U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu on Wednesday said the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden will receive $110 million in federal stimulus money for equipment and new facilities — a 34 percent boost to the lab’s annual budget.
NREL also could apply to the Department of Energy’s office in Golden for another $83 million in stimulus funds for wind-energy research.
“Wind energy will be one of the most important contributors to meeting President Obama’s target of generating 10 percent of our electricity from renewable sources by 2012,” Chu said. “The projects funded by this opportunity will advance wind technology so that it can reliably supply a substantial portion of our nation’s electricity.
“They will also help in creating more new jobs and expanding a clean-energy economy.”
The stimulus money will create temporary construction jobs and maybe a handful of permanent jobs at NREL, said spokesman George Douglas.
That’s on top of the 150 staffers NREL plans to hire this year, based on its original budget estimate of $316 million in fiscal 2009.
The stimulus infusion boosts NREL’s estimated budget to $426 million — the highest amount in its history and more than double the budget in fiscal 2006.
NREL’s budget likely will grow as the Department of Energy, which owns the lab, doles out more money for research projects, Chu said.
NREL employs scientists, academics and researchers — and often collaborates with the private sector — to find alternatives to fossil fuels that are affordable yet dependable sources of energy. It employs 1,300, including contractors.
“I hope this is the beginning of millions more to NREL,” said Tom Clark, executive vice president of the Metro Denver Economic Development Corp. “There’s nothing better than new research facilities for job creation.
“But in the long term, NREL should be in a place that has sustained funding so it doesn’t have to suffer the fluctuations of a fickle Congress.”
Earlier this month, Clark called it “discouraging” when the Department of Energy said NREL wouldn’t benefit substantially from the $787 billion economic-stimulus package.
Chu’s visit to NREL was his first since he took charge of the Department of Energy in January. A Nobel Prize-winning physicist, Chu directed the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory before taking his current job.
He received a private tour of an NREL facility with Gov. Bill Ritter and NREL director Dan Arvizu before addressing a gathering of scientists, local officials, entrepreneurs and guests.
Gargi Chakrabarty: 303-954-2976 or gchakrabarty@denverpost.com
