Meet Seven German Solar Energy Companies Visiting Colorado

Feb. 29, 2012 - PRLog -- DENVER, Colo.  – The German American Chamber of Commerce for Colorado (GACC-CO) will host a reception on Thursday, March 15, for the public to meet and network with seven German companies involved in solar energy. The companies are visiting Colorado in search of potential business partners and opportunities to expand their operations.

After installing a record breaking 7.5GW of new solar power generation in 2011, Germany remains the largest national market for solar installation in the world. Germany has long been a pioneer in solar energy technologies; its high-quality, advanced technology is used around the world to generate energy from sunlight.

The GACC-CO presents a Solar Energy Business Delegation 2012 of seven companies to Denver on March 15 & 16. The public is invited connect with them at the Solar Business Networking Reception.

Date:  Thursday, March 15, 2012, 6:00-9:00pm

Location: Millennium Room at the Warwick Denver Hotel, 1776 Grant Street, Denver, CO 80203

Cost: Networking reception is $20 which includes appetizers and a cash bar.

Registration and payment:
Register and pay for the event at http://www.GACCCO.org. Major credit card accepted or pay via Paypal by noon of March 15, 2012. Space is limited.

The reception is also sponsored by Ireland Stapleton Pryor & Pascoe, PC.

Colorado is a leader in the renewable energy industry. Renewable energy and energy efficiency (RE/EE) industries are significant economic drivers in Colorado and the state is well positioned for future growth. For example, In 2007 RE/EE generated $10.3 billion in sales and provided over 91,000 jobs in Colorado, accounting for more than 4% of the gross state product.

Colorado is a disproportionately large player in the U.S. renewable energy industry. Colorado’s gross state product accounts for only about 1.7% of the U.S. GDP, but in 2007 Colorado had about 6% of the U.S. wind market, nearly six percent of the photovoltaics market, and about 5% of the biofuels market.

The Solar Foundation, reports that Colorado employed 6,100 people in 2011 in the solar industry alone. That number is up 16 percent since 2010. The number of solar jobs also surpassed the number of mining jobs in Colorado for the first time in history. Further, Colorado was named the #1 state in the nation in solar jobs per capita and the #2 state in solar jobs overall.

The Colorado solar market is almost evenly split between the residential, non-residential, and utility sectors with 18.7 megawatts of installed capacity from residential, 15.9 megawatts from non-residential, and 19.1 megawatts from utilities. Colorado had the third highest cumulative installed capacity at the end of 2010. The next few years will see additional large-scale utility projects coming online in the state.

As a result, Colorado attracts strong interest from Germany, the leader in solar energy manufacturing and usage as seen in the visit of the seven companies from Germany.

About Ireland Stapleton Pryor & Pascoe, PC. The firm is a Colorado law firm providing legal services with an emphasis on bankruptcy, business, employment, environmental and energy, estate planning, litigation, real estate and special districts law. The firm has been in Denver since 1926 and is a member of the State Capital Group. Member firms of the State Capital Group practice independently and not in a relationship for the joint practice of law. To learn more about the firm visit http://www.irelandstapleton.com.

About the GACC-CO. The German American Chamber of Commerce – Colorado Chapter is the initial contact for German companies considering business in the Rocky Mountain region and connects German decision-makers with their U.S. counterparts. It also supports German cultural activities in Colorado and presents the annual www.DenverChristkindlMarket.com.  On the Web at http://www.GACCCO.org  or call 303 837-1146.

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The German American Chamber of Commerce - Colorado Chapter promotes international business between companies in the Rocky Mountain region and Germany and other German speaking countries of Europe. On the Web: www.gaccco.org .