MRES Board Meetings

Upcoming Board Meetings

MRES Board Meetings are held the second Thursday of the month. These meetings are open to the public — MRES welcomes you to join us!

November 2008 Board Meeting

Thursday, November 13, 2008

6:00 p.m.: Tracy Anderson, 3M Renewable Energy Division

7:00 p.m.: Meeting

Flannery Construction, 1375 St. Anthony Avenue, St. Paul, MN

All are invited to the MRES Board Meeting on November 13 at Flannery Construction. Our guest speaker will be Tracy Anderson, who will present an overview of 3M's new Renewable Energy Division, products, and markets.

Mr. Anderson has global responsibility for 3M's solar, wind, and biofuels business as part of the newly formed Renewable Energy Division. Current focus centers around providing solutions that improve the performance and durability of solar and wind devices and systems. Prior, Mr. Anderson led the 3M Composite Conductor program for over a decade from its inception through commercialization to global launch. He has extensive experience in the area of overhead power transmission and renewable energy and has worked extensively with electric utilities around the world to understand how advanced materials can be used to improve performance and efficiency. He has led joint development programs in Europe and Japan and has provided congressional testimony related to energy issues. Mr. Anderson holds an advanced degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Minnesota and has been awarded eight patents for his early work on the 3M Composite Conductor as well as the R&D 100 Award, the Minnesota TEKNE High Technology Innovation Award, and the IEEE Showcase of Innovation Award. He is considered a pioneer in the field of high temperature low sag conductors.

Annual Member Meeting

Thursday, December 11, 2008

6:00 p.m.: Guest Speaker (TBA)

7:00 p.m.: Meeting

Flannery Construction, 1375 St. Anthony Avenue, St. Paul, MN

All are invited to the MRES Board Meeting on December 11 at Flannery Construction. Check back here soon for information on the pre-meeting guest speaker.

Past Board Meetings

January 2008 Board Meeting

Thursday, January 10, 2008

6:00 p.m.: Guest Speaker

7:00 p.m.: Meeting

Flannery Construction, 1375 St. Anthony Avenue, St. Paul, MN

Join us for the next MRES Board Meeting on January 10 at Flannery Construction. Check back here soon for information on the pre-meeting guest speaker.

February 2008 Board Meeting

Thursday, February 14, 2008

6:00 p.m.: Guest Speaker: Matt Bye of the City of Minneapolis

7:00 p.m.: Meeting

Flannery Construction, 1375 St. Anthony Avenue, St. Paul, MN

Join us for the next MRES Board Meeting on February 14 at Flannery Construction. Our guest speaker will be Matt Bye, who will discuss the Energy Management Plan for the City of Minneapolis and the 600 kW solar PV installation at the Currie Maintenance Facility.

Matt Bye recently joined the City of Minneapolis and is responsible for developing a comprehensive energy management program for the City. He brings nearly 14 years of experience from the energy management and utility industries. His most recent position was with Trane Global Control Systems where he worked as a Senior Product Engineer specializing in Enterprise Energy Management (EEM) control applications. Prior to Trane, he was with Honeywell where he served as Global Product Manager, Energy Solutions. He led commercialization of several leading edge products including Honeywell Real Time Pricing Control™ (RTPC) and EBI Energy Manager™. Products Matt has managed have supported nearly $50 million in energy savings.

Matt has also provided support and training to utility personnel who use Electric Power Research Institute's (EPRI) economic analysis software applications. EPRI's applications are used by electric utilities around the country to analyze demand side management (DSM) programs and to aid in integrated resource planning (IRP). Matt started his career with Moorhead Public Service department in the energy conservation department. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Energy Management from Minnesota State University, Moorhead.

March 2008 Board Meeting

Thursday, March 13, 2008

6:00 p.m.: Guest Speaker: Gerardo Ruiz of FreEner-g

7:00 p.m.: Meeting

Flannery Construction, 1375 St. Anthony Avenue, St. Paul, MN

Join us for the next MRES Board Meeting on March 13 at Flannery Construction. Our guest speaker will be Gerardo Ruiz of FreEner-g.

