2018 Renewable Energy Buyers Alliance Summit to Be hosted in Oakland at VERGE 18

OAKLAND Calif. and WASHINGTON, February 8, 2018 /3BL Media/ — The annual Renewable Energy Buyers Alliance (REBA) Summit will return to the San Francisco Bay Area in 2018 — hosted in Oakland, October 14-16, ahead of GreenBiz Group’s VERGE 18 conference and expo.

REBA is a coalition of leadership organizations with deep expertise in transforming energy markets: BSR’s Future of Internet Power, Rocky Mountain Institute’s Business Renewables Center, World Resources Institute’s Electricity Initiative and World Wildlife Fund’s Renewable Energy Buyers’ Principles (also supported by World Resources Institute). The coalition works with large renewable energy buyers, including corporations, universities, cities, hospitals, local agencies and others.

The Summit, organized by REBA and hosted by GreenBiz Group at VERGE 18, is a cornerstone of REBA’s goal to help energy buyers purchase 60 gigawatts of new renewable energy in the United States by 2025. The Summit provides the opportunity to accelerate the fast-growing market for renewable energy transactions by bringing together more than 400 renewable energy buyers and solution providers to develop new partnerships and collaboratively tackle barriers and opportunities to continue growing the market.

The VERGE 18 conference and expo is the platform for accelerating the clean economy. It convenes a high-powered audience of more than 2,500 leaders — including companies and utilities, city and regional governments, policy makers, NGOs, solution providers and startups — to explore the emerging technologies and scalable solutions within three dynamic and influential markets: energy, the circular economy and transportation and mobility.

“We are incredibly excited to partner with REBA for a second year,” said Eric Faurot, CEO of the GreenBiz Group. “Together, we will harness aligned momentum to create greater impact in building the clean economy.”

The co-location of VERGE 18 and the REBA Summit provides an unparalleled opportunity for renewable energy buyers to to share challenges and explore promising opportunities with leading developers, utilities and solution providers.

“Co-locating the annual REBA summit with VERGE is a breakthrough by combining two powerful networks and enabling companies who may not have seen themselves as players in the energy market to be part of the next wave of buyers. It’s a great demonstration of the power of collaboration – helping companies be fast adopters while accelerating and scaling the market transformation that is delivering a greener, more cost-effective grid for everyone,” said Kevin Hagen, Director Corporate Responsibility at Iron Mountain.

"The REBA Summit hosted at VERGE was a huge success in 2017, by bringing together large energy buyers looking to learn and share the latest innovations in renewable energy procurement. Together these events create an ideal platform to accelerate the adoption of clean energy, and I look forward to attending again in 2018,” said Nicola Peill-Moelter, Senior Director of Environmental Sustainability at Akamai Technologies.

Participation in the 2018 REBA Summit is by invitation only for select REBA members and partners, including renewable energy buyers, service providers, developers, financiers and utilities. A form to request an invitation will be available in Spring 2018. For updates on the REBA Summit and VERGE 18, subscribe here: http://grn.bz/VERGE18subscribe

To learn more about REBA, visit: http://rebuyers.org/

To learn more about VERGE 18, visit: http://grn.bz/VERGE18

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ABOUT BSR

BSR (Business for Social Responsibility) is a global nonprofit organization that works with its network of more than 250 member companies and other partners to build a just and sustainable world. From its offices in Asia, Europe, and North America, BSR develops sustainable business strategies and solutions through consulting, research, and cross-sector collaboration. Visit www.bsr.org for more information about BSR’s 25 years of leadership in sustainability.

ABOUT GREENBIZ GROUP

GreenBiz Group’s mission is to define and accelerate the business of sustainability. It does this through a wide range of products and services, including its acclaimed website GreenBiz.com and e-newsletters, GreenBuzz and VERGE; webcasts on topics of importance to sustainability and energy executives; research reports, including the annual State of Green Business; the GreenBiz Executive Network, a membership-based, peer-to-peer learning forum for sustainability executives; and conferences: the annual GreenBiz forum and VERGE. www.greenbiz.com

ABOUT ROCKY MOUNTAIN INSTITUTE

Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) is an independent, non-partisan nonprofit that that transforms global energy use to create a clean, prosperous, and secure low-carbon future. RMI through the Business Renewables Center (BRC) engages businesses to advance market-based solutions to cost-effectively shift to efficiency and renewables. We employ rigorous research, analysis, and whole-systems expertise to develop breakthrough insights. Representing all sides of the corporate renewable market, we convene and collaborate to accelerate and scale solutions. Together, BRC is targeting an additional 60 GW of wind and solar capacity to the grid by 2030.

ABOUT WORLD RESOURCES INSTITUTE

World Resources Institute (WRI) is a global research organization that spans more than 50 countries, with offices in Africa, Brazil, China, Europe, India, Indonesia, Mexico, and the United States. Our more than 700 experts and staff work closely with leaders to turn big ideas into action at the nexus of environment, economic opportunity and human well-being. http://www.wri.org/

ABOUT WORLD WILDLIFE FUND

WWF is one of the world’s leading conservation organizations, working in 100 countries for over half a century. With the support of almost 5 million members worldwide, WWF is dedicated to delivering science-based solutions to preserve the diversity and abundance of life on Earth, halt the degradation of the environment and combat climate change. Visit www.worldwildlife.org to learn more and follow our news conversations on Twitter @World_Wildlife.

CONTACT:

BSR: Kelly Gallo, (415) 984-3217

GreenBiz Group: Becky Dempsey, (510) 740-2358

Rocky Mountain Institute: Kevin Haley, khaley@rmi.org, (303) 389-6774

World Resources Institute: Katie Pastor, katie.pastor@wri.org, (202) 729-7897

World Wildlife Fund: Melanie Gade, melanie.gade@wwfus.org, (202) 495-4143