(a) Invitations for the submission of Applications for loan guarantees for Eligible Projects shall be published on DOE's Title XVII Loan Guarantee Program website. The Title XVII Loan Guarantee Program website shall contain guidance for potential Title XVII Applicants and solicit applications for a Guarantee.

(b) The Title XVII Loan Guarantee Program website must include, at a minimum, the following guidance:

(1) The dollar amount of loan guarantee authority potentially being made available by DOE for Guarantees under Title XVII;

(2) The method and further instructions for submission of Applications;

(3) The name and address of the DOE representative whom a potential Applicant may contact to receive further information;

(4) The programmatic, technical, financial, and other factors and criteria that DOE will use to evaluate Applications, including but not limited to consideration of the Reasonable Prospect of Repayment, the amount of Equity provided, and the reliance on other Federal assistance;

(5) The required contents of the Application, which may vary by category of Eligible Project; and

(6) Such other information as DOE may deem appropriate.

(c) Using procedures as may be announced by DOE, a potential Applicant may request a meeting with DOE to discuss its potential Application. At its discretion, DOE may meet with a potential Applicant, either in person or electronically, to discuss its potential Application. DOE's responses to questions from potential Applicants and DOE's statements to potential Applicants, including any initial thoughts on the eligibility of the project, are pre-decisional and preliminary in nature. Any such responses and statements are subject in their entirety to any final action by DOE with respect to an Application submitted in accordance with § 609.4.