Intersolar North America 2017 will celebrate its 10th anniversary in San Francisco from July 11-13. As one of the most-attended solar exhibition in the United States, we didn't want to miss the opportunity to interview the organizers.
What are the actual situation and the future expectations in renewable energy?
In 2016, the solar industry boomed as more than 14 gigawatts of solar photovoltaics (PV) were installed in the United States, the biggest year ever for the market. Despite the solar industry’s record growth, challenges remain. This year, module sales slowed down and major policy debates erupted across the United States surrounding net metering, generating uncertainty about the future of solar. However, even though a slight decrease in installations is expected in 2017, the U.S. market is expected to triple in size in the next five years.
In addition, two ongoing trends allude to a bright future for the solar industry:
- First, hard and soft costs of solar installations are dropping rapidly and are expected to continue to decrease.
- Second, energy storage solutions are on a rapid trajectory, fueled by growing accessibility, increasingly efficient technology and changing regulatory structures. With solar becoming a more cost-competitive alternative to fossil fuels and coal, there is tremendous potential for large-scale deployment of solar installations in the coming years.
What novelties could we find in this 2017 edition?
2017 marks the 10th anniversary of the Intersolar North America exhibition and conference in San Francisco. This year’s event will be bigger and more exciting than years past, with plenty of opportunities for attendees to see new solar innovations firsthand, hear about industry trends, and meet with industry leaders at a variety of can’t-miss networking events.
This year’s Intersolar North American conference will introduce new conference tracks and workshops organized in partnership with CALSEIA, NATT Batt, IREC, Powerhouse, The Solar Foundation, NABCEP and others, and will also offer new full-day symposiums on solar finance and solar assets management by the Sunspec Alliance.
We’re also celebrating the 40th anniversary of the California Solar Energy Industries Association (CALSEIA), a longtime partner of Intersolar, with a larger-than-ever Solar Summerfest event at AT&T Park. Solar Summerfest will be the largest-ever solar networking event in California, and all proceeds will go to CALSEIA, supporting the organization’s efforts advocating for solar adoption across California.
Intersolar NA is co-located with ees North America and SEMICON West. What’s the relation between them?
Intersolar North America, ees North America and SEMICON West are independent, co-located events and industry partners. ees North America and Intersolar North America are both hosted by Solar Promotion International and Freiburg Management and Marketing International GmbH, and SEMICON West is hosted by SEMI.
Year after year, these events provide attendees with a three-for-one registration value – guests are able to gain an inside look at the solar, energy storage and semiconductor industries at the same place in the same week.
What’s the visitor profile?
Our event attracts visitors from across the value chain, from architects and project developers to manufacturers and installers. Intersolar North America draws a diverse range of attendees due to its multitude of workshops and side events, insightful conference panels, and high-quality networking opportunities.
In addition, our three co-located events, ees North America, Intersolar North America and SEMICON West, ensure that individuals across the solar, energy storage and semiconductor industries all learn more about their unique sectors, as well as broaden their knowledge of neighbouring sectors. There’s something here for everyone.
Could you highlight some workshops for attendees?
Intersolar North America 2017 will host a wide variety of workshops, conference sessions, and off-site activities for attendees. These range from installation workshops, such as the IREC-sponsored workshop on Solar Codes and Safety, to more trend-based workshops, such as The Post Net-Metered PV World: New Opportunities.
Other highlights include the exhibition floor’s Innovation and Application Stage, where attendees can gain practical knowledge on the solar industry’s latest trends and hear from Intersolar’s AWARD winners. This year’s event will also feature a multi-part Asset Management Summit and wine tastings and solar microgrid tours in Napa, Calif.
The event gives a lot of opportunities to meet people…Could you give us some tips for business at Intersolar?
As the largest solar industry networking event in California, Intersolar North America goes above and beyond to provide opportunities to connect professionals with all levels of the solar industry. Events such as the Powerhouse Circle, the German-American Green Business Breakfast, the SF Bay Area Sailing Tour, and the Alcatraz Tour bring together the industry’s leading founders and CEOs.
The biggest—and most popular—networking event at Intersolar North America, however, is the Solar Summerfest, which brings together thousands of solar professionals. This year’s Solar Summerfest will be the biggest yet and celebrates the 10th Anniversary of Intersolar North America and the 40th Anniversary of CALSEIA at AT&T Park. Attending businesses should review the conference schedule ahead of the event to plan their trip and take advantage of the plethora of networking opportunities available onsite.
Finally, can you give us some participation results of the last edition?
Intersolar North America is the most-attended solar industry exhibition and conference in North America. More than 550 exhibitors and 18,000 visitors participated in Intersolar and ees North America in 2016.
The 2016 conference and exhibition program featured 39 sessions with more than 260 speakers and 22 workshops. The ees North America exhibition and accompanying conference, focused on storage solutions for renewable energy, featured more than 100 exhibitors. We hope for an even bigger year in 2017.
