Tuesday, June 5, 2018
| Time | Event |
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| 7:30 am - 5:30 pm | Registration Open, Lost Pines Ballroom Foyer |
| 8:00 am - 6:00 pm | Exhibit Open, Lost Pines Ballroom 5-8 |
| 8:30 am - 10:00 am | Opening General Session, Lost Pines Ballroom 4 More Info |
8:30 am - 8:40 am | Welcoming Remarks Speakers: Abigail Ross Hopper, President and Chief Executive Officer, Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) Tanuj Deora, Chief Content Officer, Smart Electric Power Alliance (SEPA)
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| 10:00 am - 11:00 am | Speed Networking Breaks & Exhibits Lost Pines Ballroom 1 |
Sponsored by  |
| Breakout Session 1 | Breakout Session 2 | |
|---|---|---|
| 11:00 am - 12:00 pm | The Voice of the Consumer: Opportunities and Strategies to Meet and Exceed Customer Expectations in the Energy Industry Lost Pines Ballroom 2 More Info |
How Solar, Wind, and Storage are Getting Bigger in Texas Lost Pines Ballroom 4 More Info |
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As the sustainable energy industry continues to mature in Texas, defining, meeting and exceeding the expectations that customers have at all levels is essential. This session will define what rate payers are looking for, investigate what that means for your business and discuss how to leverage these customers to grow the solar industry. Speakers: |
The generation profile in Texas is changing as the value stack for renewable energy amplifies and creates opportunities for additional deployment. Although the economics driving an increase in renewable generation, variable resources challenge our existing frameworks for grid management and investments. This session will identify challenges and opportunities associated with integrating renewables in wholesale markets, potential opportunities for new technology deployment and define what is needed for greater grid flexibility as we transition today’s legacy grid into a low-cost, low-carbon engine for our economy.
Moderator: Joshua Rhodes, Research Fellow at the Energy Institute and the Webber Energy Group at the University of Texas at Austin Speaker: Colin Meehan, Director, Regulatory & Public Affairs, First Solar Joachim Seel, Scientific Engineering Associate, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Lynnae Willette, Regulatory & Legislative Affairs Manager, EDF |
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| 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm | Networking Lunch & Exhibits | |
| 1:30 pm - 2:30 pm | Planning for Resilience: What Works and Why Lost Pines Ballroom 2 More Info |
Trade and Tariff Impacts on Solar Finance Lost Pines Ballroom 4 More Info |
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Recent hurricanes have brought to light the importance of the resilience and reliability of our power grid. This session will identify and examine best practices in resilience planning throughout the United States with a focus on the East Texas response to Hurricane Harvey.
Moderator: Jennifer Szaro, Senior Director, Programs, Smart Electric Power Alliance (SEPA) Speaker: Cris Eugster, Chief Operating Officer, CPS Energy Michael Gavenonis, Director for Strategic Technology, Sunnova Arcenio Lopez, Director of Strategic Initiatives, Texas Electric Cooperatives |
Congress enacted the first major change to the tax code in more than 30 years and the Trump administration announced its decision in the Section 201 trade case, placing tariffs on imported solar cells and modules. This session will focus on understanding how less government transparency has created new challenges and opportunities in the solar financing landscape.
Moderator: John Eliason, Partner, Foley & Lardner Speakers: Ty Bowman, Vice President, Prudential Capital Group Helen Brauner, Director of Origination Strategy, 7X Patrick McConnell, Managing Director, Cypress Creek Renewables Jessie Robbins, Director of Project Finance, Sol Systems |
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| 2:30 pm - 2:40 pm | Quick Break | |
| 2:40 pm - 3:40 pm | Federal and State Legislative Updates for the Lone Star State Lost Pines Ballroom 2 More Info |
Leveraging New Technologies in an Evolving Grid Lost Pines Ballroom 4 More Info |
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This session will outline and investigate current and upcoming State Legislation/policy issues as well as federal policies that are relevant to the Texas Energy Market.
Moderator: Katherine Gensler, Director of Government Affairs, Solar Energy Industries Association Speakers: Michael Jewell, Principal Attorney, Jewell & Associates, PLLC McCall Johnson, Senior Manager, Government Affairs, Recurrent Energy |
Advances in the information systems that manage the large amounts of data which support the increasing deployment of distributed energy resources is transforming grid operations nationwide. This session will review successful programs that leverage this convergence and explain how regional utilities, and a growing industry of innovative companies, are incorporating smart metering, grid-scale battery storage, and distributed energy research management systems (DERMS) to further support the incorporation of more distributed resources on our grid.
Moderator: Mike Kruger, Director of Communications , Smart Electric Power Alliance (SEPA) Speaker: Randy Boys, Strategy and Technology Manager, ONCOR Rob Jackson, National Market Director, Solar Power/Energy Storage at TRC Companies, Inc D. Andrew Owens, Director, Regulatory Research, Entergy Corp. |
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| 3:40 pm - 4:10 pm | Networking Break & Exhibits Lost Pines Ballroom 5-8 |
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| 4:10 pm - 5:10 pm | A Tale of Two Cities Lost Pines Ballroom 2 More Info |
Battery Energy Storage Solutions Lost Pines Ballroom 4 More Info |
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Texas is home to several communities that are leading the way in leveraging renewable energy goals to drive investment. This session will analyze these programs and share best practices, lessons learned, and opportunities to grow solar throughout the Lone Star State.
