$100 million boost possible

Renewable energy lab in Golden may get funding hike

Gargi Chakrabarty, Rocky Mountain News

Published February 6, 2007 at midnight

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Renewable energy is the flavor du jour, and the annual check that Golden's National Renewable Energy Laboratory could get from Washington likely will reflect that popularity.

The lab's budget could jump 50 percent, or by $100 million, in fiscal 2007 if the Senate and President Bush back the House's decision late last week to hike funding for two renewable energy programs that in turn fund NREL.

The money could keep scientists from getting pink slips and boost the ongoing solar, wind and biomass programs at NREL. The backdrop to the increased money is the national push to wean the country off foreign oil and become more energy independent.

"I'd say NREL could get $100 million more in fiscal 2007," said U.S. Rep. Ed Perlmutter, D-Colo.

The Senate has until Feb. 15 to pass the two House measures.

One increases the energy efficiency and renewable energy programs by $300 million, while the other boosts the Office of Science programs by $200 million. NREL draws more than 90 percent of its budget from EERE and about 5 percent from OOS programs.

Those measures have bipartisan support from Colorado lawmakers, including Sen. Wayne Allard, a Republican, as well as Sen. Ken Salazar and Reps. Perlmutter, Mark Udall and Diana DeGette, Democrats.

"I did my job in making sure that money was going to the Energy Department and to those programs," Perlmutter said Monday. "Now NREL has to go make its best case for the funding."

Allard said: "I've long been supportive of increasing funding for the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy and the Office of Science. These are two strong programs at the Department of Energy, and they provide a source of competitive funding for good scientific research."

The Department of Energy, which owns NREL, would distribute the money if approved by Congress. Department spokesman Chris Powers said he wasn't sure how much money NREL would get.

"If it passes, that would be a significant increase," Powers said. "EERE would not have seen an increase like that in a long, long time."

In recent years, NREL's budget has experienced ups and downs.

In dollars not adjusted for inflation, NREL's budget was $209.3 million for fiscal 2006, $200.3 million in 2005, $212.4 million in 2004 and $229.5 million in 2003.

Since Congress didn't pass a budget for fiscal 2007, funding for NREL programs has been kept at 2006 levels.

In February 2006, NREL's budget stood at $174 million, which forced the lab to lay off 32 employees. The Energy Department gave the lab $5 million two days before President Bush visited that month to help reinstate the employees, although eight laid-off scientists chose not to return.

NREL later received more money in fiscal 2006 from Office of Science programs that bolstered its budget.

"The fluctuations make planning difficult, but that's part of the beast," said Rick Grice, former executive director of the Governor's Office of Energy Management and Conservation, who was appointed by former Gov. Bill Owens. "NREL is a political animal at the mercy of whoever is in charge."

The mission

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory aims to:

• Develop renewable energy and energy-efficiency technologies and practices.

• Advance related science and engineering.

• Transfer knowledge and innovations to address the nation's energy and environmental goals.

Key dates

• 1974: Established as Solar Energy Research Institute.

• 1977: Opened in Golden.

• 1991: Designated national laboratory in 1991 by President George H.W. Bush.

NREL programs

• Biomass: Make ethanol from nonedible portions of plants, such as corn stalks, leaves, wood chips and forest waste. Build a biorefinery in collaboration with DuPont to make biofuels, plastics and fabrics from biomass.

• Wind: Research how to make wind turbines more efficient to make wind power cheaper.

• Solar: Work on concentrator systems that help focus more sunlight on a solar cell, making the cell produce more energy more cheaply.

• Hydrogen: Work to produce hydrogen using renewable energy sources such as solar or wind to electrolyse water, and then store the hydrogen in fuel-cell vehicles.

• Green buildings: Build zero-energy homes, which through efficiency and renewable energy programs generate as much energy as they consume in a year.Source: National Renewable Energy Laboratory

NREL at a glance

930 employees

170 contractors

32 laid off in 2006 (25 reinstated)

$209.2 million: 2006 fiscal budget

$100 million: Additional funding NREL could get in fiscal 2007 if the Senate and President Bush approve the House bills that dramatically increase funding for two renewable enegry programs.

Significant discoveries

1. Designed the world's most efficient solar cell.

2. Designed wind turbine blades now used worldwide.

3. Conducted fundamental research that led to hybrid-electric vehicles.

chakrabartyg@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-2976

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