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Registration for the Think Microgrid 2023 Policy Summit is separate from the conference registration.  Click here to register. 

The 2nd Annual Think Microgrid Policy Summit will gather leaders from the microgrid policy community and industry for an interactive discussion and facilitated conversations to identify practical recommendations. The Summit will focus on creating a call to action for communities that see microgrids as solutions to their pressing resilience, climate and equity challenges. Using the California experience as a foundation for the discussion, participants will be challenged to examine critically what is working well and what is not, highlighting topics such as:
• The role of fossil fuels in building resilience and reducing emissions
• The utility ability to serve existing customers
• Developing community microgrids serving multiple customers
• Providing access to fair value for energy exports from microgrids
• Public funding for equity solutions

This interactive session will feature:
• Introduction to Think Microgrid, led by Executive Director, Cameron Brooks
• Overview of current market trends from research partner Wood Mackenzie
• The energy vision of the Yurok Tribe in Northern California
• Updates on current policy battles in California
• Profiles of innovative projects, both inside and outside California, including a community microgrid project in Puerto Rico supported by the Honnold Foundation

Featured Participants:

• Simon Baker, California Public Utilities Commission
• Jin Noh, Interim Executive Director, California Energy Storage Alliance
• Cynthia Arellano, Project Manager, Honnold Foundation
• Peter Klauer, California ISO
• Michael Gerace, Director, Department of Planning and Community Development, Yurok Tribe
• Elham Akhavan, Senior Microgrid Research Analyst, Wood Mac
• Peter Asmus, Senior Advisor, Microgrid Strategy, Alaska Center for Energy and Power
• Erik Stokes, Deputy Director, Research and Development Division, California Energy Commission

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SoCalGas Chief Clean Fuels Officer Neil Navin will detail the recently unveiled [H2] Innovation Experience, North America's first-of its kind, clean, renewable hydrogen microgrid and home. The [H2] Innovation Experience offers a look at how clean, renewable hydrogen microgrids can reliably power entire neighborhoods, day and night throughout the year.

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Learn how the energy world is recasting itself in a way that makes microgrids the logical answer to the problems and promises of electric power’s next era. Join industry leaders for a glimpse into the latest innovations in microgrid technology, business models, financing and government policy.

Moderator: Mark Feasel - FuelCell Energy

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What is a microgrid exactly? Is it right for your facility? How do you get started? Who can help? What will it cost? Get answers to the basic questions every microgrid beginner asks and learn from model projects.

Moderator: Cameron Brooks - Think Microgrid

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Learn how to better understand the current state, challenges and opportunities in distribution capacity planning and use of data — and what the latest research shows us about microgrid growth.

Moderator: Nishant Sharma - CellCube Inc.

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In the energy arena, regulatory and market growth are inextricably intertwined. California is a leader in forging new microgrid policies. What will its efforts to date produce and what’s next on the horizon?

Moderator: Allie Detrio - Microgrid Resources Coalition & Reimagine Power

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This panel will look at the role microgrids play on the road to 2050 by exploring renewable energy challenges and providing an up-to-date overview of primary power generation. We will also explore how natural gas engines act as a bridge to a zero-emission future where hydrogen plays a key role.

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As legend has it, 23 inventors devised the electric light bulb before Thomas Edison. But it’s Edison’s name we remember because he created a business model for electricity. What models are emerging for microgrids? Here are two exciting possibilities.

Moderator: Javier Gonzalez - Rolls Royce Solutions America

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What are the current financing conditions and challenges for microgrid projects? What is the lender’s perspective? How can you properly balance risk and reward for your project? Hear from three financial experts with deep insight into energy markets and finance.

Moderator: Kenneth Horne - Spring Lane Capital

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Discover the role that microgrids play at the nexus of distributed energy resources,  energy services, and commercial models. Learn how energy innovators are reimagining energy services delivery with highly scalable platforms that seamlessly take microgrids from concept to operations and activate energy services anywhere.  Attendees will be able to gain a deep understanding of the transformative role of microgrids in empowering energy consumers while enabling new business models for service providers from energy as a service offerings to net zero facilities.

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Microgrids offer a way to guarantee electricity to charge electric vehicles as the central grid becomes increasingly burdened. What’s needed in terms of software, equipment and know-how to capture the full value of microgrids as we electrify transportation?

Moderator: Peter Asmus - Alaska Microgrid Group

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The Army plans to equip all of its bases with microgrids by 2035 and other branches of the US military have similar goals. What will it take to achieve these goals, what opportunities do they present for microgrid companies and how will they influence broader climate goals?

Moderator: Adib Naslé - Xendee

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Learn how communities overcome technical, financial and social hurdles to build microgrids. The panel will present case studies for communities in wildfire zones and remote regions.

Moderator: Ben Parvey - Blue Sky Power

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Learn why US energy users and DER portfolio owners are turning to optimization solutions that evaluate site-specific performance data and energy market options to create project proformas that get projects greenlighted.

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It’s not enough for today’s microgrids to be resilient. Customers also expect them to offer clean power, whether it’s renewable energy or improvements in traditional fuels. Here are two approaches to creating a more sustainable microgrid.

Moderator: Mehdi Ganji, Sovereign Resiliency Partners

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Elisa Wood, editor-in-chief of Microgrid Knowledge, interviews California Senator Henry Stern

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This session is for energy providers, utilities, asset owners, local government, facility managers, fleet managers and corporate sustainability leaders who want to scale their zero-emission efforts by leveraging the new federal law.

Moderator: Erik Svanholm - LightEdison

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Some industries and services simply cannot lose power, among them airports and data centers. Learn how a major US airport and a crucial Silicon Valley data center plan to microgrid their facilities.

Moderator: Rod Walton - EnergyTech

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Utilities that lead in microgrid innovation describe their projects, programs and achievements, and offer a vision of the future for utility microgrids.

Moderator: Arnela Smajlovic Djedovic - Siemens Ag

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Learn strategies for anticipating and overcoming the “small stuff” that can add delays and cost to your microgrid project. We’ll review several case studies from federal and utility microgrid projects..

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A community in Wimauma, FL didn’t lose their power even when the feeder to the neighborhood was lost due to strong winds. How? The community was equipped with a sophisticated microgrid. Meanwhile, in Detroit, a community is seeking a similar resiliency through the creation of a resilience hub. Discover how these models can keep the lights on even under the worst circumstances.

Moderator: Bill Becker - ComAp

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Pilot programs across the country are demonstrating that transactive energy tariffs can improve on traditional demand response tariffs in terms of supporting grid requirements during times of high demand and system disruptions.  What is a transactive energy tariff and how does it work? And what are the revenue opportunities for microgrids?

Moderator: Trudie Wang - Heila Technologies

Join us for a formal lunch where CPUC Commissioner Genevieve Shiroma will offer the latest news on the commission's microgrid proceeding.  We will also present the Greater Good awards to those microgrid projects around the world that have had the most impact. We hope you will come hear their stories.

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