Colorado Senate votes to increase renewable energy requirement

"Xcel Energy will be required to use renewable energy for 30 percent of the power it delivers to customers by 2020 under a bill given almost-final legislative approval Friday by the Colorado Senate.

That’s up from the 20 percent requirement under current law and will put Colorado second only to California in the percentage of energy that utilities are required to provide from renewable sources. California requires that 33 percent of utility-delivered power come from renewable energy -- including several large hydroelectric power plants in that state.

The Senate approved the measure (H.B. 1001) on a 21-13 party line vote. Democrats supported it, Republicans opposed it.

The bill has to go back to the House for approval of minor changes made in the Senate and then will go to Gov. Bill Ritter for his signature. The bill is one of the governor’s top priorities for the 2010 legislative session.

Environment Colorado and the Colorado Cleantech Industry Association both supported the bill, and Xcel also said it supported the bill as long as it didn’t raise the two percent cap on the impact that providing power from renewable energy could have on customers’ bills."

Link to the BrownonGreen.net article

Special Report: Green Technology - Can Green Technology Propel Economic Development?

Chad Vander Veen's article in the March 2010 Governing magazine includes quotes from Matt Cheroutes, CCIA Founding Board Member:

"That's the case in Colorado, where Gov. Bill Ritter ordered his Energy Office, Economic Development Office and state CIO to collaborate on ways to nurture green technology start-ups and create demand among consumers for emerging — and typically more expensive — green products.

Colorado is testing a new Discovery Grant Program designed to help early stage companies, which are often simply groups of researchers attempting to take an idea out of the lab and into the commercial market.

'At that point, there's not a lot of available seed capital. So to give them some small grants at the very beginning really shows great support from the state,' says Matt Cheroutes, director of communications and external affairs for the Colorado Governor's Office of Economic Development and International Trade.

Cheroutes, a founding member of the Colorado Cleantech Industry Association, says strong executive support for green technology in Colorado will lead to job growth and economic prosperity. But that won't happen, he says, unless companies can deliver their products to a public that can afford them — a tall order in green tech markets that are often too immature to deliver at affordable economies of scale.

Cheroutes says the state works closely with renewable energy firms to develop incentives for consumers. Take solar power, for example, where the cost of installing solar panels typically doesn't pencil out for the average homeowner.

'We've had a lot of people in our state say they want solar on their homes,' Cheroutes says. 'But they simply can't afford the initial investment to do it. We've seen estimates anywhere from $8,000 for a very small home to $15,000 for a medium-sized home. These days, not a lot of people have the ability to pay that.'

The state worked with two Colorado solar firms — SolarCity and SunRun — to develop a financing model that makes solar installations more affordable. Instead of paying the full installation fee upfront, consumers instead put up a down payment that is a fraction of the total cost. Over the next three or four years, the energy savings the consumer realizes goes back to the solar company to pay the remaining balance. After the company is paid in full, the consumer's energy bill decreases significantly. . .

'The culture has changed in Colorado,' says Cheroutes. 'It's something that everyone in Colorado has sort of agreed to and bought in to. And whether that's out of a desire to protect our mountains or to keep our kids from being sent halfway around the world to fight, or if it's to keep kids who are home employed and working, it's a cultural mind change, and sometimes those are the hardest things to deal with in the beginning. So if you have the will of the people, of industry and of political leaders, you can make anything happen.'"

Link to the article

Video Recap from Feb 25 Event - Advanced Water Management: Using Cleantech to Manage Scarce Resources

The CCIA assembled national and regional water experts at the University of Denver to discuss advanced water management and using cleantech to manage scarce resources.

Welcome from Rahmat Shoureshi, Dean and Professor:



CCIA Overview by Christine Shapard, Founding Executive Director:



Cameron J. Brooks, Ph.D.
Director of Solutions & Business Development
IBM Big Green Innovations (first of five parts available on the COCleantech YouTube Channel):



Robin Newmark
Principal Program Manager, Planning and Program Development
National Renewable Energy Laboratory:



Roger Austin
National Vice President and Managing Consulting Director
MWH:



Forbes Guthrie
Director
Stewart Environmental Consultants, Inc. (first of two parts available on the COCleantech YouTube Channel):



Jeffrey Popiel
President & CEO
Geotech Environmental Equipment (first of two parts available on the COCleantech YouTube Channel):



Link to the CCIA YouTube Channel

CCIA & IBM Focus on Smart Water Feb 25 at DU Craig Hall Community Room

The Colorado Cleantech Industry Association (CCIA) is offering “Advanced Water Management: Using Cleantech to Manage Scarce Resources,” February 25, with keynote presentation by Cameron Brooks on IBM’s Smarter Planet Initiatives. IBM is already staking claims in the smart grid industry to better manage electricity. Now it's doing the same for water, with a broad offering that will include developing sensor and intelligence networks for water utilities, smart water meters and a new technology for water filtration.

