Austin hosts 2010 Renewable Energy World Conference
It was not happenstance that brought 2010 Renewable Energy World Conference to Austin, TX from February 23rd to 26th. Texas is now the largest producer of renewable energy in the country and has emerged as perhaps the most intriguing example for energy integration. The Energy Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) has gained an enviable reputation for maintaining one of the most progressive grids in the county and is the only entity of its type that is not under the authority of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). Austin is also on track to becoming the greenest city in America as Austin Energy sets its plan in motion to wean itself from carbon based power and the community continues to promote sustainable development.
The overall message of the conference was that this emerging industry, ripe with technological advances is rapidly changing the economics of the energy landscape. Renewables are starting to close the gap with carbon based energy sources, but there are still a lot of obstacles to overcome. Transmission and storage continue to be the major challenges. While wind and solar are ramping up production dramatically, they are still limited by the very source of their energy–nature. The sun doesn’t shine at night and the wind doesn’t blow all the time. The energy grid has to be maintained as a constant to meet demand, and until a means is developed to cheaply store renewable energy, there will be a continued need for low cost carbon based (and mainly natural gas) sources to keep the grid energized.
Renewable energy is also in state of transition because of various technological advances. Wind generation growing rapidly throughout the world. Solar is starting to close the gap on cost effectiveness with wind, and photovoltaic film is beginning to rapidly outpace crystalline silicon in terms of cost per watt and efficiency. The forecast for thin film and similar conductors shows a steady declining cost curve, far ahead of estimates as recent as a year ago. The vision of cost effective roof tiles made of photovoltaic materials is nearing reality. Imagine the average residential building as an energy generator and you have a glimpse of what the future has to offer.
FERC Chairman Jon Wellinghoff offered a sort of state of the union on the U.S. energy market and a glimpse at the future of the electrical grid. But this was truly an international event with attendees and exhibitors from every continent. The exhibit hall was crammed with the latest and greatest in technologies and companies vying for a piece of the action. The array of vendors was a reflection of how rapidly the renewable industry has grown. From the latest in technology to the latest in services and engineering to optimize these technologies, there was an impressive array of businesses on display.
The conference alos offered a variety of individual tracks focusing on the various components of the renewable energy industry: wind, solar, geothermal, biomass and hydro. There were related sessions on financing and utility integration. In just about all of the sessions there was a wealth of technical and business related information presented with opportunities for Q&A and abundant opportunities for networking.
When someone finally figures out how to capture and store renewable energy in a cost effective way, the world will go through a dramatic and rapid change. And one has to tip their hat to Texas. It wasn’t that far back that Texas was best known for its tall derricks with gushers. Now that image is being replaced by towering wind turbines and vast arrays of solar panels. Renewable energy is starting to pick up some serious momentum in the U.S., which is starting to emerge in a leadership role on the international stage. It will be most interesting to see the progress made by the 2011 Renewable Energy World Conference.
Rick Sebenoler is a LEED AP based in Austin, TX
Renewable energy is the future, why depend on fossil fuels when we can go renewable.’–