The Third Annual California-Germany Bilateral Energy Conference (CGBEC), a collaboration between the California Energy Commission and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, will take place on November 5, 2019, in San Diego. This conference will highlight key energy policy drivers and challenges for California and Germany and will provide a platform for presenting and discussing experiences and lessons learned.
The CGBEC will take place alongside the Energy Storage North America (ESNA) Conference & Exhibition, the most influential gathering of policy, technology and market leaders in energy storage in North America. CGBEC and ESNA will provide an unprecedented opportunity for policy makers, think tanks, developers, utility executives, energy users, industry representatives and other stakeholders from around the world to engage on real solutions and applications, specifically energy storage, for transitioning to a clean energy future.
Germany and California represent the fourth and fifth largest economies in the world and are frontrunners in the energy transition. Renewables are the leading power source in Germany and account for 41 percent of the country’s electricity mix, while California is powered by more than 34 percent renewables. Germany plans to phase out coal-fired power plants by 2038; California has committed to a fossil-free power sector by 2045.
“We expect to move forward with the electrification of nearly everything as we eliminate the use of fossil fuels in California,” said California Energy Commission Chair David Hochschild. “To achieve California’s goals we must transition to 100% clean electricity — which energy storage innovation and a green transportation infrastructure can help us do to implement clean energy in our daily lives.”
The German State Secretary for Energy, Andreas Feicht, states: “While the decarbonization of the power sector is on track in Germany, we need innovative technologies and solutions across sectors such as energy storage and powerfuels (synthetic fuels made with renewable energy) in order to achieve the necessary overall emission reductions. International cooperation is key for reaching the goals of the Paris Agreement more efficiently and faster. With our collaboration with California and this year’s co-location with ESNA, we want to facilitate mutual learning and sharing of experiences.”
Janice Lin, Co-founder and Chair of ESNA and Member of the Advisory Council of the German American Chamber of Commerce is honored to host CGBEC at ESNA. “This year the theme of ESNA is All About Innovation: Technology, Business Models, and Markets. Germany and California are global leaders in market innovation required to enable an efficient, clean, affordable, and resilient grid. The next step for the energy storage industry is to enable market tools that support the deployment of long duration and seasonal energy storage to complement 100% clean energy production. That is why convening ESNA and CGBEC is so critical. We need bold policy makers in the same room as industry, solving problems together.”
The CGBEC would like to thank its partners Adelphi and the German American Chamber of Commerce. ESNA is grateful to its 2019 Platinum Utility Sponsor: Los Angeles Department of Water and Power; its Platinum Sponsors: Doosan Gridtech, Fluence, IBEW-NECA; its Gold Sponsors: EastPenn Manufacturing, EDF Renewables, Greensmith Energy, a Wärtsilä company, Li-Ion Tamer, LG Chem; and its Silver Sponsors: Munich Re, Maysteel, PXiSE, and Trane.
Registration for both events is available online at: https://esnaexpo.com/attend/registration
About Energy Storage North America
Energy Storage North America (ESNA) is the largest conference, exhibition and networking event covering all applications of grid storage in North America. ESNA is produced by Strategen and Messe Dusseldorf North America. ESNA connects utilities, developers, energy users, policy makers and other key stakeholders from around the world to advance understanding and deployment of energy storage, and ultimately build a cleaner, more affordable and more resilient grid. The 7th annual ESNA takes place November 5-7 2019, in San Diego, California. More information at www.esnaexpo.com.
About the California Germany Bilateral Energy Conference
The CGBEC will gather industry experts, think tanks, and policy makers from Germany and California to discuss recent policy and technology developments in the energy sector, and to deepen the understanding of long terms trends in energy. The conference is a collaboration of the California Energy Commission and German Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy. https://www.energy.ca.gov/cgbec.html
About the California Energy Commission
The California Energy Commission is leading the state to a 100% clean energy future. As the state’s primary energy policy and planning agency, the Energy Commission plays a critical role in creating the energy system of the future – one that is clean, is modern, and ensures the fifth largest economy in the world continues to thrive.
About the German Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy
The German Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy is responsible for the German federal energy policy and the transition towards renewable energy sources and better energy efficiency. The Ministry’s goal is to make the energy transition a driver for modernisation, innovation and digitisation and to keep the energy supply affordable, secure and environmentally friendly. Since other countries are facing similar challenges, Germany is engaging in deeper exchange with a number of countries to accelerate the global energy transition.
