Transformations: Energy, Infrastructure, eMobility Conference

DIALOG MODERATOR: Bill Ritter, Center for the New Energy Economy, Colo State University, former Colorado Governor

PANELISTS:

1. Georgi Samandov, Deputy Minister of Energy of Bulgaria

Bio: Counterpart to top leadership at U.S. Dept of Energy. Master Degree in Electrical Engineering from Technical, over 15 year on key positions in the Energy Sector

2. Maggie Mann, Manager, Center for Integrated Mobility Sciences Decision Support Analysis, National Renewable Energy Lab

Bio: leads the transportation infrastructure analysis group at the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Golden, Colorado. Her current focus is on the supply chains for clean energy, and the use of batteries to reduce the cost and grid impacts of EV charging in behind-the-meter-storage systems (BTMS).

3. Kiril Boshov, Chairman of the Supervisory Board, CEZ EDC, Bulgaria

Bio: Chairman of the Board of Directors of Eurohold Bulgaria. Holds masters degree in accounting from UNWE

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· Bill Ritter, Director, Center for the New Energy Economy, former Colorado Governor
· Vladimir Zinoviev, Director, Center for Energy & Infrastructure, Univ. of National & World Economy
· Bryan Willson, Executive Director, Energy Institute, Colorado State University

Webinar Themes

· IT infrastructure and Cybersecurity
· R&D, Innovations, Competitiveness, Project Pipeline

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· Maury Dobbie, Executive Director, Colorado Energy Research Collaboratory, U.S.
Bio: Since 2007 the Collaboratory has built the Colorado energy ecosystem between the top 3 research universities and one of 17 U.S. national labs partnering on multi-million dollar energy projects. Former entrepreneur and economic development CEO.

· Vladimir Zinoviev, Director, Center for Energy & Infrastructure, University of National & World Economy
Bio: Group COO of Sunotec Group, a leading German PV-installer with over 4 GWp installed capacity. Former Member of the Management of leading multinationals in the energy sector. Assoc. Prof. in Energy at UNWE.

· Bryan Willson, Executive Director, Energy Institute, Colorado State University, U.S.
Bio: CSU’s Energy Institute comprises over 200 faculty members working in energy. Former Program Director at Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA-E) in the U.S. Department of Energy

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MODERATOR: Alice Jackson, President, Xcel Energy-Colorado
Bio: Previously area vice president of Strategic Revenue Initiatives, leading the company’s revenue growth strategy. She has a wealth of experience in managing government & stakeholder relations, as well as developing innovative products & services for customers gained over a 17-year career in the energy industry.

PANELISTS:

· Georgi Ganev, CEO IBM, Bulgaria

Bio: Over 15 years of corporate career within IBM

· Craig Partridge, Chair, Dept of Computer Science, Colorado State University

Bio: My research focuses on data networking. Any problem that involves moving bits, bytes, packets, chunks, files, or another abstraction between two machines is of interest to me. Much of my recent work has been in wireless networks.

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What kinds of innovation projects are being financed in the energy sector, how are they going to diversify various assets as energy sources transform in the future.

MODERATOR: Monika Beecher, Deputy Minister of Finance at Ministry of Finance, Bulgaria, Member of Board of EBRD, IIB, Deputy Country Head of IMF

Bio: Former Director General for EU Funding within the Ministry of Finance in Bulgaria. Holding a Master degree in Law from Sofia University

PANELISTS:

1. Chavdar Rissin, CFA, Citi Bank Trade Regional Head Central and Eastern Europe

Bio: Over 10 years leading the trade operations of Citi in the CEE region. Former Head of Corporate Banking at BNP

2. Ian Lange, Director, Mineral & Energy Economics program, Assoc, Prof. Division of Economics & Business, Colorado School of Mines

Bio: He recently returned to Mines after serving as Senior Economist for Energy at the Council of Economic Advisers for both the Biden and Trump administrations. Other previously held positions include the US Environmental Protection Agency, US Department of Energy, and University of Stirling in the UK.

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· Vladimir Zinoviev, Director, Center for Energy & Infrastructure, University of National & World Economy
· Bryan Willson, Executive Director, Energy Institute, Colorado State University

Webinar Themes – eMobility, Hydrogen, Infrastructure and Smart City Perspectives

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· Maury Dobbie, Executive Director, Colorado Energy Research Collaboratory
Bio: Since 2007 the Collaboratory has built the Colorado energy ecosystem between the top 3 research universities and one of 17 U.S. national labs partnering on multi-million dollar energy projects. Former entrepreneur and economic development CEO.

· Vladimir Zinoviev, Director, Center for Energy & Infrastructure, University of National & World Economy
Bio: Group COO of Sunotec Group, a leading German PV-installer with over 4 GWp installed capacity. Former Member of the Management of leading multinationals in the energy sector. Assoc. Prof. in Energy at UNWE.

· Bryan Willson, Executive Director, Energy Institute, Colorado State University
Bio: CSU’s Energy Institute comprises over 200 faculty members working in energy. Former Program Director at Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA-E) in the U.S. Department of Energy

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MODERATOR: Christina Nikolova, Professor and Head of Department Economy of Transport and Infrastructure, University of National & World Economy (UNWE)

Bio: Over 20 years in academic development at the UNWE. Holding Prof. degree in transport.

PANELISTS:

· Will Toor, Director, Colorado Energy Office

Bio: His background spans transportation electrification, sustainable transportation, smart growth, electric vehicle policy, clean energy finance, green building policy, local government policy & regional planning.

· Rosen Daskalov, Founder and CEO of Sin Cars (electro vehicles)

Bio: Former champion in car racing and over 10 years developing own production in the automotive sector

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MODERATOR: Christina Nikolova, Professor and Head of Department Economy of transport and infrastructure, Univ of National & World Economy (UNWE)

PANELISTS:

1. Plamen Atanassov, Chancellor’s Prof, Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, Materials Science & Engineering & Chemistry, Univ of California-Irvine

Bio: Graduated Univ. of Sofia & received PhD from the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences. Previously at Univ. of New Mexico (UNM) where he founded UNM Center for Emerging Energy Technologies (CEET), was Assoc Dean for Research & director of UNM Center for Micro-Engineered Materials (CMEM). Oct 2018 joined Univ. of California Irvine (UCI) where he is a Chancellor’s Professor building Electrochemistry & Electrochemical Engineering graduate program.

2. Bryan Pivovar, Sr. Research Fellow/Group Manager, Chemistry & Nanosciences Center, National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL)

Bio: Director for a major US Dept of Energy Consortium (minimum of $50M over 5 years), H2NEW (Hydrogen (H2) from Next-generation Electrolyzers of Water), focused on addressing components, materials integration, & manufacturing R&D to enable manufacturable electrolyzers that meet required cost, durability, & performance targets, simultaneously, in order to enable $2/kg hydrogen.

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· Vladimir Zinoviev, Director, Center for Energy & Infrastructure, University of National & World Economy
· Bryan Willson, Executive Director, Energy Institute, Colorado State University