New Standards will Create Jobs, Spur Investment

WASHINGTON, DC - Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) President and CEO Rhone Resch released the following statement in response to today's announcement by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) that it is reviewing its policies with an eye toward integrating more variable resources into the electric grid:

"We applaud FERC for releasing this Notice of Inquiry. Creating standards and clarifying issues surrounding the integration of renewable resources like solar will accelerate the development of utility-scale solar projects, which in turn will create jobs sooner and spur more investment.
"This inquiry is a good first step, but there will still be barriers to delivering solar electricity if we don't have a comprehensive plan to modernize our electric grid. We look forward to working with FERC on these important issues for America's clean energy future."
###
Background Resources:


Green Power Superhighways: Building a Path to America's Clean Energy Future: http://seia.org/galleries/pdf/GreenPowerSuperhighways.pdf

List of wholesale solar energy projects:
http://seia.org/galleries/pdf/Major%20Solar%20Projects.pdf

FERC News Release: http://www.ferc.gov/news/news-releases/2010/2010-1/01-21-10-E-4.asp
FERC Chairman Statement: http://www.ferc.gov/news/statements-speeches/wellinghoff/2010/01-21-10-wellinghoff-E-4.asp

About SEIA:
Established in 1974, the Solar Energy Industries Association is the national trade association of solar energy industry. As the voice of the industry, SEIA works with its 1,000 member companies to make solar a mainstream and significant energy source by expanding markets, removing market barriers, strengthening the industry and educating the public on the benefits of solar energy. Learn more at www.seia.org.
Follow SEIA President & CEO Rhone Resch on Twitter: http://twitter.com/RhoneResch
See SEIA on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/thesolarindustry) and become a fan on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Solar-Energy-Industries-Association/112495296809). Read the Solar Bill of Rights at http://www.SolarBillofRights.org.

Media Contact:
Monique Hanis, 202.556.2885, mhanis@seia.org
Jared Blanton, 202.556.2886, jblanton@seia.org
Mark Sokolove, Tigercomm, 703.302.8382, mark@tigercomm.us