Moderator: Charlie Hemmeline, Executive Director, Texas Solar Power Association Speaker: Walt Baum, Executive Director, Texas Public Power Association Erika Bierschbach, Interim Director of Energy & Market Operations, Austin Energy Neil McAndrews, Senior Principal, Enterprise Risk Consulting |
What are the market opportunities for battery energy storage applications in Texas? This session will investigate recent Public Utility Commission rulings and business opportunities in application of both behind and in-front of the meter solutions.
Moderator: Dan Seif, Owner, Seif Consulting Speaker: Bob Helton, Director of Government & Regulatory Affairs, Engie North America Thomas Kirkpatrick, Vice President, Customer Service, Marketing and Distribution Services, American Electric Power Colleen Lueken, Director of Market Analytics, Fluence |
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| 5:10 pm - 6:10 pm | Networking Happy Hour & Exhibits Lost Pines Ballroom 5-8 |
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| 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm | Networking Reception, LBJ Pavilion | Sponsored by  |
Wednesday, June 6, 2018
| Time | Event |
|---|---|
| 8:00 am - 12:00 pm | Registration & Exhibits Open |
| 8:00 am - 9:00 am | Networking Breakfast & Exhibits, Lost Pines Ballroom 5-8 |
| 8:30 am - 9:30 am | Corporate Demand for Solar Power in the Southwest, Lost Pines Ballroom 4 More Info |
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Corporate Demand for renewable energy continues to grow. This forward-thinking session will combine researchers from SEIA and SEPA with commercial solar buyers to connect the dots between trends and corporate needs and will investigate how providers can better position themselves to source and transact C&I and Solar + Storage deals.
Speakers: Greg Carlson, Key Accounts Director, Engie Resources Dan Chwastyk, Senior Manager, Advisory Services, Smart Electric Power Alliance (SEPA) Shawn Rumery, Director of Research, Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) Brian P. Stevens, Energy and Sustainability Branch Manager, Construction and Facilities Management Office, Texas Military Department |
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| 9:30 am - 9:45 am | Quick Break, Lost Pines Ballroom 1 |
| Breakout Session 1 | Breakout Session 2 | |
|---|---|---|
| 9:45 am - 10:45 am | Co-op and Solar: Opportunities for Collaboration Lost Pines Ballroom 2 More Info |
Solar Compensation in the Lone Star State Lost Pines Ballroom 4 More Info |
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Are you aware of all the innovative programs and projects that Electric Cooperatives in Texas are providing for their members? Interested in learning more and identifying opportunities for your business? Join us in this session to learn more about Community Solar Programs and Rebate programs for installers to name a few.
Moderator: Daisy Chung, Research Manager, SEPA Speakers: Gary Franzen, Director of Energy Engineering, CoServ Yulia Lushnikova, Director, Preconstruction, RES Americas Jim Spaulding, Director, Distributed Energy Resources, Pedernales Electric Cooperative |
As solar and other distributed energy options continue to become more accessible and affordable for consumers, stakeholders are wrestling with how to structure electric rates in a way that serves the interests of solar consumers, non-solar consumers and utilities alike. As a result, rate design components such as net metering, time-of-use schedules and demand charges have become key factors in how solar power is generated, owned and valued in our changing electricity market. This session will help attendees understand how utilities and regulators are addressing these issues in Texas, and the implications of those requests on businesses and consumers with a vested interest in increased solar adoption.
Moderator: Amy Heart, Director, Public Policy, Sunrun Speaker: Kevin Lucas, MBA, Director of Rate Design, Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) Sam Telleen, Senior Manager, Growth Strategy & Product Innovation at Green Mountain Energy |
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| 10:45 am - 11:15 am | Networking Break & Exhibits | Sponsored by |
| 11:15 am - 12:15 pm | Quality Assurance Forum: Best Practices in Procuring PV Modules Lost Pines Ballroom 2 More Info |
The Role of Software in the Solar Energy Ecosystem Lost Pines Ballroom 4 More Info |
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What does module quality mean, why is important and what steps can be taken to assure quality? This session will review best practices in module procurement and how module quality correlates with field performance.
Moderator: Kent Whitfield,, Principal Engineer, Renewable Energy, UL Speakers: Pete Alyanakian, North American Director, Market Development, DuPont Nigel Cockroft, US General Manager, Jinko Solar Frank Faller, Vice President of Technology, 8Minutenergy Ian Gregory, General Manager, SolarBuyer, LLC |
As the solar industry continues to mature, new software solutions are emerging that are helping to automate business decisions and cut costs. Explore the state of the solar software ecosystem and how software solutions can cut costs and keep your business competitive.
Moderator: Daniel Roesler, Co-founder & CEO/CTO, UtilityAPI Speakers: Alex Carter, Sales Consultant, Aurora Solar, Inc. Aram Shumavon, CEO, Kevala Analytics Colin J. Walsh, Chief Executive Officer, Wave Solar |
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| 12:15 pm | Conference Concludes | |
| 12:15 pm - 4:00 pm | Community Solar Design Workshop Lost Pines Ballroom 1 |