CleanTX Forum Event

Renewable Energy Winds Sweep Across Texas

This CleanTX Forum discusses Texas’ wind-energy leading edge and what is needed to propel growth as dollars blow in...

Last year, Texas became the top wind producer in the United States, far surpassing California, with over 3,300 wind generated megawatts installed—enough to power almost 1 million homes. It is predicted that two- thirds of future US wind-energy generation will happen in the Lone Star State, where three of the world’s top-five wind farms are located.

An August report by the Department of Energy’s Energy Information Administration noted that wind power is the fastest growing renewable energy technology. In 2006, private capital investment into wind energy development projects increased by 45% and looks to continue increasing in the future. Anticipating new wind farms in rural West Texas, the Texas Public Utility Commission recently approved transmission lines that could deliver as much as 25,000 megawatts (6,875,000 homes) of wind energy to major Texas cities by 2012.

Are wind-supporters tilting at windmills? Questions are still gusting on intermittency, scalability, technical, penetration, and ecological issues. As Texas blows past other states in developing wind energy, what new technologies and entrepreneurial opportunities are on the horizon?

The CleanTX Forum will upgrade the potential of wind-energy generation to a class IV hurricane. Industry insiders, investors, and government supporters will address the following questions…

* How did Texas become #1 in wind generation?
* What is the future of wind in Texas? In the U.S.?
* What are the new technology trends in wind?
* What are the various factors (technological, political, and economic) driving development?
* What can Texas do to position itself as not just a leader in wind generation, but also in technology development?

Time:
5:00-6:00 Registration & Networking
6:00-8:30 Panel Discussion

Location:
The Commons Center
10100 Burnet Road
Austin, TX 78758

Map URL: http://www.utexas.edu/commons/maps/index.html

Moderator:
Richard Amato, President and CEO, Venti Energy

Speakers:
Ron Heine – Wind Energy Program Manager, TECO Westinghouse
Marty Price – Viryd Wind Energy
Susan Sloan – American Wind Energy Association (AWEA)
Michelle Warren – Deputy Commissioner for Renewable Energy, Texas GLO
Dr. Dan Laird – Sandia National Laboratory (invited)

RSVP:
http://www.austintechnologycouncil.org/cde.cfm?event=182737

Cost:
$15 in advance / $20 at the door