COSSA’s Mike Kruger explains what’s to like about this session and what’s on the mind of the solar companies
The Colorado Solar and Storage Association will host its annual conference on Jan. 20-22 in downtown Denver at the Hilton Denver City Center. Big Pivots peeked at the agenda and then tossed these questions to Mike Kruger, the chief executive since 2018.
You advertise your annual gathering in Denver as the “closest conference to the sun.” How much truth and how much marketing wink-and-smile is in that phrase?
There aren’t any conferences in Santa Fe, so our Solar Power and Energy Storage Mountain West conference is the closest solar and storage conference to the sun. We are also the most comprehensive gathering in the entire Mountain West. And yes, we do use smart marketing phrases when appropriate.
To create a packed two-day agenda like this, when you do start issuing invitations to speakers?
The programming process is handled mostly in house. COSSA staff talks with members every day, so we know what is most pressing. We also know what policy and legislation is coming up so we try to plan for that. I view the Solar Power and Energy Storage Mountain West conference as a chance for renewable energy professionals to pick up their heads from the day-to-day tasks for three days to look over the horizon at what is coming and how it will impact their business.
Once the internal team has settled on key topics, we start reaching out to speakers three to four months before the conference. Although, due to cancellations and sickness, sometimes we are reaching out to speakers three to four hours before the conference.
OK, I’m a very important guy. Wink-wink. Tell me which sessions I absolutely CANNOT miss.
Are you even in business if you skip the Closing Plenary: “Where is All the Money?” I am very excited for that one. You should also attend the keynote and featured speaker sessions. Our informal theme this year is VPPs and SPPs since those are the two biggest changes to the Mountain West energy world in the next 12 to 18 months. With the broader roll-out of virtual power plants and some of the state joining the Southwest Power Pool, the economics of clean energy will get even better.
I’m also excited about the extras we have this year, including our Installer Day trainings, the Women in Leadership Event and the Energy Bar Association’s Rocky Mountain Chapter CLE trainings. These additions will ensure an even broader group of attendees than in years past.
Why might somebody from WRA or SWEEP or CCI or even CML want to sit in on that session devoted to VPPs?
We are seeing a rapid expansion and transformation of the electric grid. That has big impacts on how fast we can decarbonize, how much it will cost and who will have access to the cleaner and more efficient electrified end uses (like EVs and heat pumps). VPPs offer a chance to expand access more efficiently and less costly than traditional poles and wires solutions. If you care about clean air, clean water, Colorado or just generally people you love, VPPs are worth learning about.
I have people whispering in my ear that data centers are the BIGGEST topic of the year in Colorado. And I have to agree. But I can’t help but note that that elephant in Colorado’s energy room, Xcel Energy, will not be on your data center panel. Why should I bother to be there?
Data centers are a big deal. But remember that Xcel isn’t the only utility in the state. That panel has representatives from Tri-State and Platte River Power Authority, both of whom are being approached by data center developers on a very regular basis. Regardless of which utility is on the panel, you should attend that one if you care about how this big new energy demand will be met and how much will be done with carbon-free solutions.
You have a full hour devoted to renewables and native tribes. Is this strictly a Colorado session or will the agenda cover New Mexico and other states?
This is the MOUNTAIN WEST conference. We cover issues of importance to all the Rocky Mountain States, so if you are developing between Montana and New Mexico, you’ll want to be in the room for that conversation.
Why no sessions devoted to Donald Trump and how he might affect the solar industry?
America doesn’t have a single, federal energy market. We have 56, when including our territories, so while President Trump can make things more expensive via tariffs or removing tax breaks, it will be the states that push for clean electrons. That’s why we are so focused on these Mountain West states.
Mike Kruger, right, chats with Will Toor, chief executive of the Colorado Energy Office, at COSSA’s 2024 annual conference.
Let’s talk about a really, really exciting issue: supply chains. No sessions devoted to that topic. Why?
Supply chains are complicated and super varied. Residential rooftop installers are worried about inverter availability, while large-scale developers are concerned about transformers. Ultimately high prices will solve high prices and the supply chain will figure itself out.
There has been some tension about local siting of solar installations. Where are we with that in Colorado?
We are in a good place. The COSSA Institute has been doing a lot of proactive communications with communities to ensure that they think through what they’d like to see regarding renewable development. Each project will have to jump its own hurdles, but overall, only a handful of communities don’t want renewable energy.
What percentage of the session is devoted explicitly to the interests of the 300 or so members of COSSA? And how many might be of interest to, for example, a legislative aide trying to keep abreast of key issues for his or her boss?
COSSA is a member-driven organization, so we have formed much of the conference around needs of our members. However, there is plenty for others who aren’t installing solar and storage on a day-to-day basis. The exhibit hall is an incredible display of American ingenuity and innovation. Most of the panels will have a policy or legislative tie. Even just attending the Happy Hours and learning what it’s like to build a solar and storage project today is worth anyone’s time.
What will be the hottest hallway conversation topics?
Beats me! I’ll be busy running around making sure we have enough coffee and dinging the chimes to get everyone into the rooms they need to be in.
In a nutshell, how do you see Colorado vis-a-vis other states? In solar? More broadly? Are we really the brightest and the best?
Colorado is the most interesting state west of the Mississippi. California has decided to step backwards in their clean energy leadership. Washington was able to keep their carbon cap-and-trade system, but they still severely limit renewable energy deployment. Texas has lots of everything, but I’m not sure that’s always the best thing.
In Colorado we have a strong and stable policy regime. We have communities of all political stripes embracing clean energy. We have regulatory pushes on the most cutting-edge ideas like distribution system planning, increasingly aggressive clean energy requirements for utilities, virtual power plants and clean heat mandates. All of that is exciting and we are leading in all of those arenas.
Has Mike Kruger decided what he’s going to do with his life after he leaves COSSA?
This is a topic I plan to take up after the conference. If you know what I should do when I grow up, please drop me a note.
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We are not all utter geeks. Please define your acronyms!
I.e. Why might somebody from WRA or SWEEP or CCI or even CML want to sit in on that session devoted to VPPs?
It was kind of a joke (a dud, apparently), but here you go:
• Western Resource Advocates
• Southwest Energy Efficiency Project
• Colorado Counties Inc.
• Colorado Municipal League
• virtual power plants