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National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL)NREL HomeInnovation for Our Energy Future
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The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is the nation's primary laboratory for renewable energy and energy efficiency research and development (R&D).

NREL's mission and strategy are focused on advancing the U.S. Department of Energy's and our nation's energy goals. The laboratory's scientists and researchers support critical market objectives to accelerate research from scientific innovations to market-viable alternative energy solutions. At the core of this strategic direction are NREL's research and technology development areas. These areas span from understanding renewable resources for energy, to the conversion of these resources to renewable electricity and fuels, and ultimately to the use of renewable electricity and fuels in homes, commercial buildings, and vehicles. The laboratory thereby directly contributes to our nation's goal for finding new renewable ways to power our homes, businesses, and cars.

R&D Expertise

NREL's focused R&D capabilities are positioned to advance national energy goals by developing innovations to change the way we power our homes and businesses, and fuel our cars. Our R&D capabilities allow us to develop and advance renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies more effectively through the full R&D life-cycle—from basic scientific research through applied research and engineering; to testing, scale-up, and demonstration. NREL's R&D areas of expertise are:

  • Renewable electricity
  • Renewable fuels
  • Integrated energy system engineering and testing
  • Strategic energy analysis

Technology Transfer

A critical part of the Lab's mission is the transfer of NREL-developed technologies to renewable energy markets. NREL's Technology Transfer Office supports laboratory scientists and engineers in the successful and practical application of their expertise and the technologies they develop. NREL's world-class R&D staff and facilities are recognized and valued by industry, as demonstrated through hundreds of collaborative research projects and licensed technologies with public and private partners. NREL's innovative technologies have also been recognized with 42 R&D 100 awards. The engineering and science behind these technology transfer successes and awards demonstrates NREL's commitment to developing and applying innovative renewable energy solutions for the nation's secure and sustainable energy future.

Photo of NREL Director, Dr. Dan E. Arvizu.

Laboratory Director

Dan E. Arvizu, Ph.D, became NREL's eighth Laboratory Director on January 15, 2005. Prior to NREL, Arvizu was an executive with CH2M HILL Companies. Most recently, he was Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of the Federal and Industrial Client Groups. Before joining CH2M HILL, he was also an executive with Sandia National Laboratories, where he worked for more than 20 years. He began his career at the AT&T Bell Telephone Labs Customer Switching Laboratory. Arvizu was appointed to the National Science Board by President George W. Bush.

Operations & Outreach

NREL's Mission: NREL develops renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies and practices, advances related science and engineering, and transfers knowledge and innovations to address the nation's energy and environmental goals.

NREL's Strategy: NREL has forged a focused strategic direction to increase its impact on the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) and our nation's energy goals by accelerating the research path from scientific innovations to market-viable alternative energy solutions. Learn more about how NREL is translating strategy into action.

NREL began operating in 1977 as the Solar Energy Research Institute. It was designated a national laboratory of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) in September 1991 and its name changed to NREL.

NREL is the principal research laboratory for the DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy and also provides research expertise for Office of Science, and the Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability. NREL is managed for DOE by the Alliance for Sustainable Energy, LLC.

Annual Funding (in $ Millions per fiscal year)

Chart showing NREL's annual funding in $ Millions for FY02 - 215.8, FY03 - 229.8, FY04 - 211.9, FY05 - 201.9, FY06 - 209.6, FY07 - 378.4.