Keynote speaker is Dr. Cameron Brooks, Director of Solutions & Business Development, IBM Big Green Innovations. He will introduce IBM’s Smarter Planet initiatives and discuss the technologies IBM is employing to leverage their smart grid expertise for the water “grid.” Dr. Brooks will also provide IBM’s perspective into where the water technology market is headed relative to IP sharing, investment, partnership and global opportunities.

Following the IBM keynote presentation, the CCIA will open a panel discussion with experts from:

* Stewart Environmental

* MWH Global

* National Renewable Energy Laboratory
* Geotech Environmental Equipment

Event details: February 25, 7:30 – 10:30 a.m., at Craig Hall Community Room, University of Denver. Registration is required by contacting Shelly Curtiss at 303-623-2690 or Shelly@coloradocleantech.com – CCIA members attend free of charge; $35 for non-members. Note space is limited and reservations are on a first-come, first-served basis. For more information, visit http://tinyurl.com/AdvWaterMgmt

Link to the Advanced Water Management news release

Beetle Juice: Turning Dead Trees Into Heat and Electricity

Jerry Brown of BrownonGreen.net attended the CCIA's Feb 11th Biofuels session and posted this report on presenter Phil Kastelic, CEO of Colorado Forest and Energy:

"If life hands you lemons, make lemonade. And if it hands you five million acres of dead trees ravaged by pine beetles? Make beetle juice.

That’s what CEO Phil Kastelic of Colorado Forest and Energy, calls the electricity and thermal energy he says could be made from the huge number of trees in Colorado killed by pine beetles.

As Kastelic sees it, the solution couldn’t be simpler."

Link to the BrownonGreen.net article

Altira's Cory Steffek: "Colorado's going to be very well positioned in the future."

Cory Steffek shared secrets to securing funding for early stage startups at the CCIA BioFuels dual-panel program Feb 11 at the Denver Chamber. Here's a recap of participants for this outstanding CCIA event.

Panel 1, moderated by Stacey Simms, Governor's Energy Office: Rich Schoonover, Solix Biofuels; Christopher Ryan, Ph.D., Gevo; Justin Bzdek, Symbios Technologies; Phil Kastelie, Colorado Forest and Energy.

Panel 2, moderated by Wayne Greenberg, Architectural Energy and Heartland Renewable Energy: Chas Eggert, OPX Biotechnologies; Cory Steffek, Altira Group; Mike Miller, formerly Blue Sun Biodiesel; John Ashworth, Ph.D., National Renewable Energy Laboratory.

Feb 11 Program: Biomass to Biofuels

Note: registration closes Feb 8, 2010, at 5 p.m. - registration contact: Shelly@coloradocleantech.com

The next few years will witness the commercialization of “advanced” biofuels. The U.S. government has mandated that 100 million gallons of cellulosic biofuel be blended into the nation’s gasoline supply in 2010 increasing to 16 billion gallons in 2022. Success for cellulosic biofuel producers will depend on many variables including: (1) access to consistent supply of affordable feedstocks, (2) ability to access project finance and/or government loan guarantees (3) improved economies of scale with production methods. (Source: GTM Research)

While second-generation cellulosic ethanol remains a hot topic among policy-makers and venture capitalists, serious attention is being paid to third-generation algae biofuels. Known as a “drop in” fuel, algae can potentially serve the gasoline, diesel, and aviation markets.

Discussions during the February 11th program will include topics such as:

* An examination of the variety of innovative 2nd gen pathways and conversion technologies that are under development and are fast becoming a commercial reality

* The economics, including a discussion of stimulus funding, behind the biofuels market

* Market and policy hurdles and opportunities

* The financing viewpoint

* Lessons learned

This program is free for CCIA Members - RSVPs are required. There is a cost of $50 per person for non-members.

Agenda

7:30 - 8:00 a.m. - Registration, breakfast and networking.

8:15 - 9:45 a.m. - Biofuels: Not Your Grandmother's Corn Ethanol
Moderator: Stacey Simms, Governor's Energy Office
Panelists:
Algae - Solix Biofuels
Retrofitting/Jet Fuel - Gevo
Waste Conversion to Energy - Symbios
Feedstock - Community Power Corporation

10:00 - 11:30 a.m. - Biofuels Hurdles to Jump Before They Get to the Pump
Moderator: Wayne Greenberg, Architectural Energy and Heartland Renewable
Panelists:
Policy - TBA
Industry - OPX Biotechnologies
Financing - Altira Group
Lessons Learned - Mike Miller, formerly of Blue Sun Biodiesel
Technology - National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Remember to RSVP by 5 p.m., Monday, Feb 11 to Shelly@coloradocleantech.com