Clean Energy Group Gets New Name And Focus | State's energy investment directs millions toward clean industry
Nick d'Arbeloff, executive director of the New England Clean Energy Council.
Last summer, Gov. Deval Patrick and 100 business leaders gathered in Boston to launch the Massachusetts Clean Energy Council with big plans for the state’s environment and economy. This year, the group has a new name — the New England Clean Energy Council — and major funding.
Fellowship Funding
The New England Clean Energy Council saw its vision take shape this year as the legislature passed some of the nation’s most comprehensive environmental laws, including a Green Jobs Act that sends $68 million into clean energy initiatives over 5 years.
“It is our goal to make New England as a region an epicenter of clean energy activity,” said Nick d’Arbeloff, executive director of the New England Clean Energy Council.
The council’s board includes representatives from throughout the state’s clean energy arena. Local members include Mark Buckley from Framingham-based Staples and Scott Pearson from Southborough-based Protonex Technology Corp.
The legislature passed five major bills promoting clean energy this past session, including the Green Communities Act, the Oceans Act, the Clean Energy Biofuels Act, the Global Warming Solutions Act and the Green Jobs Act.
The Green Jobs Act establishes the Clean Energy Technology Center with a public/private governing board overseeing a wide range of clean energy initiatives.
One program is the Clean Energy Fellowship Program, which trains CEOs and entrepreneurs in clean energy trends. A dozen Bay State entrepreneurs were chosen from 40 applicants for the first fellowship program, which began in May and ends this month.
The fellows took in lectures by experts at companies, colleges and universities around Greater Boston, d’Arbeloff said. They also visited the National Renewable Energy Lab in Colorado.
“We see this as a very, very exciting way to catalyze new venture creation,” d’Arbeloff said.
The New England Clean Energy Council hopes to secure funding to host another fellowship program in January, d’Arbeloff said.
The Green Jobs Act’s other focus is the Clean Energy Seed Grant program, which will allocate grants of about $100,000 to $200,000 to clean energy research projects.
Investment Generator
D’Arbeloff said it’s important to invest capital into clean energy now to avoid losing ground to another region. His group estimates Massachusetts’ financial services institutions will invest or loan $2 billion into clean energy over the next five years and as much as 50 percent could end up in other states because investors have no place for their capital in Massachusetts.
“What we need to do is create a very, very rich field of ventures here in Massachusetts,” he said.
The Green Jobs Act was funded with $43 million from the fiscal 2007 surplus and $5 million a year from the Renewable Energy Trust Fund. A portion of the money is for workforce development.
Sara Withee is a freelance writer based in Millis.
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