FreEner-g (pronounced "free energy") is a residential solar leasing company, offering an innovative service that combines financing and maintenance of solar PV systems for homes and small businesses under a net-metering arrangement. Their market approach eliminates the up-front cost barrier that most consumers face when going solar and it also positions the company as a distributed solar generation asset owner and operator. This model creates revenue projections based on predictable monthly service contract fees as well as green tag trading and peak MWh sales as an aggregator of solar generation.

They are fortunate enough to have been selected for a $1.5M grant from Xcel Energy's Renewable Development Fund, thus providing the public capital that they plan to mix with financed private capital (an additional $900,000 that they have already committed) to deliver a 280 kW pilot project in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metropolitan area starting around July 2008 (schedule driven by the Renewable Development Fund). Ultimately, they intend to create a national brand for solar residential electricity.

Gerardo Ruiz has over 20 years of experience in business development, start-up ventures, project management, sales and sales management, product development, and technology management, with half of those years working in the electric utility sector. Mr. Ruiz has worked for a diverse range of companies, including ACD Sistemas de Control de Energía, Empros Power Systems Control, Alstom ESCA Corporation and Mincom Inc. He has also provided consulting and business development services to companies such as ACERIsoft and UnitedHealth Technologies. In addition, he is founder of two startups, Grupo diMex and Pegasus Consortium. Late in 2006, Mr. Ruiz founded FreEner-g to explore renewable energy alternatives through residential solar electricity production.

April 2008 Board Meeting

Thursday, April 10, 2008

6:00: Guest Speaker: Jason Edens of the Rural Renewable Energy Alliance (RREAL)

7:00: Meeting

Flannery Construction, 1375 St. Anthony Avenue, St. Paul, MN

Join us for the next MRES Board Meeting on April 20 at Flannery Construction. Our guest speaker will be Jason Edens of the Rural Renewable Energy Alliance (RREAL).

Jason Edens is the founding director of the Rural Renewable Energy Alliance (RREAL), a non-profit with a mission of making solar energy accessible to people of all income levels. RREAL accomplishes its mission primarily by delivering solar heat to low-income families on heating assistance. Jason will be discussing RREAL's primary program, Solar Assistance: Solar Heat for Low-Income Households. The federal Fuel Assistance Program is an important social service, but it is not offering a lasting solution to fuel poverty. RREAL's solar assistance program does offer a lasting solution, and it does so with clean, renewable heat. Jason will also be discussing solar air heat and the newly developed solar air heat panel that RREAL manufactures.

Jason has a M.S. degree in Environmental Studies Policy and Planning, and is also the founder the international cycling organization, Bicycle for Everyone's Earth.

May 2008 Board Meeting

Thursday, May 8, 2008

6:00–9:00 p.m.: Strategic Planning Meeting (Board Only)

Flannery Construction, 1375 St. Anthony Avenue, St. Paul, MN

There will be no public meeting this month. Instead, the Board of Directors will be concentrating on establishing our strategic plan.

June 2008 Board Meeting

Thursday, June 12, 2008

6:00–9:00 p.m.: Strategic Planning Meeting (Board Only)

Flannery Construction, 1375 St. Anthony Avenue, St. Paul, MN

There will be no public meeting this month. Instead, the Board of Directors will be concentrating on establishing our strategic plan.

July 2008 Board Meeting

Thursday, July 10, 2008

6:00 p.m.: Guest Speaker: Steve Peichel of the 2009 Solar Decathlon

7:00 p.m.: Meeting

Flannery Construction, 1375 St. Anthony Avenue, St. Paul, MN

Join us for the next MRES Board Meeting on July 10 at Flannery Construction. Our guest speaker will be Steve Peichel from the University of Minnesota.

Steve Peichel is an Electrical Engineering/Physics student at the University of Minnesota who is involved in the 2009 Solar Decathlon. Steve is a team lead for the Engineering/Solar Integration group of the decathlon and is involved in designing/selecting the PV system and the control system. Steve has been an active member of MRES since Fall 2006.

