GMF organized a study tour for U.S. policy makers on “Europe’s Renewable Energy Experience”, September 4-11. The delegation gained a first-hand insight into a range of European policies and business strategies that have helped Europe maintain a competitive edge in clean-energy technologies. The study tour took place in four European cities that are at the cutting edge of the clean energy revolution: Hamburg, in northern Germany; Bilbao, in the Basque Country in northern Spain; Madrid, the capital of Spain; and Seville, in southern Spain.

GMF is grateful to the German Foreign Ministry and the Transatlantic Climate Bridge Initiative, without which this study tour would not have been possible. GMF is also grateful to the German and Spanish embassies in Washington, DC and to the Spanish Ministry for Tourism, Industry, and Commerce for invaluable introductions and help in scheduling many of these meetings.

The delegation met the following people:

• Per Hornung Pedersen, Chief Market Officer (member of the board), REpower Systems AG
• Christian Friege (CEO), Pekka Droeger, Gerlinde Bartelheimer, LichtBlick Verwaltungs GmbH
• Joerg Mayer, Managing Director, Agency for Renewable Energies, Berlin
• Benedikt Landgrebe, Deputy CEO, Bucerius Law School
• Holger Gassner, Head of Markets and Political Affairs, RWE Innogy GmbH
• Ernst Rauch, Head, Corporate Climate Centre, Munich Re
• Antonella Battaglini, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research
• Gerhard Knies, Chairman and founder, Desertec Foundation
• Felix Matthes, Oeko-Institut
• Thorsten Schneiders, Head of Policy, E.On
• Holger Lange, Director General for Nature and Resource Conservation, Hamburg State Ministry for Urban Development and Environment
• Jennifer Wesche, Deputy Director for the Project “Hamburg European Green Capital 2011”, Hamburg State Ministry for Urban Development and Environment

Resources:

Hamburg - European Green Capital 2011: Background, Challenges and Plans, (Presentation, PDF - 4.1mb)
Climate Action in Hamburg - Update 2009/2010, (Presentation, PDF - 1.5mb)
Renewable Energies in the Metropolis Hamburg, by H. Lange & K. Walberg (Presentation, PDF - 2.9mb)
The SuperSmart Grid Enabling the Future, by A. Battaglini (Presentation, PDF - 4.1mb)
EC&R Activities in Renewable Energies, (Presentation, PDF - 0.8mb)
Energy Concept for an Environmentally Sound, Reliable and Affordable Energy Supply: Germany's New "national energy concept", published September 2010 (PDF - 0.2mb)
Unleashing Renewable Energy Power in Developing Countries, proposal for a global feed-in tariff by the World Future Council, December 2009 (PDF - 0.1mb)

• Guillermo Ulacia, Chairman, Innobasque - the Basque Innovation Agency and CEO, Gamesa
• Juan Jose Alonso,Basque Energy Cluster
• Juan Ignacio Vidarte, Director, Guggenheim Museum Bilbao
• Xabier Viteri,CEO, Iberdrola Renovables
• Dr Iñaki Azkuna, Mayor of Bilbao
• Basque Energy Cluster
  -    CEGASA: Iñaki Madina (General Manager of Energy Systems), Jorge Chacón (Commercial Director)
  -    CLUSTER DE ENERGIA: Juan José Alonso (Managing Director)
  -    EVE: José Ignacio Hormaeche (General Director)
  -    GAMESA: Gonzalo Onzain (Head of Mergers & Acquisitions)
  -    IDOM: José María Asumendi (Technical Director)
  -    IK4 Research Alliance: José Miguel Erdozain (General Manager), Juan Otegui (Responsible of Energy Affairs)
  -    INGETEAM: Alex Belaustegui (Managing Director Indar Electric)
  -    SENER: Santiago Ugaldea (General Manager Energy & Environment Business Area)
  -    TECNALIA: Luis Pedrosa (Director of the Energy Unit)
  -    ZIV: Angel Orcajada (Commercial Director)

Resources:
The Basque Country, Eco-Innovation Pole, overview of Basque Country innovation policies by InnoBasque, (PDF - 9.2mb)
Investing in Renewables, presentation by Xabier Viteri, Iberdrola Renovables (Presentation, Powerpoint - 1.6mb)
Una delegación del Congreso de EE UU visita hoy Innobasque, (Newspaper Article, El Pais)
Una delegación del Congreso de EE UU visita Innobasque en su gira europea, (Newspaper Article, Diario Vasco)
Una delegacion del Congreso de Estados Unidos visita Innobasque en Zamudio (Newspaper Article, El Mundo)
Miembros del Congreso de Ee.uu. visitan Innobasque (Newspaper Article, Deia.com)
Bilbao Municipal Periodical, (PDF, 1.4mb)
El Pais Vasco, (PDF, 0.3mb)

• Pedro Luis Marin Uribe, Secretary of State for Energy, Spanish Ministry for Tourism, Industry, and Commerce
• Antonio Hernandes Garcia, Director General for Energy Policy and Mines, and colleagues, Spanish Ministry for Tourism, Industry, and Commerce
• Alvaro Escribano, Professor, Dept. Economics, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid
• Jose Luis Ferreira, Dept. Economics, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid
• Ellen Lenny-Pessagno, Counselor for Commercial Affairs, U.S. Embassy to Spain
• Cristina Rivero, Head of Environment and Climate Change Department; Aquilino Lobo, Head of Energy Policy Department; Angel L. Vivar, Director of Energy Resources and Environment, UNESA
• Mr. Miguel Duvison, Head of the Operating Room, Red Eléctrica

Resources
A Study of the Effects on Employment of Public Aid to Renewable Energy Resources, paper by Gabriel Calzada Álvarez, Juan Carlos University, 2009 (PDF -0.8mb)
NREL Response to the Report 'Study of the Effects on Employment of Public Aid to Renewable Energy Sources' from King Juan Carlos University (Spain), by Eric Lantz and Suzanne Tegen, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, 2009 (PDF - 0.4mb)
The Rationality of Public Incentives towards the use of Renewable Energy in Electricity Production, summary of paper by A. Escribano, (PDF - 0.1mb)
Critique of the Calzada paper on "A Study of the Effects on Employment of Public Aid to Renewable Energy Resources", by A. Escribano, (PDF – 0.1mb)
Racionalidad de los Incentivos Públicos a la Energía Eléctrica Renovable, full paper by A. Escribano (in Spanish) (PDF – 1.2mb)

• Santiago Seage, Chairman and CEO, Abengoa Solar
• Germán Bejarano, Aide to the President in charge of International Institutional Relations
• Rodolfo Prados García, Institutional Relations & Communication