It’s a dirty job, but somebody’s got to do it…

Well, not “dirty” in the “we promote fossil fuels” kind of way – this was the Renewable Energy panel, after all. Think “dirty” more along the lines of “difficult and demanding,” or something that requires incredible amounts of ingenuity, persistence, and grit.

All of our panel participants showcased those characteristics on Wednesday afternoon. Experts in their respective fields of renewable energy – solar, wind, and biomass – they spoke about the ups and downs of a burgeoning, but bumpy, business. Their titles and companies are listed below:

• Mike Lenox, Associate Dean and Executive Director of the Batten Institute (Moderator)
• Matthew Markee, President, Recast Energy
• Thomas Meth, Executive VP, Enviva Sustainable Biomass Resources
• Eamon Perrel, Director of Business Development, Apex Wind Energy
• Danny Van Clief, VP Business Development, HelioSage

A consistent theme during the discussion was that renewable energy companies, especially smaller start-ups, face unique challenges in the post-recession economy. Specifically, Matthew Markee said that the cost and time for project financing was onerous due to the restricted risk appetite of investors. Additionally, Thomas Meth mentioned that cheap electricity prices have hampered the return on projects, making it even more difficult to raise capital. To that point, Danny Van Clief emphasized how important it was to engage in a great deal of marketing to appeal to “patient capital,” and convince investors of a company’s credibility in the industry.

Despite this challenging environment, the panelists were tremendously optimistic about opportunities for growth. When asked about what cost efficiencies the industry could realize moving forward, each of them was quick to respond: Danny Van Clief thought that manufacturing costs for solar would decline substantially in the future; Eamon Perrel argued that technology would get cheaper and that there would be greater efficiencies of scale, rendering wind energy more competitive; Thomas Meth cited the learning curve as the main opportunity for biomass; and Matthew Markee mentioned that changing the mindset of biomass suppliers would lead to higher performance in the industry.

In sum, the panel was a fitting conclusion to a terrific conference. Thanks again to all of those who participated and attended – we look forward to continuing our discussion of these issues!