SAN DIEGO will be the place to be this summer for an estimated 10,000 of the nation’s top professionals in the energy, water, transportation and environmental industries. EngEx 2010, taking place at the San Diego Convention Center from July 29 – 31, will make America’s Finest City home to some of the top technologists, researchers, policy makers, governmental agencies and investors all looking to collaborate together under one roof.

“We are looking forward to having a great conference that really creates some strong business and innovation opportunities for our nation’s future,” said Kris Ellis, VP of Operations, with EngEx 2010. “The plan is to evolve some big ideas into action from this conference.”

9 Government agencies hosting workshops to help businesses grow:

* How to get government contracts? $500 Billion Given Annually!
* How to get access to government grants? $2.2 Billion Given Annually!
* BLM: How to access Gov’t lands for Oil/ Gas/Wind/Solar/Geothermal projects
* How to export and tap government resources to find international buyers?
* Learn how to work with utility companies to commercialize products!
* Keynote Speaker: Shell Energy North America President “Counting Carbon”
* Alternative Fuels Vehicle Showroom!

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Nissan today broke ground on the project that brings Nissan LEAF production to the United States. The groundbreaking ceremony marks the start of construction on a manufacturing facility in Smyrna, Tenn., that will produce the lithium-ion batteries that power the Nissan LEAF zero-emission vehicle. The all-electric Nissan LEAF will be produced at Nissan’s vehicle assembly facility in Smyrna beginning in 2012.

Nissan LEAF and battery production will create up to 1,300 jobs when the plants are operating at full capacity. The battery plant, one of the largest vehicle battery manufacturing plants in North America at 1.3 million square feet at full capacity, will be capable of producing 200,000 advanced-technology batteries annually. It will be located adjacent to the vehicle assembly plant, which will be retooled to accommodate production of Nissan LEAF and will be capable of producing 150,000 electric cars annually.

“Nissan is committed to affordable, sustainable mobility. What we’re doing here will radically transform the automotive experience for consumers. Today is a major step in helping create a green economy in the United States,” said Carlos Ghosn, president and CEO of Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. “Production of Nissan LEAF and lithium-ion batteries in Smyrna brings the United States closer to its goal of energy independence, creates green jobs and helps sustain American manufacturing. Nissan is a leader in global manufacturing innovation, and this state-of-the-art battery plant will strengthen that leadership.”

“Tennessee has become a national leader in driving clean energy innovation, and Nissan’s commitment to build this advanced-technology battery facility here in Tennessee is a key part of that success,” said Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen. “Nissan’s investment in Tennessee began more than two decades ago, and this new manufacturing plant leads the way to the next generation of automotive and clean energy jobs in the Volunteer state.”

Combined, the construction of the battery plant and modification of the Smyrna manufacturing facility to accommodate Nissan LEAF production represents an investment of up to $1.7 billion, which initially is being supported by a U.S. Department of Energy loan for 80 percent of that investment, up to $1.4 billion.

The loan was issued as part of the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Loan Program, a $25 billion program authorized by Congress as part of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. The program is designed to accelerate the development of vehicles and technologies that increase U.S. energy independence, create cleaner means of transportation and stimulate the American economy.

Approximately 13,000 U.S. consumers have placed a reservation for Nissan LEAF since reservations opened on April 20. The reservation process, which is open to the general public via NissanUSA.com, is the first step in securing a place on the list to purchase or lease Nissan LEAF. Nissan LEAF begins rolling out to select markets in the United States, Japan and Europe in December, with increased availability beginning in spring 2011, and full market rollout in 2012. It initially will be produced in Oppama, Japan, and will be equipped with lithium-ion batteries being produced in Zama, Japan. The Renault-Nissan Alliance will also produce lithium-ion batteries in Cacia, Portugal, and Sunderland, UK, as well as in Renault’s Flins plant in France.

In North America, Nissan’s operations include automotive design, engineering, consumer and corporate financing, sales and marketing, distribution and manufacturing.  Nissan is dedicated to improving the environment under the Nissan Green Program 2010, whose key priorities are reducing CO2 emissions, cutting other emissions and increasing recycling.  More information on the Nissan LEAF and zero emissions can be found at www.nissanusa.com.

The United States has invested considerable amounts of taxpayer dollars to try to revive our economy. Too often, though, resulting jobs are being created overseas, as other countries invest in green technology deployment. As a result, the opportunity to improve our economic competitiveness is lost. Targeting our policies to help small U.S. technology producers is essential to keeping these jobs in the United States.

The United States is a leader in the research and development of green technologies, but to translate innovation into products for the market place, small businesses need private capital. Small companies introducing innovative new technology often face long odds in finding sufficient capital to fully develop new products and secure their place in the market. What government can do to help is encourage that private investment. If policies fail to do this, then innovation and jobs will likely go elsewhere.

To read the full article, visit Renewable Energy World here.

In a generally bleak employment picture, the green jobs sector is growing faster than any other. By 2007, a Pew Charitable Trusts report on the Clean Energy Economy counted 770,000 jobs in all 50 states that met the “double bottom line” of economic growth and environmental sustainability. Clean energy economy jobs grew by 9.1% between 1998 and 2007, compared to just 3.7% in overall job growth in those years (before the markets crashed). Venture capital investment — thin on the ground throughout the economy now — totaled $12.6 billion in the clean tech sector between 2006 and 2009.

A new report from the Global Climate Network (composed of nine think tanks, including the Center for American Progress) predicts that the world’s eight leading economies will create 20 million new jobs between now and 2020. In the U.S., the report said, the stimulus package and the American Clean Energy and Security Act could help create as many as 1.9 million new green jobs in the period. The move to a “smart grid” could create 270,000 jobs, and a further 138,000 if U.S. smart grid technologies are exported to a global market, the report said.
Read more: http://www.thedailygreen.com/environmental-news/latest/best-cities-green-jobs-461209?click=main_sr#ixzz0otFiTWOz