As a consequence of the ongoing local and global impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Clarion Events North America (formerly PennWell) is rescheduling HYDROVISION International 2020.
The event, which was due to take place in July, will now run November 17-19, with co-located activities and industry organization meetings taking place Monday, November 16, and Tuesday morning, November 17.
The venue – the Minneapolis Convention Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota – remains unchanged.
HYDROVISION International attracts more than 3300 attendees and over 350 exhibitors from approximately 50 countries and is the largest gathering of hydropower and marine energy professionals in the world.
“The health and safety of our exhibitors, speakers, attendees, employees and the wider public is of paramount importance to us,” said Duncan Reid, Executive Vice President of Global Energy for Clarion Events.
“We have been actively monitoring the advice and directions provided by the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as the state of Minnesota. In alignment with governmental and public health directions and in consultation with the industry, we have decided to reschedule HYDROVISION International to November to minimize potential health risks to those connected to the event.”
He added that it is expected that the current challenges presented by the coronavirus “will slow down significantly within the next few months, which means the new November date for HYDROVISION International will allow us to deliver the most meaningful event in terms of achieving marketing and business development objectives for our exhibitors and providing excellent content and experiences for our attendees”.
Marla Barnes, Vice-President of the Hydro Portfolio at Clarion Events, said: “We take great pride in building HYDROVISION International to support the hydro community. Success for us is measured by the overall HYDROVISION experience for our audience and providing them with training and tools that ultimately keep their operations running safely and productively.”
“Based on feedback from our host utilities, association supporters and exhibitors, we feel November 17-19, 2020 is the perfect option as it proceeds election day in the United States, is before the US Thanksgiving holiday and conflicts with no other hydro events on the calendar.”
Reid explained that Clarion Events, like every organization in the world, is “having to respond to a situation unlike any we have ever experienced before. We appreciate the patience of the market as we have investigated the options to provide an alternative solution that works best for all involved. It was a heart-breaking decision for our team but we are looking forward to delivering a great HYDROVISION International event on our postponed dates.”
James Zyduck, Director of Renewable Operations of Xcel Energy, one of HYDROVISION International’s host utilities said: “Xcel Energy recognizes the role that this event plays in providing new solutions and innovations for the future of the hydropower, dams, and marine energy markets.”
“We recognize that COVID-19 presents unprecedented challenges and are glad that a solution has been found to allow the event to continue this year. We look forward to coming together as a hydro community in November 2020.”
Jennifer Moore, Marketing/Business Development Manager of Mesa Associates, one of HYDROVISION International’s Hydro Company Leaders, added that “Mesa Associates appreciates Clarion’s efforts to postpone the largest hydro event of the year and look forward to seeing our hydro community in November”.
Thomas Reiss Jr, is President of Hydro Component Systems, a company that is a HYDROVISION International Hydro Company Leader. He said: “With HYDROVISION International being an integral solution for us to generate leads through in-depth conversations, we fully support the postponement of the event and look forward to coming face-to-face with our key prospects and clients in Minneapolis in November.”
Clarion Events is continuing to monitor the COVID-19 situation and will follow up with customers and the hydro industry as needed if health advisories change.
