Energy Technology Connections: Your Law Firm Link to Industry News

October 2014

In the October edition of Energy Technology Connections, we bring you recent industry highlights, the latest news from Capitol Hill, and a list of upcoming energy industry events. Specifically, we congratulate our client, GoldenSet Capital Partners, on two investments in the solar industry. In addition, please see our Events section to learn more about GloSho’14, the 2014 Cleantech Global Showcase coming up on October 6 and 7 in Los Angeles, California. We also highlight Greentech Media’s upcoming Forum 20/20 conference and the New England Clean Energy Council’s Green Tie Gala. For links to industry grant opportunities and stories from the business, policy, and research sectors of the energy and clean technology industry, please see our Energy Navigator.

In This Edition

» Leaders in the News
» Event Highlights
» Washington Update
» Innovator Profile
» Energy Navigator
» Upcoming Events

Leaders in the News

We would like to congratulate our client, GoldenSet Capital Partners, an investment firm focused on environmental infrastructure, on two recent deals. GoldenSet has partnered with Nautilus Solar Energy to invest in a solar distributed generation project portfolio. Located in Ontario, Canada, the portfolio will begin with 28 projects totaling 9.2 megawatts and is expected to expand to a total of 24 megawatts by mid-2015. These projects will greatly contribute to Ontario’s growing solar sector and create a number of jobs in the region. For the full press release, please click here.

GoldenSet has also partnered with Soltage, LLC to invest in a 3.5-megawatt solar photovoltaic power project to be constructed in Oxford, Massachusetts. This represents their sixth project together, bringing their total Northeastern U. distributed solar portfolio to 14.7 megawatts. Both investments exemplify GoldenSet’s commitment to promoting environmental responsibility, creating jobs, and seeking to earn attractive risk adjusted returns for their investors. For the full press release, please click here.

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Event Highlights

Mintz Levin is excited to highlight GloSho’14: the 2014 Cleantech Global Showcase. Presented by the Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator (LACI), the 2014 showcase is being held on October 6 and 7 at the Los Angeles Theatre Center. After last year’s showcase attracted over 400 participants and 70 speakers, the 2014 showcase promises to be a can’t-miss event for entrepreneurs, investors, start-up companies, and everyone else in the clean tech industry.

Over the course of the two-day showcase, attendees will have access to the Investment Bootcamp and Accessing the Water and Energy Markets of California workshops, various general sessions relating to clean tech funding, marketing, and policy, and a myriad of innovative companies and investors. Many high-profile individuals are slated to offer their expertise as speakers and panelists, including California Governor Jerry Brown, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, and US EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy. In addition, Mintz Levin’s own Tom Burton, Chair of the Energy Technology Practice, will deliver remarks on recent trends and developments in US clean energy markets. For more information about GloSho’14 and to purchase tickets, please click here.

On October 29, Greentech Media and the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center are hosting Forum 20/20, a one-day conference in Boston for leaders in the energy industry. The conference will aim to describe a vision of the clean energy market’s growth over the next decade. Panel discussions and keynote presentations include The Utility of the Future and Opportunities for Market Reinvention and Clean Energy Policy — Transitioning Markets to a New Regulatory Framework. To register for this event, please click here.

Finally, the New England Clean Energy Council’s annual Green Tie Gala is coming up on October 30 in Boston. Every year, the event hosts over 400 CEOs, investors, public officials, and others invested in New England’s clean energy community and recognizes outstanding clean energy companies with its Green Tie Gala Awards. Previous speakers have included Senator Edward Markey, Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin, and Vice President of Future Energy Technologies of Shell, Chris Laurens. For ticket and registration information, please click here.

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Washington Update

Congress reconvened in Washington for a busy two-week session prior to recessing until after the November elections. The House and Senate passed the Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2015 (H.J. Res. 124), funding the government through December 11, 2014. The measure also continues a policy provision that overrides administration guidance limiting the Export-Import Bank from financing overseas coal-fired power projects. In addition, the House passed the American Energy Solutions for Lower Costs and More American Jobs Act (H.R. 2), an energy package that would approve the Keystone XL pipeline, limit environmental regulations, and open federal lands to energy extraction. The White House announced that the president would veto this package if it came to his desk.

Furthermore, the House Energy & Commerce Subcommittee on Energy and Power held a hearing on the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Clean Power Plan Proposed Rule. The plan would implement a series of measures aimed to cut carbon pollution from the power sector by 30% from 2005 levels. The hearing proceeded on partisan lines — largely criticized by Republicans and praised by Democrats. The Clean Power Plan is open for comment through December 1, 2014, and has already received upwards of 300,000 comments.

Internationally, the United Nations and Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon hosted world leaders at the 2014 Climate Summit in New York City. The goals of the summit were to explore solutions to reduce emissions, strengthen climate resilience, and mobilize political will for a future legal agreement on climate issues. At the summit, nearly 40 companies, including Kellogg’s, Nestle, Walmart, and others, committed to working towards slowing deforestation. In addition, countries discussed the future of the Green Climate Fund — a resource that would help poorer countries invest in clean energy. Germany, France, South Korea, and others made pledges to this fund.

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Innovator Profile

In this month’s Innovator Profile, we highlight our client Northern Power Systems (NPS), a designer and manufacturer of wind turbines. In early September, Northern Power Systems launched its next generation of permanent magnet/direct drive distributed wind turbines — the NPS 100C and the NPS 60C. NPS’s patented permanent magnet/direct drive technology uses fewer moving parts to deliver higher energy capture than other turbines.

NPS’s new model of turbines features a 24.4 meter rotor to accommodate a larger swept area. The model also increases annual energy production by 15%. More information on this product and the full press release can be found on the NPS website.

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Energy Navigator

Please visit and bookmark our Energy Navigator to easily view all of the latest headlines from the most trusted publications reporting on developments in the energy and clean technology industries. It is housed on our blog, Energy Technology Matters.

Upcoming Events