The message at CLEANPOWER 2024 was clear: jobs, competitiveness, and economic impact
Chambers for Innovation and Clean Energy (CICE) attended the American Clean Power Association’s CLEANPOWER conference this month in Minneapolis, represented by our Clean Energy Outreach Manager, Kelsey Pepitone, and Midwest Regional Director, Logan O’Neill. The event brought together entrepreneurs, technical experts, and business leaders from every corner of the industry and country. Here are some takeaways from Kelsey & Logan:
Overall tone
It was apparent from the beginning that there is a fierce desire to succeed in the clean power industry. The economic case for clean energy deployment was a through line across the 50+ sessions at the conference. This was clear as early as the opening session, as David Mortenson, Chairman of real estate builder and developer Mortenson, set the stage by stating, “We aren’t just focused on clean energy because of greenhouse gas reductions. We are focused on clean energy because it’s the economy of tomorrow.”
"We aren’t just focused on clean energy because of greenhouse gas reductions. We are focused on clean energy because it’s the economy of tomorrow." -David Mortenson,@MAMortensonCo
— Chambers for Innovation (@chambersinnov8) May 7, 2024
CICE team members join #cleanenergy leaders at@USCleanPower, #CLEANPOWER24 event. pic.twitter.com/i5UG7gADpw
Each day of the conference had a different theme:
Day 1 (Informed): Clean energy is a rapidly growing industry with vast opportunity and momentum, but challenges remain to maximize its full potential.
Day 2 (United): How 10,000+ attendees and 500+ exhibitors can leverage collaboration and coordination to overcome the remaining challenges and accelerate clean energy deployment.
Day 3 (Prepared): Workshopping tools to bring back to communities, states, and regions to continue expanding and improving the industry.
Key messages
1. Clean energy will continue to be a source of quality jobs
To build the necessary generation facilities, transmission infrastructure, and component parts needed for broad-scale clean energy deployment, a skilled clean energy workforce will be a critical component of that success. For instance, Invenergy’s SVP of Global Sourcing, Mark Delaney, discussed the employment impacts of the company’s Illuminate USA photovoltaic manufacturing facility currently employing 600 Ohioans and on target to reach 1,000 by the end of the year.
Susan Nickey, EVP and Chief Client Officer of HASI, added: “We are not just creating jobs in wind, solar, and storage. We are also powering the most important industries and economic sectors, helping them create thousands of jobs across all 50 states.”
2. Infrastructure is a competitiveness issue
When discussing increased energy demand, data centers are often a key talking point. However, Maria Robinson with the U.S. Department of Energy and Krista Tanner with ITC Holdings underscored that rather than being the sole cause of the trend, data centers are simply complementing an organic growth in demand.
They encouraged attendees to think outside of data centers and more generally about the increasing needs of new, larger users coming online across the country. If these users are not able to access the power required for their intended operations, they will simply build elsewhere.
To encourage transformational investment opportunities in communities across the U.S., the transmission infrastructure needs to be ready and able to accommodate them in a timely manner.
3. Utility-scale solar and wind projects generate positive economic impact for host communities
These projects provide a stable source of revenue, typically via property tax or a payment in lieu of taxes (PILOT), for the communities that host them. Beyond outright revenue generation, they bring with them well-paying jobs, increased demand for local services, and an ability for long-term budget forecasting. However, communicating these benefits to potential host localities is critical, with sustained partnership between project developers and local decision-makers crucial to tailor the investment to the needs of the community.
These investments also don’t come at the cost of community character, as oftentimes the projects facilitate allowing family farms to remain in the family. This was underscored by Iowa State Senator Waylon Brown in a panel discussion on renewable energy in the Midwest, where he acknowledged the wind industry as a key part of saving family farms in Iowa.
At panel on renewable energy in the Midwest, Iowa State Senator Waylon Brown discussed local benefits, “The wind industry saved a lot of family farms in Iowa...our struggle right now is how do we continue to see projects moving forward...we need to be leaders, we can’t sit back… pic.twitter.com/uXDuWZG2Mh
— American Clean Power (ACP) (@USCleanPower) May 7, 2024
Final thoughts
The private sector and federal policy environment have been largely favorable for clean energy development and deployment given unprecedented recent investment and landmark legislation such as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act. At a high level, there are the buyers, builders, and funds required to advance a true clean energy economy. However, many state-level energy policies and incentive structures remain out of date relative to the technology available. To further enable the speed and scale required for this transition, states need to provide clear, supportive, and updated policy frameworks reflective of the state of play.