The Natural Gas Renewable Energy Alliance

By Robert L. Mauro, Executuive Vice President, National Hydrogen Association
The Natural Gas Renewable Energy Alliance (NGREA) is a group of representatives from natural gas and renewable energy trade associations that are engaged in jointly addressing the issues and opportunities that face both industries. The organizations were encouraged to come together by the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) under the coordination of John Kerekes of the Business Council for Sustainable Energy.

The origins of the NGREA stem from a meeting between the Assistant Secretary of EERE, Dan Reicher, and representatives of the natural gas industry including the American Gas Association. Separate meetings followed with the renewable energy industry including National Hydrogen Association (NHA), Solar Energy Industries Association, American Wind Energy Association and others. At the initial meeting each group raised a series of sustainable energy issues that they wished addressed. A joint meeting was held at which a statement of principles originally presented by the Department of Energy was modified. The basic tenants of the statement were: natural gas and renewables constitute clean, affordable, and reliable energy sources. The commercialization of the technologies from both of these industries can help the nation’s environmental, economic and energy security goals. The members agreed to pursue a common agenda for clean energy. The mechanism for this activity is the formation the Natural Gas-Renewable Energy Alliance.

The Alliance will set priorities and work to achieve these priorities through regulation, legislation, and public-private partnerships. To this purpose, the NGREA sent a letter to Carol Browner, the Environmental Protection Agency Administrator, requesting her to “to develop fuel neutral, output based standards that do not hinder the growth of clean, reliable gas and renewable energy technologies.” The letter requests that these standards be applied to State Implementation Plans, Federal Implementation Plans, and the allocation process in the 2008 NOx trading program. Other areas that have been discussed are the role of natural gas in portfolio standards and the other aspects of restructuring.

To date the NHA has not joined the alliance. It’s not clear whether this partnership will benefit the NHA or the renewable energy industry. The Board of Directors will take this matter up during the next Board meeting.

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