Sources Sought
Request for Information (RFI): Advanced Battery Circularity & Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)
Department of Defense · Defense Logistics Agency
AI summaryRequest for information (RFI) from the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA), DCSO-Richmond Division #3, for market research on end-of-life battery recovery, reclamation and critical mineral recycling. It is not a solicitation and promises no contract. Battery makers and battery recyclers answer written questions. The response due date is November 19, 2026, 5:00 PM Eastern. More in the summary
Market research, not a bid. Replying is free and tells Defense Logistics Agency who could do this work. Send a short reply to the contracting contact; no price is needed. See the contact
AI summary Beta
Request for information (RFI) from the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA), DCSO-Richmond Division #3, for market research on end-of-life battery recovery, reclamation and critical mineral recycling. It is not a solicitation and promises no contract. Battery makers and battery recyclers answer written questions. The response due date is November 19, 2026, 5:00 PM Eastern.
How to submit: Email to the point of contact for this RFI, or upload to SAM.gov before the RFI closes. What to include is under Full summary below. Check the solicitation's instructions on SAM.gov.
Things to watch
From the version posted Oct 19, 2026.
- Minor: Market research only. The RFI is for planning and market research. It does not promise a solicitation, so responding is an information exchange, not a bid.
- Minor: Questions call for regulatory and supply chain knowledge. Answers cover foreign-entity-of-concern (FEOC) sourcing limits, EPA rules, export controls and supply chain mapping, which can be hard for a small firm without a compliance team.
Read from the notice and 1 attachment. Show which files.
- RFI Questions 2026.docx (read)
Full summary
What they want
- Written answers to the attached RFI questions, by battery manufacturers (Part A and Part B) or battery processors and recyclers (RFI #2)
- Manufacturers: describe extended producer responsibility (EPR) programs, take-back and repair programs, supply chain mapping challenges, and what it would take to handle end-of-life lithium batteries
- Manufacturers: describe the batteries and parts you process, return shipping and safety rules, cost models, and contracting arrangements that could support a federal return-to-producer program
- Processors: describe your recycling processes, volumes processed and permitted, what is needed to start or expand recycling, and safety or environmental issues at your sites
- Both groups: say what share of sales is in the United States and how proposed EPA and export-control rules would affect you
- Place of performance
- USA
- Estimated value
- Not stated
- Offers due
- November 19, 2026, 5:00 PM Eastern
- How to submit
- Email to the point of contact for this RFI, or upload to SAM.gov before the RFI closes
What to include when you submit
- Give direct, concise answers to the attached set of questions
- Answer the set that fits your business: manufacturers answer Part A and Part B, processors answer RFI #2
Not in the notice text
- The point of contact's email address is not given in the text; check the notice on SAM.gov
- No page limit or file format is stated for responses
- Whether any later buy would be a set-aside; SAM.gov does not state a set-aside
Eligibility and how to respond
- No set-aside. Any business can reply: this is market research, and no bid is being taken yet.
- To respond, send a short reply to the contracting contact near the top of this page. No price is needed.
Notice details
- Posted
- Oct 19, 2026
- Notice type
- Sources Sought
- Office
- Dcso-Richmond Division #3, VA
- Business type
- Electronic parts & equipment (supplies) (FedReady's grouping, from NAICS 335910)
- Attachments
Past awards and competition
Who has won work like this before, the likely incumbent, and what similar contracts paid, from USAspending.gov.
Before you respond
Terms on this notice: Sources sought notice
Full notice text from SAM.gov
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