The Coalition for Community Solar Access (CCSA) and Solar Energy Trade Shows (SETS) today announced that the Community Solar Power Summit will be held on September 20-21 in New Orleans on the days immediately preceding SPI, ESI, and Smart Energy Week. The Summit will tackle the biggest opportunities and barriers facing the community solar market and bring together industry professionals in community solar project development, manufacturing, financing, marketing, and government affairs.
“Community solar is one of the fastest-growing business models in renewable energy because of the benefits it brings for customers, the grid, and society-at-large,” said Jeff Cramer, executive director of Coalition for Community Solar Access. “We are looking forward to bringing together professionals from across the solar industry to discuss community solar’s role in our shift toward a clean electric grid and how we continue to grow the industry within existing markets and expand to new ones.”
Community solar refers to local solar facilities shared by multiple community subscribers who receive credits on their electricity bills for their share of the power produced. Community solar saves customers money on their monthly bills and makes the grid more equitable, resilient, and cost-effective. There are currently over 3 gigawatts (GW) of community solar currently deployed on the electric grid across the country, with multiple gigawatts in the pipeline. According to a recent Vibrant Clean Energy report, the U.S. must grow the amount of community solar on the grid by a hundred gigawatts in the next decade alone to achieve the lowest cost grid.
“Being able to continue this unique event in-person in 2021 is particularly exciting. The community solar audience has always been a highly engaged group that really values that face-to-face networking and education experience. Co-locating the program with SPI, ESI, and Smart Energy Week in New Orleans also helps give those audiences opportunities to interact,” said Stephen Miner, President & CEO, Solar Energy Trade Shows. “This program could not happen without our fantastic partners in CCSA leading the charge.”
In the coming weeks, attendees will be able to register for the conference at www.events.solar/community-solar/ and CCSA and SETS will announce more details on the agenda including keynote speakers and workshop presenters. For more information on sponsorship or marketing opportunities, please contact McKenzie Bolduc from CCSA at mckenzie@communitysolaraccess.org.