On 9 August 2013 the most populous US-state California with more than 37 million inhabitants stroke a new record: more than 27% of consumed electricity was generated by renewable energy sources. The goal of having renewable energy make up 33% of the power mix by 2020 is more ambitious than the European 20-20-20 targets and makes California a pioneer of sustainable climate and energy policy.
To guarantee power system stability and security is not only a technological challenge – more and more actors consider the conversion of our power system asocial experiment based on new cooperative planning procedures. In 2007 – two years before RGI was founded – California had already established the Renewable Energy Transmission Initiative (RETI) that aimed for broad public participation of as many interest groups as possible.
As coordinator of the RETI, David Olsen set new standards for cooperative procedures and transparent planning processes. Environmental and cost efficiency criteria formed the basis for the identification of grid corridors. The integrated planning approach considered both potential for efficiency enhancement and demand-side-management. Inspired by this innovative process, other actors started to rethink their own roles: grid operators increasingly take on more responsibility beyond technological neutrality.
15:00 Introduction
Antonella Battaglini | RGI
15:10 Welcome notes
Sir Graham Watson | MEP and chairman of the Climate Parliament & Jo Leinen | MEP
15:20 Why innovation matters more than ever - Personal review of the Warsaw Climate Change Conference COP 19
Christoph Bals | Germanwatch | Presentation
15:40 Keynote - Leadership, reliability, collaboration
David Olsen | California Independent System Operator CAISO | Presentation
16:00 European American Grid Dialogue: innovative approaches
a) Technology & market innovation
- Innovative storage solutions
Prof Donald R. Sadoway | MIT | Video presentation
- New pylon design and partial undergrounding
Paul-Georg Garmer | TenneT | Presentation
- RES integration: Opportunities for innovative grid operators
Hubert Lemmens | Elia Group | Presentation
- Public acceptance
Erik Bystrup | Bystrup Architecture, Design and Engineering | Presentation
- On energy
E. Bourbaki | Presentation
b) Policy & society innovation
- Building a sustainable energy future – the role of the regulator
Richard Cowart | Regulatory Assistance Project | Presentation
- Strategic Marine Grid Planning
David Pratt | Marine Scotland | Presentation
- BESTGRID – new ways of working together
Antina Sander | RGI | Presentation
- Environmental mapping of PCIs
Ivan Scrase & Suzie Lukacova | Royal Society of the Protection of Birds |Presentation
17:00 Projects of Common European Interest
Paula Pinho | Member of Cabinet Guenther H. Oettinger, EU Commissioner for Energy
17:30 A global perspective on energy innovation
Stephan Singer | WWF International
18:00 Conclusion and outlook
Catharina Sikow-Magny | DG Energy & Antonella Battaglini | RGI
