Microgrids

Microgrid 2022: The Philly Conference which covers the Sector in all its Fast-Growing Glory

May 5, 2022

Presenters at the event will come from government and industry leaders including Ameresco, Siemens, Schneider Electric, Enchanted Rock, Columbia University, Scale Microgrid Solutions, Bimbo Bakeries, Arizona Public Service, Ameren, ClearGen, EnelX & Eaton

Rod Walton, EnergyTech Managing Editor

The name and year say it all. Microgrid 2022 is front and center in Philadephia.

Various researchers and forecasters predict the microgrid market will grow at least four-fold to more than $40 billion (maybe $50B or more) in value in only a few more years. Financial investment giants such as Carlyle Group and McQuarrie are showing their faith in that growth opportunity by putting their money where the microgrids will be.

The authority covering all of that movement is the simply and aptly named Microgrids 2022 Conference happening June 1-2 in Philadelphia at the Marriott Downtown. The event is sponsored by industry news site Microgrid Knowledge. (Editor’s Note: EnergyTech parent company Endeavor Business Media announced Thursday morning that it has acquired Microgrid Knowledge and the event).

The theme is Microgrids as Climate Heroes, with on-site power which offers both a front line against grid outages and interruptions and the mobilization toward cleaner energy resources. Microgrid 2022 will offer a deep focus on everything from military directives on power resiliency to industrial needs all the way down to homes and neigborhoods.

"This is the one conference to attend if you're interested in microgrids,’’ said Elisa Wood, Editor-in-Chief of Microgrid Knowledge. “A colleague summed it up this way: 'If you want the best steak you go to a steakhouse, not just any old restaurant. If you’re interested in microgrids, you go to the Microgrid Knowledge conference, not some big energy event where microgrids get lost in the noise."

Microgrid 2022 kicks off Wednesday, June 1 with a welcome from Philadephia Mayor Jim Kenney. The city’s Navy Yard commercial center is home to a unique new microgrid.

The keynote speaker is Jeffrey Schlegelmilch, director of the National Center for Disaster Preparedness at the Climate School at Columbia University.

Numerous breakout sessions and panels on various aspects of microgrids fill the event’s schedule. On Wednesday, a panel on “Macro Economic Influences on the Microgrid Market” will feature experts from Citi, Scale Microgrid, Sapling Financial and ClearGen.

Later in the day, a discussion on the need for microgrids at the humanitarian level will include Blue Planet Energy, Schneider Electric, the Footprint Project and Empowered by Light. Another breakout session on “Sustainable Commerce in the Age of the Microgrid” includes director and managers from S&C Electric Co., Bimbo Bakeries and Power Engineers.

Registration is open for Microgrid 2022 via this link.

Wednesday, June 2 keynote speaker will be U.S. Rep. Sean Casten, an Illinois Congressman and former microgrid developer. The rest of the day will feature experts from AECOM, Enel X, Emera Technologies, Arizona State University and 2G Energy, among others.

One of the panel topics will be the U.S. Army's Climate Strategy decision to install a microgrid at every installation by 2035.

About the Author

Rod Walton, EnergyTech Managing Editor | Senior Editor

For EnergyTech editorial inquiries, please contact Managing Editor Rod Walton at [email protected].

Rod Walton has spent 15 years covering the energy industry as a newspaper and trade journalist. He formerly was energy writer and business editor at the Tulsa World. Later, he spent six years covering the electricity power sector for Pennwell and Clarion Events. He joined Endeavor and EnergyTech in November 2021.

Walton earned his Bachelors degree in journalism from the University of Oklahoma. His career stops include the Moore American, Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise, Wagoner Tribune and Tulsa World.

EnergyTech is focused on the mission critical and large-scale energy users and their sustainability and resiliency goals. These include the commercial and industrial sectors, as well as the military, universities, data centers and microgrids. The C&I sectors together account for close to 30 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S.

He was named Managing Editor for Microgrid Knowledge and EnergyTech starting July 1, 2023

Many large-scale energy users such as Fortune 500 companies, and mission-critical users such as military bases, universities, healthcare facilities, public safety and data centers, shifting their energy priorities to reach net-zero carbon goals within the coming decades. These include plans for renewable energy power purchase agreements, but also on-site resiliency projects such as microgrids, combined heat and power, rooftop solar, energy storage, digitalization and building efficiency upgrades.