Posts Tagged ‘energy efficiency’

h1

Energy Efficiency Trade Mission to Moscow and St. Petersburg, Russia

February 29, 2012

June 4-7, 2012

The U.S. Commercial Service is organizing an Energy Efficiency Trade Mission to Russia to be led by a senior government official next June.  The trade mission is targeting a broad range of technologies including: electricity transmission infrastructure, smart grids, energy storage, road construction materials and green building, environmental goods and services, especially water treatment and water efficiency, which reduce the environmental impact of industrial processes and energy generation. 

The trade mission fee, including lodging for one person per company is $2,650 for a small or medium-sized enterprise (fewer than 500 employees) or $3,200 for large firms.  The fee for each additional representative is $500. 

New legislation and national goals addressing energy inefficiency and climate change, and the need to improve environmental services to the general public are generating a demand for energy efficient  products and services and environmental technologies in Russia. Russia presents lucrative opportunities for U.S. firms in these sectors.

The mission will include one-on-one business appointments with pre-screened potential buyers, agents, distributors and joint venture partners; meeting with national and regional government officials; and networking events in Moscow and St. Petersburg. 

Apply at: http://export.gov/trademissions/russiaenergy/. 

For more information contact: Anne Novak at (202) 262-7764 or Anne.Novak@trade.gov.

Posted in Commercial Service, Trade Missions | Tagged , | 1 Comment »

h1

U.S. Clean Energy and Energy Efficiency Trade Mission to Saudi Arabia

February 7, 2012

April 14–18, 2012
U.S. Clean Energy and Energy Efficiency Trade Mission to Saudi Arabia
Riyadh and Dhahran (Eastern Province), Saudi Arabia

In April, Assistant Secretary Nicole Lamb-Hale will lead a Clean Energy and Energy Efficiency Trade Mission to Saudi Arabia. The mission will include market briefings by industry experts, opportunities for U.S. firms to meet key Saudi Arabian government officials and decision-makers, hold one-on-one meetings with potential business partners, and enjoy networking events, with the goal of increasing U.S. exports in the clean energy and energy efficiency sectors.

SolarTAC test facility in Aurora, CO (Courtesy of DOE/NREL)

SolarTAC test facility in Aurora, CO (Courtesy of DOE/NREL)

The mission comes at a critical time for both Saudi Arabia and the U.S. clean energy and energy efficiency industry, and has the potential to create opportunities for U.S. exporters while helping Saudi Arabia to achieve its energy goals.

Saudi Arabia has ambitious plans to improve energy efficiency and reduce reliance on hydrocarbons for power generation.  These plans offer abundant opportunities for U.S. companies to export American technologies, products, and services. 

While Saudi Arabia possesses one-fifth of global oil reserves, it meets almost 60% of its domestic power needs from petroleum.  The eight to nine percent annual growth in domestic electricity demand – and thus domestic petroleum consumption –  cuts deeply into exports.  The Saudi Government heavily subsidizes domestically-used oil, which causes not only  reduced export income, but also has enormous opportunity costs as there is less feedstock for development of downstream petrochemical industries and the jobs that go with them. 

Saudi Arabia hopes to reduce by half the crude oil and natural gas it burns now to generate electricity, in part by developing solar power capacity, an area where it has clear climatological advantages. As part of its plan for reducing fossil fuel dependence, the Saudi Government aims to install 5 GW of solar power by 2020.

As Saudi Arabia expands its energy supply and integrates renewable energy, further investment will be required in grid modernization and smart grid technologies that enable utility management of variable energy sources. Firms participating in the trade mission will gain market insight, make industry contacts, solidify business strategies, and identify or advance specific projects, helping U.S. firms benefit from this growing market for their products as Saudi Arabia ramps up investment in the clean energy and energy efficiency sectors.

Both residential and industrial sectors contribute to increased electrical demand in Saudi Arabia.  Residential air conditioning consumes more than 50% of total power during Saudi Arabia’s long, hot summers.  Saudi Arabia plans to construct 1.65 million new homes over the next six years and will be looking closely at products, materials and technologies that reduce energy use and increase efficiency. 

Saudi Arabia also relies on desalination plants to produce 70% of its potable water, using as much as 1.5 million barrels per day of oil equivalent to do so; Saudi Arabia hopes to start up its first solar-powered desalination plant in 2013.

This mission will target a variety of sectors that could reduce the impact of residential and industrial electricity demand, including solar power generation components and systems; smart grid systems, software and services; green building design/engineering, materials and technologies; and energy efficiency systems and solutions.

The mission will begin in Riyadh and will include site visits and consultations in Dhahran (Eastern Province), including the King Abdullah City of Atomic and Renewable Energy, the Saudi Electricity Company and Saudi Aramco. The cost to participate in the trade mission ranges from $3,020 to $3,502 per company for one representative, depending on firm size. There is a $500 fee for an additional company participant. Expenses for travel, lodging, most meals and incidentals will be the responsibility of each mission participant.

Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis through March 1, 2012. Space is limited. For more information about the trade mission, visit the mission web site or contact Jen Derstine of Manufacturing and Services, tel.: (202) 482-3889; e-mail: jennifer.derstine@trade.gov, or James Fluker of the U.S. & Foreign Commercial Service, tel.: +966 (1) 488-3800; e-mail: james.fluker@trade.gov.

Useful resources:

ITA Saudi market research
Saudi Country Commercial Guide  
Archive recording of Saudi solar webinar

Posted in Commercial Service, Exporting, Manufacturing and Services, Trade Missions | Tagged , , | 1 Comment »

h1

Participants in the Renewable Energy Trade Mission to Turkey Find Business Partnerships

January 9, 2012

Ryan Barnes is an International Trade Specialist in the Office of European Country Affairs within the Market Access and Compliance division of the International Trade Administration.

Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Trade Delegation to Turkey, December 5-9, 2011

Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Trade Delegation to Turkey, December 5-9, 2011

Just last month, I accompanied Michael Camuñez, Assistant Secretary for Market Access and Compliance as he led 16 U.S. Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency companies on a Trade Mission to Turkey. The delegation included U.S. energy firms as well as officials from Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee (TPCC) agencies: Export-Import Bank, Overseas Private Investment Corporation, U.S. Department of Energy and U.S. Trade and Development Agency. The delegation visited Ankara, Izmir and Istanbul, where numerous opportunities exist for these firms.

The staff of the International Trade Administration recruited a variety of companies for the mission.  The group included energy giants such as General Electric, Johnson Controls, and AES as well as nine small and medium-sized enterprises on the leading edge of renewable energy technology.  Of the sixteen firms, whose products range from solar panels to cooling systems, eleven had never before done business in Turkey.  One firm, World Business Capital, was also there to provide financing.

The mission’s main objective was to introduce the participants to potential Turkish business partners.  U.S. firms met with numerous Turkish counterparts in one-on-one meetings to discuss possible joint venture opportunities.  More than 340 of these business to business matchmaking meetings took place during the five-day mission. 

The trade mission could not have come at a better time.  Bilateral trade between the U.S. and Turkey is set to break records in 2011, with projections of roughly $20 billion in total trade.  And the energy sector, in particular, is ripe for U.S. trade and investment.  Turkish energy demand is due to grow at a rate of seven to nine percent annually.  To help accommodate this growing demand, the Turkish government will invest roughly $130 billion by 2023, and has placed a great deal of emphasis on renewable energy.  Ankara has plans to achieve 30 percent renewable energy production by 2023, and has called for $40 billion in investment in this sector by 2020. Turkey also passed an updated renewable energy law in December 2010 to provide even further investment incentives.

The U.S. Government has worked to develop this burgeoning market.  In addition to the trade mission, there is a newly launched interagency project known as the “Near Zero Zone”.  This project, led by the U.S. Department of Energy, is helping industrial companies operating within the Izmir Ataturk Organized Industrial Zone (IAOSB) reduce their energy usage through a series of cost-effective efficiency upgrades.  One of key stops during the trade mission was to this Near Zero Zone site in Izmir.

The trade mission, along with the Near Zero Zone, helped with the formation of business partnerships and provided opportunities to match high quality U.S. supply with growing Turkish energy demand.  The potential for mutual gain in this arena is enormous.  Already, trade mission participants have reported a potential $40 million in business deals.   We hope this is just the beginning.

Posted in Commercial Service, Exporting, Green and Sustainable, Market Access and Compliance, Trade Missions | Tagged , , | 3 Comments »

h1

Unleashing the Potential for Economic Growth: Promoting Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Exports

December 8, 2010

This post contains external links. Please review our external linking policy

Julius Svoboda is an International Trade Specialist in the Office of Energy and Environmental Industries at the International Trade Administration and works on industrial energy efficiency issues. Specifically, he coordinates the Energy Efficiency Initiative, a program that supports U.S. exporters of energy efficiency products.

Yesterday 24 of the 28 members of the newly appointed and created Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Advisory Committee met for the first time to discuss the state of this key sector, hash out their priorities for moving the needle forward to exact change, and make meaningful and productive recommendations to Gary Locke, the Secretary of Commerce.

The committee came about as a result of the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Export Initiative. The Initiative was developed through the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee Working Group on Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency, which includes representatives from the Departments of Commerce, Energy, State, and Agriculture, as well as the Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im), the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), the U.S. Trade and Development Agency, and the Office of the United States Trade Representative.

Although many of the Committee members  are serving as advisors to form policy and practical recommendations for the first time, the thoughtfulness and intelligent discussions during the course of the meeting was evidence that they taking the responsibility of their appointment very seriously. That this Committee wants to have a measurable and constructive impact is clear, and their remarks impressed that upon policymakers like Secretary Locke that the industry needs to be given greater priority across the administration.

One message heard again and again during the meeting was a viable and robust domestic market here will help promote exports of U.S. goods and services. Growth markets want to see the technology in operation, and companies can’t sell abroad what won’t be bought at home. Leading by example will sell the products and services themselves—but the U.S. government needs to support renewable energy and energy efficiency research, development and adoption in the U.S.

The membership asked the Secretary for suggestions on the types of recommendations that he felt would be most constructive. The Secretary’s answer was clear: “attach a metric to recommendations so that government can see how we are improving,” he said “if we’re doing C work, we need to know that, and if we’re doing A work we need to know that too.”  Being able to measure the impact of policy will go a long way to knowing the best way to support the industry.

Representatives from the Departments of State and Energy, OPIC, Trade Development Agency, Ex-Im, the U.S. Trade Representative’s Office all participated and briefed the committee members on activities within their organizations relating to renewable energy and energy efficiency.

The committee elected Karl Gawell, Executive Director of the Geothermal Energy Association to serve as their chairman and Tom Wirec Vice President of Membership & Corporate Relations of American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE) to serve as vice chair.

As the committee continues to meet, I am looking forward to their discussions and recommendations and how that will all have an impact on the future of this industry.

Posted in Competitiveness, Exporting, Green and Sustainable, International Trade Administration, National Export Initiative | Tagged , , | 5 Comments »

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 179 other followers