The Solar Decathlon (www.solardecathlon.org) joins 20 college and university teams in a competition to design, build, and operate the most attractive and energy-efficient solar-powered house on the mall in Washington, DC. The first part of the presentation includes an introduction to the 2009 competition contest, examples from the 2007 Solar Decathlon competition, and the timeline of the project. The 2009 Solar Decathlon competition consists of 10 separately scored contest: Architecture, Market Viability, Engineering, Lighting Design, Communications, Comfort Zone, Hot Water, Appliances, Home Entertainment, and Net-Metering. The second part of the presentation involves describing the University's most current design, a few the interesting aspects and goals of the design, and some of the challenges the team is facing. The students of the 2009 Solar Decathlon look forward to talking with you!

August 2008 Board Meeting

Thursday, August 14, 2008

6:00 p.m.: Guest Speakers: Kate Ellis of 1Sky Minnesota and J. Drake Hamilton of Fresh Energy

7:00 p.m.: Meeting

Flannery Construction, 1375 St. Anthony Avenue, St. Paul, MN

All are invited to the MRES Board Meeting on August 14 at Flannery Construction. This month's speakers will be Kate Ellis of 1Sky Minnesota and J. Drake Hamilton of Fresh Energy. In May, Fresh Energy joined forces with 1Sky, an exciting national campaign to amplify the collaborative voice of citizens and organizations to encourage policymakers to take bold, science-based action to dramatically reduce global warming emissions while maximizing energy efficiency, renewable energy, and breakthrough technologies, and improving the economy through the creation of new green jobs. By pivoting to a clean energy economy we can relieve our dependence on foreign oil, unlock the potential of sustainable industry, and usher in a new era of prosperity. Fresh Energy is working with 1Sky to promote policies that: 1) Create millions of green jobs in order to spur our economy; 2) Freeze global warming pollution levels now, then cut by at least 25 percent below 1990 levels by 2020 and 80 percent by 2050; and 3) prohibit the construction of new coal plants that emit global warming pollution and instead promote investment in renewable energy. The 1Sky Minnesota effort is part of this unprecedented national collaborative involving a diversity of allies, including state and local organizations, business, religious, health, social justice and military leaders, scientists, economists, elected officials, and citizens across the state.

September 2008 Board Meeting

Thursday, September 11, 2008

6:00 p.m.: Guest Speakers: Carrie Thompson, Derrick Atkins, and Dan McConnell of IBEW Local 292

7:00 p.m.: Meeting

Flannery Construction, 1375 St. Anthony Avenue, St. Paul, MN

All are invited to the MRES Board Meeting on September 11 at Flannery Construction. This month, Carrie Thompson, Derrick Atkins, and Dan McConnell from the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) will provide an update on their new solar installation training center in St. Michael, MN. The IBEW was formed in 1891 and represents nearly 1 million members in the United States and Canada. Since its formation, the IBEW has worked to increase safety, negotiate better wages and working conditions, and promote training for its members. Local 292 is the largest IBEW local in the State of Minnesota, representing 5,000 members who work in electrical construction, manufacturing and radio and television broadcasting industries. Local 292 has recently completed construction of a solar training lab.

October 2008 Board Meeting

Thursday, October 9, 2008

6:00 p.m.: Guest Speaker: Patrick Allen of the Olmsted County Solar Initiative

7:00 p.m.: Meeting

Flannery Construction, 1375 St. Anthony Avenue, St. Paul, MN

All are invited to the MRES Board Meeting on October 9 at Flannery Construction. Patrick Allen, a senior at Mayo High School in Rochester, Minnesota, will speak about the Olmsted Country Solar Initiative, a program he founded in December 2008 with fellow students Ian Cameron and Tom Currier. The goal of the Initiative is to install photovoltaic (PV) solar systems on area high schools in order to: 1) Expose students to alternative, clean and sustainable energy; 2) To educate students about solar energy and PV technology; 3) Provide clean and sustainable energy for the schools; and 4) To show that students can take the lead on confronting the pressing environmental problems that face our generation.

Over the last five months the Olmsted County Solar Initiative raised over $125,000 to implement solar energy in Rochester, with the goal of raising $1 million by September 1, 2009. The first $48,000 5.88 kW system will be installed at Mayo High School by the end of October 2008.