RSS
Home
Austin hosts Texas Renewable Energy Industries Association Conference
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
he Texas Renewable Energy Industries Association (TREIA). based in Austin, proved its maturity this week by holding its 25th anniversary annual Texas Renewables Conference in Austin. “This conference represents our coming of age. It means the recognition of a maturing industry, which is no longer peripheral, but part of all new energy growth,” commented Michael Osborne, of Austin Energy, one of the main sponsors of the event.
The association provides services and information in the areas of biomass and solar electricity generation, solar hot water, large and small scale wind electricity generation, liquid renewable fuels, geothermal heating and cooling, geothermal electricity generation and sustainable building design and construction.
Austin is on the forefront of the race to renewable energy, according to Osborne, and his colleague, Mark Kapner, Austin Energy’s senior strategy engineer, According to them, Austin has had the number one green-pricing program in the country for at least six years running. The program includes about 10,000 residential customers, but 85% of green choice energy is used by larger customers, such as AISD, the State of Texas, and Austin’s industrial giants.
Osborne, who was the first Texan to sell power back to a utility, confirmed that Texas also is on the forefront globally of renewable energy growth. He said that Up to 92 gigawatts are generated from wind around the world and Texas alone produces nine of those gigawatts. That is more than any other state and most countries. According to Russell Smith, TREIA’s executive director, Texas is in the top five in the world for wind generation capacity.
Several at the conference, however discussed what measures it would take for Texas to produce more solar-generated electricity. Kapner, Raj Prabhu, who tracks global marketing trends for Mercom and David Dollihite, the president of product and business development for Direct Energy Mass Markets all predict that the cost of solar will come down because of a global surplus of manufacturing, and improvements in solar technology. “It will substantially become and economic resource for the area, and it alone could even meet our 2,500 megawatt maximum demand for electrical energy,” said Kapner.
Panel discussions summed up the idea that consumer participation through smart grids and other technology will lead to market transformation, not in decades, but in a matter of years.
“Terribly successful,” joked Smith at the end of the conference that hosted members from all over the world. For example, the international business connections forum includes the German-American Chamber of Commerce, UK Trade and Investment, the Government of Israel Economic Office, the US-Mexico Border Energy Forum, and the Canadian Embassy. The 600 member organization includes companies, governmental agencies, non-profit environmental and consumer groups, electric utilities, cooperatives, individuals and students.
Members include global economic giants like British Petroleum Solar, Sharp, Kyocera, Sunpower, as well as smaller local organizations like Public Citizen. The organization benefits Texas, contends Smith, not just economically, but environmentally, socially, politically and otherwise. He said they are leaving the conference, which ended Tuesday, energized to fight another day, another month and another year.
Bob Webb, with Biofuels Power Corporation summed up this year’s conference: “In the past the industry had a narrow focus, which was to get more wind power and solar power in Texas. Now we have a broader, more inter-related, range of potentials. The talent and economy is already here in the work force to meet the new potential. We took steps at this conference to do this. As energy leaders of the world, it’s not impossible to stay a leader as we develop beyond fossil fuels.”
Related Articles:
Add a Comment
