five years, plus a maximum 6 month transition period if required, with performance expected to begin in late-2017.