Massachusetts Clean Energy Week Highlights State’s Vibrant and Growing Clean Energy Sector

Kicking off the Fifth Annual Massachusetts Clean Energy Week, the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC) today highlighted the Commonwealth’s vibrant clean energy industry and state clean energy leadership. 
Massachusetts’ expanding clean energy community, which has recently seen significant growth and recognition as a national leader due in large part to Patrick-Murray Administration policies and programs, will be highlighted in a series of events this week, starting with today’s Seventh Annual Conference on Clean energy at the Westin Waterfront in Boston. 
“Thanks to our investments in this growing industry, Massachusetts is now a national leader in clean energy,” said Governor Deval Patrick. “Clean Energy Week showcases the Commonwealth’s vibrant clean energy sector that will fuel our economy and protect our environment well into the future.”
Governor Patrick is scheduled to deliver remarks at the conference, which provides attendees with an action-packed day covering the latest investment opportunities, business insights, career options, and fundraising strategies in clean energy. Other events throughout the week include Strategic Partner Day, Boston Cleantech Venture Day, the Clean Energy Connections Conference in Springfield, the New England Clean Energy Council’s Green Tie Gala, theU.S.-Canada Energy Trade and Technology Conference, and the New England Marine Renewable Energy Center 3rd Annual Technical Conference.
Additionally, MassCEC is hosting 11 international companies from Mexico, France, Norway, Italy, Venezuela and Israel in the Commonwealth’s first-ever Global Clean Energy Week, designed to give international clean energy companies an opportunity to explore the unique opportunities that Massachusetts offers as a strategic entry point to the US clean energy market.
“In the past two weeks, Massachusetts has been recognized on the national stage for leadership in energy efficiency and deployment of solar energy, and we have released new job numbers illustrating the growing importance of our clean energy sector to the state’s overall economy,” said Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Richard K. Sullivan Jr. “Here in Massachusetts, we are pulling out all the stops on our way to Governor Patrick's vision of a clean energy future.”  
“Clean Energy Week is a great display of the innovations taking place all around us and the vibrant community of talented people, world-class academic and research institutions, and supportive government leaders together make the Commonwealth a smart place to start or grow a clean energy business,” said MassCEC Chief Executive Officer Patrick Cloney.  “Thanks to Governor Patrick’s leadership, we are making clean energy a marquee industry in Massachusetts.”
Growing the clean energy sector is a hallmark of the Patrick-Murray Administration. Last week, the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) announced that Massachusetts has been named number one in ACEEE's annual state-by-state energy efficiency scorecard, thanks to the Patrick-Murray Administration’s clean energy agenda, which includes the Green Communities Act of 2008 and other innovative programs and policies to save energy and create jobs. 
MassCEC’s recently released 2011 Massachusetts Clean Energy Industry Report finds significant growth in the Massachusetts clean energy economy, which now employs more than 64,000 people. The report identified 4,909 clean energy companies across the state, which saw a 6.7 percent increase in jobs between July 2010 to July 2011, and expect employment growth rate of 15.2 percent from July 2011 to July 2012.
On the generation side, Massachusetts has more than 100 megawatts (MW) of solar energy either installed or under contract throughout the Commonwealth, a nearly 30-fold increase over the 3.5 MW installed when Governor Patrick took office. During the same timeframe, wind power has increased from 3.1 MW in 2007 to over 40 MW now installed and another 100 MW in design or construction.
Additionally, this May, Governor Patrick and U.S. Department of Energy officials opened the Wind Technology Testing Center (WTTC) in Charlestown, which is currently open for business and testing wind blades from leading wind energy companies, speeding deployment of the next generation of wind blades into the marketplace, attracting companies to design, manufacture and test their blades in the United States and catalyzing growth in the American wind turbine supply chain.
For additional information about the conference and other events visit the following website: http://greenovationconference.com/conference-info/cew.html